WHY WE LOST THE SEX WARS

Political theorist Bracewell makes a stimulating book debut with a cogent analysis of feminist sexual politics, focusing on what has become known as “the catfight narrative”—a clash between anti-pornography feminists (Susan Brownmiller, Andrea Dworkin) concerned primarily with sexual danger and sex-radical feminists (Gayle Rubin, Carole Vance) who believe that any expression of sexual pleasure is potentially liberating. This clash, which had been brewing since the 1970s, erupted stridently in spring 1982 at a feminist conference at Barnard, which gathered 800 scholars, students, artists, and activists. Bracewell argues, however, that a narrative of rivalry is simplistic, leading to “narrow and debilitating feminist sexual politics.” Instead, she offers a more complex view by analyzing the relationship of feminism to the sexual politics of liberalism, of which both factions—along with “Black and third world feminists”—were critical. The author defines liberal as being committed to “individual liberty, limited government, and the public/private distinction” even when those beliefs result in exploitation and gender inequality. Unlike liberalism, feminism “is a politics defined by a deep concern for sexual injustice.” Bracewell regrets that in response to sexual injustice, feminism has turned to carceral solutions, insisting on “criminalization, policing, prosecution, and incarceration as integral to women’s liberation.” However, she also points out that when the only other remedies “are as feeble as trigger warnings,” carceral solutions—sought by the #MeToo movement—seem attractive. Ultimately, she warns that “where no crimes have been committed, sexual injustice may still have occurred, and if feminism is ever to be anything other than carceral feminism, then it must look beyond the attenuated sexual politics of liberalism.” In a text that may overwhelm general readers but will provide numerous avenues of discussion for feminist scholars, Bracewell urges feminists to recognize the significance of race and class in conceiving “potent, public, political, and, most importantly, anticarceral responses to sexual injustice."

A timely revisionist scholarly history certain to spark debate.