A Letter to my Daughter, Michele: in response to her book, Black Macho and the Myth of the Superwoman

This is a very powerful book. Read in conjunction with Michele Wallace's Black Macho and the Myth of Superwoman, it constitutes a rare example of the kind of dialogue women should be having across generations about the different but compatible ways they see the condition and challenges of women. I particularly appreciated the definition of feminism: women learning to trust other women; and Faith's comments on the seductive power of "the pedestal." And yes, the chance to see Faith's art in this context -- most importantly her White People series, which I didn't know about before -- is a very important dimension. Finally, this book reminds us that mother/daughter relations may not be the easiest of bonds but they certainly are the most powerful and important.

I have lived with the text of this book, written by my mother, Faith Ringgold, about my first book Black Macho and the Myth of The Superwoman for 35 years. It is a pleasure to see it, finally, in this published form. Not only are the many beautiful reproductions of her art from the 1960s and the family photographs a delight for me to review once again, I am also pleased that I can finally read what she has to say with a fairly cool and appraising eye, able to take in the many merits and insights of the text. What surprises me about it the most is that my mother could have written this 35 years ago, at the age of 51, and still have the same opinions all these years later. Whereas, almost nothing I wrote in Black Macho would I repeat or continue to agree with now. I feel like I have changed in every way possible and that I am always changing, my opinions about such matters in particular. My mother's firmness and certainty continues to fascinate me.

First I’d like to review the physical nature of a Letter to My Daughter Michele. The book is a large 8.5 x 11 but is thin with only 75 pages. The large format gives the font plenty of space and makes it easy to read. There are 38 photos that are a mix of Faith Ringgold’s art and historic photos of family.Ringgold’s book was written over 30 years ago but remained unpublished until now. It is a line-by-line critique of Black Macho and the Myth of the Superwoman, a best selling book by Michele Wallace, Faith Ringgold’s daughter. Black Macho has remained in print for 35 years and has been a resource for Women’s Studies programs nation wide.Ringgold’s stories are very personal and written with focused fury. The energy is directed at the injustice of the inaccuracies written by her daughter and accepted as truth by the public. Faith had a need to set the record straight about Black Macho and the short comings of the feminist manifesto.In general it is a feminist critique on the 70’s feminism anthems. It’s a call to respect your mother, ancestors and your family and understand that they’re support is what we need to rise up to our potential. – Grace Matthews Dec 16, 2015