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INTRODUCTION
Black feminist thought cannot challenge race, gender, and class oppression without empowering African-American women. "Oppressed people resist by identifying themselves as subjects, by defining their reality, shaping their new identity, naming their history, telling their story." 1
1. PATRICIA HILL COLLINS, BLACK FEMINIST THOUGHT: KNOWLEDGE, CONSCIOUSNESS, AND THE POLITICS OF EMPOWERMENT 34 (1991), (quoting BELL HOOKS, TALKING BACK: THINKING FEMINIST, THINKING BLACK 43 (1989)).
The practice of storytelling or Narrative 2 is deeply rooted in African-American culture. It is a tradition based on the continuity of wisdom, and it functions to assert the voice of the oppressed. Storytelling is not merely a means of entertainment. It is also an educational tool, and for many, it is a way of life. For others, it is the only way to comprehend, analyze, and deal with life.
2. These terms are used more or less interchangeably throughout the essay. Capitalizing "Narrative" can be seen as a means of elevating the status and importance of the word. In this way, Narrative is not simply a style or genre or writing, but rather a way of life and communication.
In this paper, I argue for the value of storytelling or Narrative in the broad and nebulous field of theory in general, with a particular focus on its utility in the area of Black Feminist Theory. 3 Most students of "the law"--whether the practice of law or the theory of its construction--have come to recognize legal theory as a rather intimidating area of study. This intimidation is grounded in the inaccessible language and abstract application of theoretical constructs. However, the importance of theory should not be dismissed, for theory is the key to growth and development in any discipline, and law is no exception. In constructing a theory which is to be applied to and understood by a particular part of society, the theory should be infused with that particular group's experiences. Recognition of this seemingly basic proposition is what has prompted feminist and critical race theorists to develop their own respective theoretical streams, which function to fill in the gaps which mainstream (i.e. white male patriarchal) theory has sorely neglected.
3. I use "Black," acknowledging that some members of the community of the African diaspora may prefer African-Canadian...