Indeed, sisterhood is something of a feminist legacy, a relationship of steadfast love and loyalty that provides safety and shelter as well as never-ending arguments over the stealing of clothes, who’s turn it is on the PlayStation etc. Sisters are a constant source of community for women in a society that actively seeks to isolate and separate us from one another.
I am lucky enough to have been able to experience this community and relationship from birth, the balance of unquestionable love with petty arguments pretty much summing up me and my sister’s relationship. Although we have had a relationship of near constant struggle, we have been able to find forgiveness and acceptance of one another’s flaws. For example, I once unfortunately made my sister ‘the worst meal she had ever had’ (yes that’s a direct quote, thanks Zadie!) but she found it in herself to forgive me, and my amazing ability to mess up something as simple as fajitas. I personally do not think they were that bad, but I guess that’s another part of sisterhood: failing to agree on most things. Regardless, I know that she will always be there for me no matter what (as long as fajitas aren’t involved).
A sister is someone who isn’t going anywhere anytime soon
That’s the beauty of sisterhood: that, in spite of the most serious of arguments, reconciliation is always there on the horizon. A sister is someone who isn’t going anywhere anytime soon. And sisterhood is, of course, not just limited to blood relations. For all you only children out there, you too can experience the highs and lows of sisterhood. In this day and age, where the patriarchy is still running rampant, finding that sense of sisterhood outside of the family is practically a matter of survival. Indeed, without this sense of sisterhood, the feminist movement would have been halted a long, long time ago - or maybe it never would have existed in the first place. Patriarchy, therefore, actively persecutes sisterhood for its ability to offer women escape and support.
One of the earliest representations of sisterhood, and its subsequent persecution, can be seen in the covens of witches that were formed and destroyed during the middle ages. A lot of these covens were actually revealed as simple communities of women sharing knowledge - not actually meetings of evil monstrosities working to undermine the rules of nature. The only thing being undermined was male authority and domination; being burnt at the stake was evidently the only logical move to make.
Fight the patriarchy by finding sisterhood - together, we can overcome whatever life may throw at us
Luckily we are no longer being murdered as witches, but that is not to say that the patriarchy’s attack on sisterhood has ended. It has simply changed with the times. Instead of being burned alive, or drowned in rivers, women are still constantly being turned against one another. We are forced to compete in a capitalist, male-dominated society that still places more value on how good we look in high heels rather than our brains and intellect. Instead of sisters we are turned into competitors, making those close female relationships hard to form, and even harder to maintain.
Unfortunately, this sort of female competition is commonly presented throughout everyday life and popular media - Mean Girls being a prime example. Big love to the icon that is Regina George, but Mean Girls undeniably exemplifies how women are pitted against each other through the constant comparison and criticism, which alienates us from one another instead of encouraging mutual trust and beneficial support. Competition and the feeling of comparing ourselves to each other is also a familiar experience for me and has been a key cause to a lot of arguments between my sister and I - something we have had to work to overcome (and are still working on).
Competition is the new stake upon which the patriarchy would see us burn. We must fight this woman versus woman mindset and confront our own internalisation of these pervasive stereotypes if we are to find sanctuary in sisterhood. As dramatic as this sounds, it does not change the truth of the matter. In university, sisterhood is as important as at any other stage of our lives. My own sister and family live a four hour drive away from Newcastle so first year was definitely a lonely time for me, and it was not until semester two that I really started to find that sort of sisterly female bond at university. Now, I have a group that I can talk to about anything, and true we probably do overshare (it gets a bit grim sometimes), but we have built that unbreakable bond so that these details can be shared, can be talked about. Its hard to put yourself out there with new people, especially with that ingrained fear of the ‘mean girl’, but it is necessary for our own sanity, as well as for the progression of feminism as a whole.
Fight the patriarchy by finding sisterhood - together, we can overcome whatever life may throw at us (issues surrounding fajitas notwithstanding).