How We Get Free

By Keeanga-Yamahtta Taylor

How We Get Free explores the history, ideas, and ongoing influence of the Combahee River Collective, one of the most important Black feminist organizations of the twentieth century. Edited by Keeanga-Yamahtta Taylor, the book features conversations with Collective members Barbara Smith, Beverly Smith, and Demita Frazier, alongside the original 1977 Combahee River Collective Statement. The book examines how Black feminists challenged movements that ignored the experiences of Black women while also challenging broader systems of racism, sexism, class inequality, and oppression. It offers a powerful examination of identity, liberation, and the belief that true freedom requires addressing the interconnected systems that shape people’s lives.

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At a Glance

"The major systems of oppression are interlocking."

Why This Book Matters

The book elevates the experiences and leadership of Black women whose contributions have often been minimized in traditional histories of social movements.

Expands the Definition of Freedom

It challenges readers to understand liberation as something that must include justice across race, gender, class, and identity.

Connects History to Today

The ideas developed by the Combahee River Collective continue to influence conversations about equality, activism, and social change.

Key Themes

Black Feminism

Explores the development of Black feminist thought and the importance of centering Black women’s experiences.

Intersectionality

Examines how race, gender, class, sexuality, and other identities intersect to shape people’s lived experiences.

Collective Liberation

Highlights the belief that freedom requires transforming systems that impact entire communities.

Activism and Organizing

Explores how grassroots movements create lasting social change.

The Power of Voice and Experience

Shows why personal experiences and marginalized perspectives are essential to understanding justice.

What You'll Learn

How the Combahee River Collective shaped modern Black feminist thought.
Why Black women created their own organizing spaces within broader movements.
How intersectionality became a framework for understanding overlapping forms of oppression.
The connection between personal experience and political activism.
Why collective action remains essential in movements for liberation.

Reflection Questions

Why is it important to center the experiences of those most affected by systems of inequality?
How does intersectionality change the way we understand social justice?
What can today’s movements learn from the organizing strategies of the Combahee River Collective?
Why do diverse voices strengthen movements for change?
How can communities build more inclusive visions of freedom?

About the Author

Keeanga-Yamahtta Taylor

Keeanga-Yamahtta Taylor is an award-winning author, scholar, activist, and professor whose work focuses on race, inequality, politics, and social movements. She is a professor of African American Studies at Princeton University and has written extensively about Black political history, racial capitalism, and movements for social justice. Through her scholarship and writing, Taylor examines the connections between historical struggles and contemporary movements for liberation. The book also centers the voices and legacy of the Combahee River Collective, a Black feminist organization founded in Boston in the 1970s whose members developed one of the most influential statements on Black feminism and intersectionality.

About the Author

Keeanga-Yamahtta Taylor

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