The Power of Sisterhood
By Rossella Forlè
In Spanish, there are two words for “power”: poder and potencia, which derive from the Latin potestas and potentia respectively. The Spinozist understanding of power identifies poder as static, constituted power, while “potencia” has a dynamic, constituent dimension.
Potencia defines our power to do, to be affected and to affect others, while poder refers to power over, a form of power with the mechanism of representation that separates the bodies being represented from their own potencia.
One of the central wagers of the feminist movement is on a different type of power, not the power of the state or centralised parties, but rather a power based on our collective capacity to do.
Sisterhood in fact is the type of power that surges from the feminist strike and that takes hold everywhere through the feminist internationalism. Beyond the philosophical debates, here a feminist potencia, refers to that collective capacity for creation. Thus, it remits to the question of desire, “the desire to change everything.” This desire is productive, constituting subjects and relations, and a fundamental element of the feminist tide.
Why sisterhood is powerful
The feminist movement has made the earth shake around the world. Half a million women, lesbians, trans people, and travestis came out to the marches following the 2017 International Women’s Strike; 800,000 women took the streets for International Women’s Day in 2018 and in 2019. At the same time, massive and sustained mobilisations for the legalisation of abortion took place throughout 2018, 2019, and 2020.
This fourth wave of feminism with its “hashtag activism” is responsible for building bonds among women, creating networks of mutual support online and offline and strengthening their awareness of social and legal rights. Creating intersectionality of perspectives that comes from networks composed of women and girls from all over the world.
Online social networks allowed women and girls to surf across national, cultural, class and religious boundaries and recognise common conditions, problems and feelings. This flow of communication via social media led to a new awareness is a "call out" culture that challenges misogyny and sexism, by providing a forum for discussions and a route for activism.
What about sisterhood at work?
Does the concept of sisterhood—women lifting other women up—exist in the workplace? Can we find this same collective capacity for creation in the workplace? When we talk about women’s relationships in the workplace, stories of infighting and flat-out mean female bosses seem to pervade popular culture.
Generalizations about women in the workplace, and particularly those in leadership positions, can be hard to shake. One commonly held belief is that women do not want to see other women (especially younger women) succeed:
The anecdotes of women in leadership who are antagonistic toward other women, sometimes called the “Queen Bee” phenomenon, bring to mind high school pecking orders and popularity contests. But that’s oversimplifying the issue. If we look at it in the context of a minority group making inroads at the top, it’s unfortunately common to distance yourself from others in your group and align yourself with the majority.
Assertive women are oftentimes perceived as going against gender norms, even in the eyes of other women. As a result, a confident female leader might be seen as aggressive or uncaring by the women who work for her, being held up to different standards than a male leader.
Sometimes we’re surprised when a woman turns out to be a “bad boss”—because we often, unknowingly hold them to different standards, perhaps expecting them to be more naturally nurturing or maternal. That’s why we tend to remember those negative instances more vividly than the great female bosses we may have encountered.
What can be done to build a stronger sense of sisterhood inside companies?
Rather than blaming a few women in leadership positions for being unsupportive, it’s more useful to look at ways that we can work together to counter the gender bias in organisational culture.
Disparity, when it comes to pay and opportunities, is further amplified for women of colour. Recognising this distinction is important in order for any women’s empowerment group to be truly inclusive.
Creating your own network of professional women and reaching out to female leaders in your organisation, is a great place to start. A community of women can be a powerful source of insight and career advice.
If you’re a senior leader, it’s important to use your position to address gender bias in hiring and promotion decisions. This could involve taking the initiative to identify well-qualified women if you see them being passed over.
What happens when women support each other?
In spite of negative stereotypes and gender bias in organisational cultures, the good news is that women really can lift each other up in their professional lives.
Women’s leadership success can be predicted by their networks: having an inner circle of strong women has been found to correlate with greater success, according to a study of job placements directly from graduate school.
When women have the support of other women, they are more likely to speak up about instances of discrimination or inequality. Working collectively, it’s easier to advocate for change within the organisation.
The organisation as a whole benefit—a supportive culture that recognises and fosters all talent will better retain and attract staff.
Do you belong to a supportive professional network of women? Tell us about it
References
Sisterhood is Powerful by Robin Morgan
Feminist International, How to Change Everything, Verónica Gago
Idealist – Career advice