vul·ner·a·ble

/ˈvəlnər(ə)bəl/

adjective

susceptible to physical or emotional attack or harm.

“African-American women have been victimized by race, gender, and class oppression. But portraying Black women solely as passive, unfortunate recipients of racial and sexual abuse stifles notions that Black women can actively work to change our circumstances and bring about changes in our lives. Similarly, presenting African-American women solely as heroic figures who easily engage in resisting oppression on all fronts minimizes the very real costs of oppression and can foster the perception that Black women need to help because we can ‘take it.’”

— Patricia Hill Collins in Black Feminist Thought, 1990