College Feminists Connect!

Women's HERstory Month

Each year, I am ashamed to say, it always slips my mind that March is Women's History Month. I just totally forget that there is a month dedicated to the history of women. Why is that? It isn't because I don't think it's a good idea. It isn't because I don't love women (I think I have made it very clear that I do). It isn't because I don't consider myself a feminist (I mean...obviously...I'm interning at the Women's Consortium. I'm a die-hard feminist). I think the reason I forget is because, quite honestly, as a woman, as a women's studies student, EVERYday and EVERYmonth is Women's History month to me. I think about women, my makers and educators and those powerful individuals that have shaped me, I think about them and the stories they created, every waking second. These women are so powerful to me that they transcend a month of dedication. I'm not saying I disagree with this. I think it's wonderful (just as with Black History Month) that we have four weeks dedicated to the greatness of these oppressed peoples. I would hope, though, that after March (or February) is done that this awareness would continue on. However, despite the memoriams throughout these months, we tend to slip back into the rut of ourselves, of a patriarchal hegemonic society, once they are over. So I want to inspire us to notice these people (and, just in celebration of the impending month I will focus solely on women) in our everyday lives because, in all truth, they have impacted us in every way (even when we do not realize it).♀ I love ALL women (both transgender and cisgender women). I love womyn of all sizes, colors and sexualities. I love womyn of all ages, classes, nationalities and abilities. From all political backgrounds and passions. Women are my friends, my lover, my mentors and advisers, teachers, heroes, mother/grandmothers/aunts. I love women because they are strong, intelligent, capable and beautiful beings. I love women because they teach me how to be the woman I want to be. I love working with women, playing with women, collaborating with women, learning with women, talking to women and being artistic with women. Although the feminist movements had&have flaws, I am still proud to say that I am an advocate for feminism trying to champion and fix those failures. Because my love for all women is so strong, enduring, intense and true ♀ xoxo 

My SHEroes are the women who pioneered for me the notion that a woman is so much more than what societies allow her to be. A woman is more than a textbook history, more than a media portrayal. More than any of us may even know about ourselves. These women taught me how to be more...

♀♀♀♀For each week of this month

                  I will post a miniature bio

           of 2 of the women I most admire.♀♀♀♀

 Here is the beginning of the list of some of my personal SHEroes...

 

• Willa Cather: Was an American Novelist. Her stories detailed life on the Great Plains (some of her greatest works are O' Pioneer, Song of the Lark and My Antonia), her protagonists almost always were young women. She grew up in Nebraska, attended the University of Nebraska (where she often used the name "william", dressed in "man's clothes" and cut her hair short) and, later, won a Pulitzer Prize for her novel One of Ours (set during WWI). There is a lot buzz around whether or not Cather was a lesbian, but not much proof either way. Some debate that her writings had queer tendencies or could be applied to queer theory. Despite whether or not these accusations are true Cather's most significant and impactful friendship was with the editor Edith Lewis of whom she lived with for 39 years, until her death. Towards the end of her career she started receiving negative criticism that attacked her supposed "romantic" (etc) manner of writing. This criticism was hard on her and she became reclusive. Due to this she destroyed most of her drafts, letters, notebooks, etc. Her style of writing can be dubbed romantic (which has negative connotations), but I believe it is better described as poetic and detailed. Her depiction of women is that of strong individuals who hold powerful positions (they aren't made out to be bimbos or femme fatales). As a young girl in home-school my mother had me read My Antonia, and later I would be drawn to O, Pioneers as well as Song of the Lark. As a thirteen year old I loved having a strong, literary, woman figure to idolize and admire (the way they adventured, made friends, followed their dreams, kept the farm running, held a business, inherited their father's land, etc). Her characters made me dream of this life. They inspired adventure in me.

                                                        Willa Cather

• Sophie Scholl: *9 May 1921 – 22 February 1943* (along with the other members of the White Rose non-violence resistance group). Executed because she was convicted of high-treason, because of her/their resistance and revolutionary ideas/actions against Nazi Germany (non-violent opposition). Initially the group just consisted of her brother and his friends, they later realized what a vital role S.Scholl would have in the movement (being a woman, she was less of a suspect for the SS). They co-authored several anti-Nazi pamphlets. One of my greatest heroes & role models. She taught me the power of peaceful resistance and dedication to what you believe in. A wonderful, inspirational and brave individual to recognize and look up to.

                                                            Sophie Scholl
        

 

To be Continued...

-Anna Ruhland

Follow Up on Lara Nielsen Tenure Support

Check out this awesome article published in Macalester College's independent student newspaper: 

Students Show Support for Lara Nielsen Through Art and Sound

 

Oscars 2013

I came across an article titled "Seth MacFarlane and the Oscars’ Hostile, Ugly, Sexist Night" by Amy Davidson that I thought I might share with you all here. 

"Watching the Oscars last night meant sitting through a series of crudely sexist antics led by a scrubby, self-satisfied Seth MacFarlane. That would be tedious enough. But the evening’s misogyny involved a specific hostility to women in the workplace, which raises broader questions than whether the Academy can possibly get Tina Fey and Amy Poehler to host next year. It was unattractive and sour, and started with a number called 'We Saw Your Boobs.'"

Read more here.

What did you all think of the Oscars last night? Were you as angry as I was?

-Ingrid

Augsburg College Women's Resource Center's blog!

The student workers at the Women's Resource Center at Augsburg just created a new blog.  I thought I'd share that here with all of you in order to encourage even more conversations.  The latest post is about rape culture and athletes.  Check it out!

Peace, Ingrid

My Ode to Menstruation

Usually I am not the biggest fan of Vice Magazine, --->but this article<---Usually I am not the biggest fan of Vice Magazine, but an article that was posted on their blog brings up some issues/ideas/opinions that I don't normally feel towards most things written for/by them. It's an article that consists of everyday images of female/woman-bodied individuals, doing monotonous, mundane things. The aspect of these photoraphs that is so "unique" or, "unusual", however, is that they are all bleeding/menstruating and the blood is soaking their garments or dripping down their legs. At first I thought 'wow, cool, this is advocating for women to embrace their natural, bodily function rather than hide it away!" but again, I thought "but would I do that? I'm very open about my period and am verbal about how much I love and embrace it but I would never let it drip all over me for everybody to see, just like I would never let any of my bodily fluids drip all over me and my clothing". But I'm hesitant to liken menstruation to other natural bodily fluids or excrements, bowel movements or urine, which are dirty soils and are associated with dirty things, things our bodies want to dispose of, things that pop-culture and the media like to make fun of and use as fodder for crude jokes. I want periods to be discussed in a manner that provides an arena for this beautiful, natural occurence to receive the recognition and acknowledgement that it deserves. I don't want it to be made into a joke, to have to go as far as to be made into this intense-in your face-sexualized bodily function or to have to stoop to the level of being subdued or stiffled. I want menstruation to be something that women can talk about comfortably, ask questions about. Maybe not necessarily blab about it at volume 10 in their co-ed classroom. But, then again, maybe male-bodied individuals need to learn how to respect menstruation enough to understand that it isn't something to be grossed or weirded out by. That, even if you ignore it or don't want to listen to people talking about it doesn't stop it from happening ALL THE TIME. I want women to be able to understand their bodies, to leave shame behind and learn how to completely and totally feel free and one with their physical selves. I want women to know how to adequatly take care of themselves, dote on their bodies, know what the different textures and colors mean, what varying menstrual products are best for their bodies, for the environment. I also want female/woman-bodied individuals to feel comfortable reading about their periods, looking at art creations (see: May Ling Su "On My Period", Carolee Schneemann *pulling a scroll out of her vagina*, Zanele Muholi, Ingrid Berthon-Moine, Judy Chicago "Red Flag", etc etc) that depict periods in an aesthetically beautiful, abstract and artistically rendered way. I want women to know where to search these resources out. I want women to come together and embrace one another and their shared, united similarities/experiences as well as their wonderful, apparent differences. I want women to be able to feel whole, welcomed, to realize that NO aspect of their body is wicked or dirty. To be able to sucessfully do this, however, we need to find a means in which we can talk about menstruation but also avoid conflict. How can we create a menstrual imagery without simultaneously creating menstrual hate, or, furthering societal/media stereotypes? Many artists have tried and succeeded, but many have also been silenced and, in their wake, have left behind a movement, despite it being one that is equally silenced. I despise how I feel like my period is pornographic, X-rated. I hate how, even posting this, I feel like I need to censor myself. Replace "period" with childish, flowery phrases like "my monthly visitor" or "when mother nature calls". It's called a PERIOD, dammit! There is nothing wrong or evil about that. There is nothing shameful or wrong, and this is what I am thankful for these artists, social media (some) and individuals for attempting to do. I love my period because it reminds me of who I am, who the women before me were. And this is my personal account, because I am fortunate enough to have been born in a body that I feel right in. Menstruation is a constant reminder of that. I celebrate when it arrives, despite my groaning. I look forward to it coming because it makes me feel alive, like a woman, like a functioning body that operates the way I want it to operate. We need to reclaim menstruation, for ourselves (if our bodies are those that we are comfortable living in), and for others and to recognize the constant beauty and wonderful functions and creations that it can and does provide.

 

-Anna Ruhland

"Poet, professor Wang Ping sues Macalester College" - more tenure decision backlash

In the past weeks I have written here about the recent student uprising in response to professor Lara Nielsen's tenure denial.  Last week, this story surfaced: English professor Wang Ping is suing Macalester College for discrimination as a free academic thinker, woman, and Chinese-American.  In the wake of all the drama surrounding Lara Nielsen's appeal for tenure, the release of this story is timely, to say the least. I am curious to see how the administration handles the current situation in light of Wang Ping's lawsuit. Here are some links to more on the issue:

Facebook group, We Support Wang Ping

Star Tribune article, here

and the lengthy Facebook status that has gone viral, written by Wang Ping herself:

Andrea Gibson

Tonight, I had the incredible opportunity to see Andrea Gibson perform at Augsburg College in front of around 200 people. If you have ever had the chance to see Andrea perform, you understand her mastery of spoken word and ability to leave audiences feeling both renewed and challenged.  One audience member asked Andrea what she does when she experiences "creator's block," to which Andrea responded with a challenge--to challenge creative people to not wait for the mood to strike them to create, but rather to actively create.  I was left with the impression that this challenge does not just apply to creating work, but rather to all forms of creative thought and action.  Her call to move forward is directly related to her passion for social justice: to inspire others to create a more just world in the ways that we are able to.

If you have not checked out some of Andrea's work, I strongly recommend that you do.

-Ingrid

 

Andrea Gibson at Augsburg College

"Andrea Gibson is not gentle with her truths. It is this raw fearlessness that has led her to the forefront of the spoken word movement– the first winner of the Women’s World Poetry Slam –Gibson has headlined prestigious performance venues coast to coast with powerful readings on war, class, gender, bullying, white privilege, sexuality, love, and spirituality." -Source

Tomorrow evening, February 18, activist and spoken word artist Andrea Gibson will be performing at Augsburg College in Minneapolis. This event will be free and is open to the public.  Doors will open at 6:30 pm and the performance will begin at 7:00 pm.  The performance will be held in Augsburg's Hoversten Chapel in Foss Center (625 22nd Avenue South, Minneapolis, MN 55454).

Hope you can make it! This will be an incredible event.

For your viewing pleasure, here is a video of one of her pieces, "Say Yes."

 

 

-Ingrid

Dr. Miranda Joseph: Gender, Entrepreneurial Subjectivity, and Pathologies of Personal Finance

Today, Macalester College's Women's, Gender, and Sexuality Studies Department hosted Dr. Miranda Joseph to talk about gendered subjects as constructed through economic hegemonies.  Dr. Miranda Joseph is an Associate Professor and Director of Graduate Studies at the University of Arizona - her first book, Against the Romance of Community, utilizes Marxist theory to examine the hyper-idealized vocabulary of community. She is currently working on a project called A Debt to Society, which is the research she drew from for her speech tonight.

Dr. Joseph walked us through the basic progression of economics in the U.S. - starting with a production-based late 19th century, moving to a consumption-happy mid-20th century.  She argues that post-1970s, the idea of the individual as the financer came to the forefront in response to lowered wages.  Finance created a system of credit and debt to make up for this lost income.  Today, our personal identities are inextricably linked to our ability to finance, as Dr. Joseph highlighted in noting that "identity theft" primarily refers to a stolen credit card.  After the 2008 financial crisis, a narrative was constructed to explain the economic collapse, which blamed the individual for making poor choices about mortgages they couldn't afford or understand. Dr. Joseph's research analyzes how gender and sexuality are implicated in this narrative, via marketing strategies, popular culture, and social science scholarship/research.  

Have a Very Merry Inclusive Valentine's Day

But also, it's cis-gendered and heteronormative. What better way to perpetuate and condone societal definitions of "love", "relationships" and "lifestyles" than going into any store and only finding cards that adhere to the idea of a "heterosexual norm". It hasn't hit mainstream stores yet, but, the only GLBTQ related cards I have seen thus far come from the creative minds on Etsy (obviously not as accessible as Target, although much more supportive of individual artists).And back to these gender-stereotypes...there is some weird dominance surrounding Valentine's cards/greetings, some strange sort of romantic-aggression that I find disconcerting. Maybe I'm looking at too many vintage cards from the '20s where the man-figure in the card persisted, relentlessly, to pursue the woman-figure in the card. Or why is the woman always a tease? It's mysoginistic and demeaning to define a woman's role in comparison to a man's role (to state the obvious) but it even shows through in romantic gestures. By defining women by their relationships to other people is hardly an act of romantic expression. Why isn't the woman showering the man in this heterosexual card with flowers and chocolate and puppies? Pretty sure men like that stuff, as well...I mean, they are human...who doesn't like sugar and cute animals?

I also believe that, with all this focus on out-doing someone romantically or, "since its Valentine's Day we have to do something extra special and loving and we have to be extra nice and caring towards one another more so than we do any other day of the year", we tend to forget that we should show love and gratitude and appreciation 24/7. Not just to our partners, but to the guy on the street, the woman in the library, the elderly neighbor shoveling their snow. Small acts of kindness that occur everyday of the year are much more meaningful than stressing over buying last minute flowers. Love for a stranger, for fellow-humankind is just as strong and necessary. (although I do appreciate that this holiday tries to spread the feeling of love versus that of hate).

And what better way of celebrating a Saint who secretly married people against the law (because HEEELLOOOO love transcends laws and should be allowed to EVERYONE) than going to a Freedom to Marry protest? Let's make Valentine's Day love inclusive to everyone! Where are my Homo-tine cards at?!? Or, celebrate Valentines day by celebrating VDAY. Spread love to your Vagina, treat it well, show som appreciation for yourSELF

I may be cynical when it comes to Valentine's Day, simply because I think we should spread love all year 'round, and I believe that we all forget that or simply do not consider it a necessity, but I'm also hyper-aware of the holiday's faults. Granted every holiday has turned into a commercialized Frankenstein's Monster representing what Dr. Capitalism desires it to represent (getting all Mary Shelley up in here), but not a lot have made me, personally, feel left out and restricted from its celebrations  ((when I was a kid I was always afraid my classmates wouldn't give me valentines because I never had any friends and I was the weird kid and I thought that if I didn't get one of those Walgreen's VDAY card packs I wasn't loved/liked. And now as a grown-up, still weird, with slightly more friends and in a pretty great relationship, I still feel left out, because of my sexuality, because I am constantly told (even if it's not so blatant) that my lifestyle is unacceptable) More than Valentine's (is it just me? am I imagining things, or do y'all simply adore this holiday?). The idealized notion of love should include everybody because, in reality, EVERYBODY feels love, at least some emotion close to it. Granted, I love getting chocolate and flowers from my mom and I WILL bake heart-shaped cookies for my friends BECAUSE I feel like Valentines day should encompass every sort of relationship that a human-being can have, not solely romantic/physical ones. I love all my friends, all my family members. Whether you be Gay, Straight, Bisexual, Lesbian, Transgendered, Queer, Black, Brown, White, any and all genders, any and all colors from the spectrum, a unicorn or a sloth...I love you all the same...365 days a year.