Dictionary

white women's tears en · NOUN

Pronunciation

• (General-American) audio

Meanings

1. (derogatory, plural, plural-only) A display of tears or unhappiness from a white woman, often feigned, that brings attention to her feelings and sense of victimhood in response to criticism by black women.
   • This attempt to separate the personal and political is central to white women’s tears as a strategic device. We demand to be treated as ‘just a person’ who should be granted the benefit of the doubt, who exists outside racialised structures and power relations even as our actions perpetuate them. 2021 February 14, Alison Phippshttps, “White tears, white rage: Victimhood and (as) violence in mainstream feminism”, in European Journal of Cultural Studies, volume 24, number 1, Springer, →DOI, →ISSN, page 85 of 81–93:
   • A few weeks ago, I had lunch with a childhood friend. White girl from the Southside of Chicago, she's now a professor here in NE. Our friendship ended at 18. Why? White woman tears. I told her she made me feel like a charity case and it hurt her feelings. 2018 April 17, @blackgirlinmain [Shay Stewart Bouley], Twitter (post):
   • Picture it: a white woman feels challenged or uncomfortable about something a Black person said or did. Instead of using her words, she cries. Instantly, no matter what the initial catalyst of the situation is, she ends up being appeased, pacified and pampered. Lawd knows we’ve all seen virtual white woman tears shut down conversation, even if she was the instigator of conflict. […] 2018 April 17, “About the Weary Weaponizing of White Women Tears”, in Awesomely Luvvie:
   • The media circus around the [Donna] Fasano case was always about what we might now call “white women's tears” 2023 July, Jennifer C. Nash, Samantha Pinto, “Everybody's Maybes: Reproducing Feminism's Bad Objects”, in South Atlantic Quarterly, volume 122, number 3:
   • In analyzing the literature, specifically by Matias (2013, 2017, 2019), we find that White women's tears are nothing more than the emotionalities of Whiteness as they use this tactic in such a way to pull attention toward themselves, and in my case, away from the culturally affirming activities that were implemented for our students. 2022, Natalie L. Parker-Holliman, Garry E. Butler, “Schoolhouse Sarah”, in Aaron J. Griffen, editor, R.A.C.E. Mentoring and P-12 Educators:

Forms

Relateds

missing white woman syndrome · crocodile tears

Synonyms

white lady tears · white tears