Equal pay, abortion rights, female empowerment and “leaning in" are rising tides that lift all boats. But what if your boat is sinking, sunk, or gone?

That's the pushback mainstream feminism has been getting, that it's focused on increasing privilege for the few and not on “basic survival for the many” according to Mikki Kendall.

Kendall wrote Hood Feminism: Notes from the Women That a Movement Forgot about real issues BIPOC women face. She knows a thing or two. She was once a single mom, raising her son on public assistance while working and going to college at the same time.

What’s not feminism but really should be? Here’s a few:

1. Gun Violence. Women are 5 times more likely to be killed in a domestic violence incident when there’s access to guns. Gun violence is a feminist issue because it can happen in every home and every bedroom, and it puts girls and women at risk. 
2. Hunger. Food insecurity leads to trade-offs with not so good choices. Fast food is cheaper than healthy food. Choose food or childcare, or medication, or safer housing, or education? Hunger is a feminist issue because most low-income marginalized women get hit by it. Why? Because …
3. Mass Incarceration. The war on crime has disproportionately imprisoned BIPOC men and broken so many families and communities. Criminal justice reform is a feminist issue because far too many BIPOC women are left to fend for themselves, earn a paycheck, keep the family together, educate the next generation, and yes, put food on the table.

Read this book if you want to learn more about issues like these and possible solutions.

In the meantime, we can support small businesses that have chosen to do something now, such as:

• Homegirl Café in Los Angeles providing jobs & safe spaces for women impacted by domestic violence, gangs, and incarceration,
• Taste Community Restaurant in Fort Worth serving anyone who is hungry, and
• Curious Iguana bookstore in Frederick, MD supporting various nonprofits like the Equal Justice Initiative for ending mass incarceration and excessive punishment and Children of Incarcerated Parents Partnership for helping children impacted by the incarceration of a loved one.

“Have you heard?” is our way of sharing another point of view on commonly held beliefs. Through this we hope to encourage curiosity, dialogue, and tolerance of diverse ideas.