Some would call it rambling

Events like a graduation never seem complete without a few did-he-really-just-say-thats and are-we-actually-having-this-discussions. Mine was witness to a denouncement of feminists, with a bit of a back-tracking defense that although all feminists are crazy, he supports women’s activists. Perhaps that individual should be more attentive to the company he keeps. I err in blind condemnation, however. Once upon a time, I too thought feminists were crazy, even while supporting women’s rights. That’s why my gender studies courses have been so important to me. They have given me the language to articulate those thoughts, feelings, and observations that have long given me discomfort, even if I couldn't quite put a finger on why. Now I have positionality, intersectionality, and hegemonic masculinity (it would be nice if Microsoft Word did too- those red squigglys are so unbecoming to my manifesto).

It’s shameful that that may be my most persuasive self-check is self-identification. I agree with getting angry, I agree with protest, outcry, endurance, and firm-resolve. The comment from that individual did come from at least a sliver (albeit teeny tiny) of reality. Sometimes being a warrior becomes being a crusader. And I think as soon as a mission is given such divine status, it loses focus. Gods, in any case, can justify all. The rare outlier that does fall into man-hating is likely guilty of complicity with privilege. Is that individual white, middle-class, heterosexual, able-bodied, sound of mind, thin but not too thin, youthful (ad infinitum)?  For me to even have such thoughts, at least so clearly formulated in my mind, I owe Kimberle Crenshaw for giving me “intersectionality” and the scholars who built upon her work.

Another particular addition to my vernacular has been especially timely: victim-blaming. News recently has been jointly filled with sexualized violence and its explaining away via excusing the perpetrator. Like the Steubenville case, blame is being routinely shifted to the victim. During the semester, we had the opportunity to read “'Nothing really happened': the invalidation of women's experiences of sexual violence,” in Next Critical Social Policy by Liz Kelly and Jill Radford.  The use of repetition as a persuasive rhetoric tool as well as articulate analysis on domestic and sexualized violence in this chapter really helped elucidate the absurdity of victim-blaming for me. It dovetailed well with our reading of the Continuum of Sexual Violence, which, additionally, maintains connections with Connell’s conceptions of hegemonic masculinity, as both examine the pervasiveness and infiltration of various aspects of privilege in US society and some of the writings by Ann Jones. Concurrently, I’ve lately avoided complete cynicism by rejoicing in the fact that conversation is happening. The fact that it seems to be being debated now seems to suggest that the reliance on “tradition,” or “the way it’s always been” is being challenged. I relish that. And then I hear an esteemed female physician on NPR discussing community- and patient-based health care declare that women are “universally” communicative, chatty, and desirous of discussing such topics as menopause and I waver between excusing her for having been raised in the US’s system of stark and hierarchical gender dichotomies and denouncing her as a betrayer of women.

I feel as though I should end with an acknowledgement of the more international-minded of our class’s readings. In particular, I enjoyed What Kind of Liberation? Women and the Occupation of Iraq by Nadje al-Ali and Nicola Pratt. Themes of positionality and intersectionality were replayed. The need to feminize security studies was also underlined. As the rhetorical title indicates, claims of women’s liberation for the Iraq War have not been well met in its aftermath. The book did an excellent job of elucidating the specific challenges that some women in Iraq face, the role of the international system and the United States, and the shared global system of patriarchy, consequences in tow. Ultimately, our internationally-focused readings helped to dissolve “us” vs. “them” heuristics by uncovering shared experiences.

Crisis In the Congo Reflection - Uncovering the Truth Reflection

I attended the Crisis in the Congo film screening and discussion. I particularly liked the message of the discussion that centered on the important role that professors, students, activists and ordinary people can play in effecting positive change in the Congo. The talk featured Kambale Musavuli, a student coordinator and national spokesperson for “Friends of Congo”.

I think Musavuli could have focused more on the role of women in international politics and the potential to address the ensuing violence by opening more positions for women in military, aid and trade negotiations. Women are considerably marginalized in the world of international politics, which is heavily gendered (Enloe, 1990). The power of local elites depends on their relation to metropolitan powers in the post-colonial capitalism in the Congo. Thus, uncomfortably suspended between local and global culture lies hegemonic masculinity of neocolonial societies (Connell, 2000). I think this plays a major role in the Congolese relationship with the U.S. and other western powers, which influences the continued violence. 

The opening film was quite graphic. Usually I don’t particularly like shock-value cinematography that simply uses dead bodies or starving children like props, but the film used these images in a meaningful and evocative way. I think for many people living in privileged societies, such as the United States, it can be easy to forget that there are still incredibly violent and torturous wars going on throughout the world. These images provoked a sense of urgency that is necessary. It reminded me of the power point Ann Jones showed us. The beautiful photographs of nature and the women’s dreams, intermixed with images of domestic violence and torture. In the same way the film juxtaposes the beautiful images of the Congo, with immense natural resources, with the heart-wrenching images of dead families.

As we have been discussing in the Davies Forum, institutionalized hierarchies of oppression are extremely difficult to not only challenge, but to simply get people to consciously recognize their existence. The film explored the role the United States and other allies, such as Uganda and Rwanda, played in triggering an extensive humanitarian crisis. France, Belgium and the U.S. have killed millions of Congolese, mainly due to foreign intervention in an effort to gain control of Congo’s extensive mineral wealth. Musavuli stressed the importance of recognizing the role of these western powers in the ensuing violence. I think this particular stress on recognition of privilege and power translates to feminist activism as well. If we could get people to actively reflect on and discover the ways in which gender hierarchies and oppression play a role in their everyday lives that would make the prospects for change much greater.

I particularly liked Musavuli’s promotion of community building through collaboration of Congolese youth, human rights activists and international actors. Sometimes aid projects have the tendency to simply ignore the needs or input of local populations and impose western ideals onto a certain society. He briefly mentioned that women could be part of this group, but I feel that their roles could be much more prominent than a simple side note. Promoting the same ideals as the projects Ann Jones worked with in Thailand and Cote D’Ivoire, women should have access to the tools to promote and articulate the issues within their own communities. Although I recognize the predominant need to end the violence, I believe women can develop a strong voice in conjunction with establishing peace. One does not negate the other, in the name of efficiency and time management. 

--Erika

On the Continuum of (Sexualized) Violence

During our last class we began talking about the continuum of (sexualized) violence, as identified by feminist scholars (such as Ann Jones, Liz Kelly, Jacqui True), as well as about linkages between masculinity and violence (drawing on the work of R.W. Connell in particular)... I would love to hear any follow-up reflections or thoughts - please post as a comment to this entry.

Next week we'll continue talking about the issues - looking at a variety of case studies from many parts of the world, some drawn from the work of Ann Jones, who is coming to visit us to talk about her work in Winter In Kabul: Life Without Peace in Afghanistan (Picador: 2009) and War is Not Over When It’s Over: Women Speak Out From the Ruins of War (Metropolitan Books: 2009).

As before, students will be posting summaries of some of the case studies on this blog.