Although Saar considers herself to be a feminist, she avoids referring to her artwork as such. Instead, Saar prefers to emphasize the elements of cross-culturalism and spirituality that are present in her pieces. During the early 1970s, Betye Saar endured racism within the context of the white feminist arts movement. These experiences caused her to become interested in promoting a Black consciousness that was distinct from the Black power politics of the era. Saar's autobiographical representations of Black womanhood are not erotic and do not represent the body in an explicit manner; therefore, they exemplify a resistance to imaging the Black body. This resistance suggests her rejection of white feminism and her rejection of the "feminine aesthetic" that is determined by white feminists and grounded in female sexuality.