I read an article today about Simone Biles on the topic of Radical Courage. There are lots of article’s floating about I know so what could I possibly have to add?
Well, as ‘how women experience courage’ is the topic of my Phd, I know a fair bit about the different types of courage.
It’s a tricky construct to pin down for research. There isn’t an agreed definition of it but it’s the first time I’ve come across radical courage & I do love the idea of anything that’s radical.
The article in fact makes no reference to the term radical, or courage particularly – no doubt an eye catching heading, but it got me thinking about what radical courage could be?
I am some way off my thesis being completed, but find there is a type of courage unexplored in research to date, which I have been theoretically referring to myself in hushed tones in my office, as feminist courage. (taken a bit of courage for me to say this out loud to be completely honest)
Could Radical Courage be a better construct?
Let me explain the most oft cited types of courage:-
Physical courage. This is the courage most people think of first: bravery at the risk of bodily harm or death. It involves developing physical strength, resiliency, and awareness.
Social courage. This type of courage is also very familiar to most of us as it involves the risk of social embarrassment or exclusion, unpopularity or rejection. It also involves leadership.
Intellectual courage. This speaks to our willingness to engage with challenging ideas, to question our thinking, and to the risk of making mistakes. It means discerning and telling the truth.
Moral courage. This involves doing the right thing, particularly when risks involve shame, opposition, or the disapproval of others. Here we enter into ethics and integrity, the resolution to match word and action with values and ideals. Who we reveal ourselves to be through our words and actions. (Deeds not words!)
Emotional courage. This type of courage opens us to feeling the full spectrum of positive emotions, at the risk of encountering the negative ones. It is strongly correlated with happiness.
Spiritual courage. This fortifies us when we grapple with questions about faith, purpose, and meaning, either in a religious or nonreligious framework.
I now ask you to consider the above types of courage in the context of these individuals:-
JK Rowling
Cori Bush
Tarana Burke
Julie Bindel
Keira Bell
Rosie Duffield
Maya Forstater
Simone Biles
Now think about:-
Your friend walking home in the dark at night
Your colleague in an all male board meeting
The time you had to ask for help
Pushing him off & saying no
Asserting your boundaries
What it means to have an opinion on being a woman
Menopause
Miscarriage
Infertility
Domestic Abuse
In a world designed by men for men, women face risks, fears, discrimination, inequity that are real. Not imagined. Every day.
Every single one of those types of courage is part of how women experience being, on a daily basis. To a greater or lesser extent. Daily.
Courage for women isn’t always about growth & moving forwards. Big bravado, change-making, monumental, whistleblowing decisions & actions.
It’s a necessary force that sometimes means retreating as a route to protection & safety.
To ensure that when conditions are safe & we are psychologically ready we can apply the same courage for growth & change when we have the capacity to do so.
Courage can be simply a means of survival.
This is my Feminist Courage.
It’s all & more of the definitions of courage. Every day. All at once.
So can it be radical courage? Is that what Simone Biles practiced – or could feminist courage be different?
Radical
Adjective: (especially of change or action) relating to or affecting the fundamental nature of something; far-reaching or thorough.
Noun: a person who advocates thorough or complete political or social change, or a member of a political party or section of a party pursuing such aims.
The purpose for which we might decide & choose to practice courage may well be greater than the self (social courage) sometimes, we look at the actions of JK Rowling here speaking in defence of womens rights, where the risks are physical, emotional, social, intellectual, moral & arguably spiritual threats.
The motivation may well be social, but the risks are very much to the self.
If radical courage is a thing, I propose it’s a woman’s thing. On the basis that courage is a condition of being a woman in a world which seeks to present threats & risks as a means of control & power on the basis of biological sex.
Radical courage would have an intention about it that would be a consciously pro-socially motivated decision to create change.
To knowingly face the personal risks & fears for a greater good (most often contingent on being a woman). Maya Forstater, Rosie Duffield spring to mind. It wouldn’t be radical/feminist courage if it were a man.
I’m going to surmise Simone Biles is feminist courage not radical courage. One is no greater that the other – but I think the conscious purpose & intention matters. My research will continue to explore this theory.
Her intention I don’t think was to create social change, much commentary might suggest this is the case but it was not her motivation or intention. It was the courage to protect her self that she prioritised, her team mates to a degree perhaps.
Cognisant of the fact that as a black woman of profile, having the audacity to protect her self was in many ways an act of rebellion which would open her up to the risk of all the vulgarity & personal abuse that the media has to offer.
She is a woman of courage. She deserves praise, support & most of all the health & well being she has had the courage to prioritise for herself above all else in a world where accolades, titles & awards can seem to matter more at times than a life.