This International Women's Day, Star Books and Literature brings to you a list of five books that delve into the history of feminist movements and feminist resistance. As women continue to face increasingly intolerant and indeed, violent attacks from different quarters in contemporary Bangladesh, it is essential that we turn towards our feminist foremothers—whose hard work helped pave the way for a more equitable society—and remember to remain cautious and alert about our hard-earned rights. For as history teaches us again and again, the struggle for women's rights is constant and ongoing. An even more important reminder is that rights, once won, are not permanent and can be taken away by forces that want to oppress and silence women.

Feminism is for everybody

bell hooks

Pluto Press, 2000

For many, feminist theory, and in turn feminism itself, can seem like a daunting undertaking. Because theoretical texts tend to be dense and difficult to make out, people often come to know about feminism "thirdhand", as hooks puts it, from the media and social circles they interact with. As such, feminism is easily and sometimes maliciously misconstrued, leading to women being labelled "feminazis" or, as is more commonplace on Bangladeshi social media, "neribadi". But feminism isn't "man hating", and men themselves are not free from patriarchal oppression. bell hooks' short but welcoming treatise on feminism—and its intersections with politics, class, and society at large—invites readers to close the distance and learn firsthand what feminism is, what it stands for, and how it advocates for all.

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Books about female rage

Sisters in the Mirror: A History Of Muslim Women And The Global Politics Of Feminism

Elora Shehabuddin

UPL, 2024

Challenging the western feminist preoccupation of rescuing "third-world Muslim women" from oppression and otherness, Shehabuddin's work presses against the monolithic categorisation of 'Muslim women" and takes a closer look at the construction and development of Bengali Muslim female identity from pre-colonial times to the post-Independence Bangladeshi feminist landscape. The book's attempt to destigmatise the categories "Muslim" and "women" from the hegemonic, Eurowestern ideals intent on seeing them as separate and therefore, othered is significant. The "mirror" from the title is Shehabuddin drawing a parallel along the lines of empathy, camaraderie and solidarity between the west and the east and our collective feminist struggles.

Women, Race, Class

Angela Davis

Random House, 1981

A classic for a reason, Davis examines the American women's liberation movement and asserts the issue of blackness and femininity into mainstream feminist discourse. One of the earlier texts to incorporate the intersectional approach of race, gender, and class, Davis' text is foundational to our understanding of the role class plays in women's emancipation and access to quality life.

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Living a feminist killjoy life

The Master's Tools Will Never Dismantle the Master's House

Audre Lorde

Penguin UK, 2018

"What does it mean when the tools of a racist patriarchy are used to examine the fruits of that same patriarchy? It means that only the most narrow perimeters of change are possible and allowable."

Whether oppressive systems can be transformed from within has long been a subject of discussion, with theorists such as Lorde concluding that, without a complete overhaul of such structures, it is impossible to effect meaningful change. In "The Master's Tools Will Never Dismantle the Master's House", Lorde also criticises the feminisms of white and other "socially acceptable" women, who conveniently leave more marginalised out of their activism because it requires them to acknowledge their own privilege. In another essay from this collection, "The Uses of Anger: Women Responding to Racism", Lorde highlights the importance of women holding on to the anger they feel at the constant barrage of injustices they are subjected to, and urges women to channel it constructively as a means of both taking up space and bringing about lasting change.

Ekattorer Dinguli

Jahanara Imam

Shandhani Prokashoni, 1986

Drawn from daily diary entries written during the 1971 war, Jahanara Imam's memoir Ekattorer Dinguli offers a powerful firsthand account of the country's nine-month struggle for freedom, weaving a personal story with the country's political fate.The book is a significant historical and literary work on the Liberation War, providing first hand testimonies of violence within the larger framework of the independence struggle. To preserve authenticity, Imam thoroughly verified details, especially concerning guerrilla tactics, by reviewing 80 audio recordings of interviews of surviving freedom fighters who fought alongside her son, Shafi Imam Rumi, and other witnesses of the war. In subsequent interviews, she revealed her awareness of the dangers associated with documenting sensitive information about guerrilla activities and explained the methods she employed to safeguard the journal's contents. Imam filled her journal with mundane details, creating the facade of a bored housewife's thoughts. While her longing for her son was central to her, as she waited for him every day of the war, she also used coded language, such as replacing "six rifles" with "six sarees," and employed pseudonyms to safeguard the identities of the soldiers. The book underscores women's active participation in the larger political struggles that have been foundational to the existence of Bangladesh as a country.