Beyoncé Feminism

During the 2014 MTV Video Music Awards, Beyoncé performed her song “Flawless” in front of a sign that read “Feminist.” Following this performance, singer-songwriter Annie Lennox referred to Beyoncé as “feminist lite.” Lennox claimed that Beyoncé was tokenizing the movement and stated that “twerking is not feminism.” Beyoncé feminism, however, asserts that twerking can indeed be a feminist practice—there is liberation in Black women exploring the depths of their sexuality, and respectability politics will not get us free.