Talking Point 9 - Scanlon

Talking Point 9
Sexy From the Start: Anticipatory Elements of Second Wave Feminsim
Jennifer Scanlon
Hyperlinks
               This very lengthy piece talks in great detail the issues that third wave feminist have with second wave feminist. I am not sure there is a way to say who exactly is a second wave feminist and who has moved on to the third wave but either conflicts have arisen. Scanlon tells the stories of women who disagree on what makes a good feminist. One school of thought is that women must remain plain clothed and strong minded to make a difference and the other school of thought is that regardless of what a female wears she can still make a difference. I felt very conflicted when reading this because I can totally see both sides of the story. I myself only wear make up when I go out for the night. I never wear make up to work and I wear my hair in a ponytail everyday. This piece made me think so I started googling and I came up with so many sites that talk about this very topic and how it relates to world today. Scanlon refers to femenist like Brown, as a ipstick feminist. I found a site dedicated to discussing the implications of this term, http://lipstick-feminists.org/
           Naomi Wolf wrote a book about third wave feminism and what she hopes to see come out of their actions. She wrote the book in hopes of stirring up awareness in the younger generation:

She gives some of the credit to Rebecca Walker for stirring the pot in 1992.

I say it shouldn't matter how we look or how we dress. If we want to stand up and fight for a cause we should have that right and our outcome should in no way be determined by our outwardly appearance. I am sorry that this post was late. It was a rough week for that week and I didn't even realize I had missed the post.

Talking Point 10

Legal case
Melendez vs Town of North Smithfield


       Women have spent centuries trying to gain equality in all aspects of their lives, especially in their professional environments. Statistically speaking, we know that men get paid more than women for the same job performed but at least females are allowed to apply for the same positions as their male counterparts. I never imagined that in the year 2003 (when this case accorded) that a female would be denied the opportunity to apply for a job just because she was a female.
       In 2003, a 26 year old hispanic female attempted to apply for a position on the newly formed North Smithfield fire and rescue department. I say "attempted" because she was told she did not qualify simply because she was a female. The new department was looking to hire 21 white males.
       That's not the end of the story, the General Assembly granted the town a one-time exemption to the anti-discrimination laws that pertain to the hiring process. I will have all the details for you in class on Thursday.

Different Type of Class

So class was different. When we were first told there would be guest speakers I was looking forward to the change in pace. But I never imagined class would have been THAT different. To be honest I was a little intimidated at first. Especially when we did the snowball game. It was stressed that the "safe space" was a judgement free zone. But it was anything but during that game. Each person is entitled to their own interpretation of the word "Sex" but yet when they wrote their answer, they were challenged by the speakers. I found myself actually getting nervous when they read my answer because I was concerned it was going to be questioned (thankfully it was not). The shuffle activity we did when we walked across the class made me a little uncomfortable at first but I quickly realized that I am a grown adult and should not hide my strengths, weaknesses, beliefs, and pleasures. The eye contact part was a little much at first but once I stopped looking at it as "people are judging me" and more as "I have allies" in this aspect of my life it became more of a comfort than a scare tactic. By the end of the class I understood what the speakers were trying to convey in their activities and power point presentation. Open mindedness, acceptance of people, and being proud of what of you believe in. I am glad we had this "different" class.

Promising Practices

When I registered for the Promising Practice Conference I was not sure what it all meant. What I did know is that if it wasn’t a requirement for this class I never would have attended. Thankfully I have a little sister that was more than happy to accompany me to a world beyond my knowledge. So we arrive at the crack of dawn and pick up our packet. While we patiently awaited the beginning of the workshops we chatted with some other the other students and realized that the conference was geared towards teachers. What was I doing at a conference for teachers? I am a senior nursing student. What was this going to teach me?    

            Those lingering questions were answered almost immediately when the first workshop began. The Student Nursing Association gave the first presentation. They talked about all the wonderful plans they have set into action for providing cultural competency to the nursing students. They spent a vast majority of their time talking about cultural differences. As a nursing student (being the only one in the room) I understood the importance of cultural diversity. It was a well prepared presentation that was full of statistics and facts about the success of the association. What I didn’t hear was what was being done to bring in the underrepresented population into the nursing program. It is great that cultural differences are explored but what about all the other aspects of the world that makes us all different, such as gender, class, and sexual orientation. At this point I started to feel a little embarrassed about being in the nursing program. I would have liked to be told about RIC’s beliefs on diversity. So I looked it up and came up with this site http://www.ric.edu/diversityAtRIC/.

            When the second presentation began, I started to see everything that we talk about in class unfold in front of me. I listened to the members of A.L.L.I.E.D (The Advanced Learning and Leadership Initiative for Educational Diversity) talk about the things they have to offer their fellow students. This association has worked hard to establish a safe place for people of all walks of life to join together and teach each other about themselves. It gives them an unrelenting ally in the everyday challenges they may face. While the group started for education students they do not turn anyone away. They are aware that all students need support. They use blogs as a means of supporting each other when they are not on campus. They meet once a week to discuss a variety of topics. They are very active in helping the underrepresented find their voice and place (well deserved place) in the classrooms as teachers educating our youth.

            One of the strongest links in this organization is our very own professor, Dr. Bogad. As Allan G. Johnson points out in his book, Privilege, Power, and Difference, the power in the world is based on class. He states that the highest class of privilege is given to the white, middle-classed, heterosexual male. While Dr. Bogad may not fit into all the above categories, she fits into enough of them to be considered privileged. Which brings me to the next idea that popped into my head as I sat and listened to the members speak.

            Our class discussion about being an ally jumped right into my head. The members of this group rely on a privileged individual to support them in their daily battles of being different in one way or another. We discussed in class that you don’t have to be a loud protester or write letters to congress to stand up for a cause and that is exactly what Dr. Bogad does for this group. She is an ally. She doesn’t make loud noises to congress or cause strikes on campus. She just stands by her members and helps them anyway she can. It takes me back to the class exercise we did with the music teacher and the boy who laughed. The members of this group take comfort in knowing that if they are made to feel less than equal, they have many allies to depend on for support.

            I was curious to know what others thought about the word “Ally” so I googled it and came up with this website http://www.familyequality.org/pdf/allies.pdf that explains what it means in relation to the gay and lesbian community. I found it helpful to understand the difference between being just a friend and being a true ally.

            So I sit and wonder how all of this ties into feminism. Ally, cultural diversity, underrepresented population, cultural competency, it all seems a little foreign at times. The part I do understand is that feminist need allies in their struggle for equality. They are not just looking for allies in other feminist but also in males that believe in the cause. Privileged males standing next to women in their fight will be heard on a louder level. In all professions cultural differences need to be explored, respected, and embraced. Differences in gender, sex, and orientation also need to be explored, respected, and embraced. I would like to think that someday the structure of our lives can be altered in such a way that humans will be accepted and treated equally clear across the board. 

            After the workshops we went to a presentation put on by teen power. Once again I had no idea what I was walking into. For the most part it was an educational workshop to help teachers get their students engaged in the classroom. The activities were fun and Yemi did an amazing job representing us during one of the activities. But I was disappointed to find out that the speaker was selling things and I was just made to sit through a sales pitch. But overall it was a good experience.

            So I said at the beginning of this post that I would not have attended if this wasn’t required, but I am ending by saying that I am very glad I went. I learned a lot and I think that this conference should be required for all freshmen. If I knew half of what I know now my years at RIC may have gone differently. Being a senior leaves me feeling like it is too late for me to get involved in any of the associations that we have on campus. 
           One of the problems that I have always had is remembering where I read something. As you can imagine this causes some problems for me when writing papers. I can't tell you where I read what I remember discussing in class, all I can say is the information stays with me. So I decided to do a little googling and came up with some interesting sites. So if you are bored check out a website or two.
http://washingtonindependent.com/115707/study-not-enough-minority-teachers-in-classrooms-gap-attributed-to-bias-and-lower-college-graduation-rates
http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qa3919/is_199810/ai_n8816486/

Thank you for changing the way I look at the world.

Having a Bad Few Days

On Wednesday at 2am my father in law passed away. As some of you may know I have only been married for three years and may think that I wasn't close to him. But I have been with my husband for 10 years and was very close to both my in laws (my mother in law passed away 2 years ago). I am struggling with the role I am currently playing in life. I am the wife of an only child and have been making all the major decisions because my husband doesn't feel capable. I just want a chance to grieve like the rest of the family. I am glad of am able to vent to you guys. Thank you. Can't wait to see you guys again.

TP#8 Blanchard

Combatting Intentional Bigotry and Inadvertently Racist Acts
By Fletcher A. Blanchard
Arguement
       Blanchard argues that racism is not just an intentional act committed by "mean spirited" people but also acts committed out of lack of knowledge. She explains that most kids entering college have had little to no exposure to other races and are not sure on how to act and end up making "racial mistakes".
      Blanchard discusses experiments that she and others have performed to show that racial opinions and attitudes can be altered by others in their surroundings. She discusses three different "codes" of preventing racial harassment on college and university campuses. The first attempt is focused on punishing the few "mean spirited " people but the language used is not as clear as it could be and makes enforcing this code difficult. The second "code" focuses on "civility" which teaches tolerance and acceptance and leaves the punishing to the administrators instead of influencing each other to not act in a racist manner. And the last "code" is a broader scope than dictated by state and federal regulations and focuses on both intentional and unintentional actors of racism. But still fails to look at the reasons of racist acts. Blanchard believes to be successful aspects from all three codes should be compiled into one new useful code.
     She does admit it is difficult to protect people from racism while still protecting the first amendment right of freedom of speech. She finishes her article by saying that early interventions in the school systems can have the biggest impact on racism. Encouraging multiracial friendships and exposing naive students to students of color can help to strengthen the knowledge base of students and decrease the incidents of race.
     Working together instead of working against each other is the first step in improving racism.
     
     

TP#7

Cinderella Ate my Daughter
By Peggy Orenstein
Extended Comments

                    I read the piece and found her initial information regarding the princess culture fascinating. I never noticed things like they aren't looking at each other in any pictures and that Mulan was never portrayed in her battle gear. But I do agree with both Taylor and Sheila's posts. Taylor seems to be saying that parents do crazy things to help their girls or actually force their girls to conform to the princess culture. Pageants, dance classes, shopping sprees for clothes, it is all training our girls to do believe that looks are the most valued traits in a female. Sheila also expresses her concern for how the movies are interpreted. As parents if we teach our girls that movies are movies, just like we aim to teach our kids that video game violence is not real violence and reality and pretend are very different. If parents teach their girls that while this princess life seems perfect at the moment, it isn't realistic. Take the time to teach the girls that hard work, education, and standing fro what you believe in is really living in reality. It is ok to dream if you know the difference between a day dream and a goal. Ladies, I hope I didn't butcher your posts. They were both great.
                  I would like to know how the males in the class see these films.