On December 10th, three female activists were honored at the Nobel Peace Prize ceremony in Oslo, Norway. I of course, like many of my feminist cohort, was excited just to see women chosen for such a prestigious award. But the significance of these three women standing on that stage and discussing their fight for justice was about much more than just their gender. There were two reasons why this year's Nobel Peace Prizer winners were significant. The first was obvious. The second I realized while writing this post.
A few years ago a friend invited me to a screening of a movie after work at the World Affairs Council. Anyone with a full-time job knows how precarious post-work plans can be, since they run up against the need to get to the gym or the grocery store, veg out on the couch, make dinner, get your mom's/sister's/friend's birthday present, go to birthday dinner/drinks, get new shoes, go on a date, etc. etc. etc. Even thought the World Affairs Council is really close to the office I was working in, and our organization had a membership, there were still many events at the WAC that I had "meant" to attend and cancelled at the last minute. But somehow, the heavens (ok, my calendar) cleared, I wasn't overwhelmingly exhausted at the end of the day, and I was satisfied with my shoe collection, so I went.
The movie showing that night was Pray the Devil Back to Hell.
This movie chronicles the story of Liberian peace activists, all women, who came together to end the civil war that had been plaguing this country for years. It features two of the peace prize winners: Leymah Gbowee, a prominent activist, and Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, who, after Charles Taylor was sent packing, became the first female head of a modern African state. Though I had always been an advocate for women's causes, this movie helped me see the sheer power women could have when they fought together. In fact, it inspired me so much that it is one of the main reasons I pursued my degree in international development and gender. I saw an incredible movement of powerful women, not just in Liberia, and I wanted to be part of it.
The second reason that this Nobel Peace Prize was so significant is that it provides justification for studying gender. Contrary to popular belief, gender studies is neither focused entirely on uplifting women nor is it trying to erase differences between men and women. It is, in fact, focused on how gender effects our everyday world, and how our everyday world is effected by it. The women who began to protest the Liberian civil war not because they didn't want to fight, but because they were mothers of the fighters, sick of watching their male children fight and die, and their female children endure sexual assault at the hands of soldiers. Furthermore, when those representing the two sides of the civil war failed to reach a deal, women protesters blockaded the room where the negotiators sat and threatened to take off their shirts (which was considered shameful to the men). It worked. Ellen Johnson Sirleaf was recognized for her work in this protest, but also for being the first female head of state in modern Africa - a huge accomplishment. Many people in Tunisia, Egypt, Yemen, Syria and Libya have risked their lives to protest despotic rule. And yet a female, considered the "mother" of the movement in Yemen, was the on who finally received the award for her work.
Gender is one of the most significant and fundamental ways the world is ordered, which means it begs to be studied and understood. Even if women and men were considered one another's total and complete equal, this would still be a necessary subject of study. This year's Nobel Peace Prize winners are only further proof of this.
What did you think about the Nobel Peace Prize winners? Were they significant to you? Do you think gender is a necessary subject of study? Why or why not?
Wednesday, December 14, 2011
Tuesday, December 6, 2011
I feel badly about my dissertation
One of the requirements I faced for obtaining a masters degree was a 40-page dissertation. I had an extremely difficult time picking a topic I was (1) interested in, (2) met all of the requirements and (3) was considered "intellectual" enough for a masters dissertation. I completely overhauled my topic numerous times, but finally, I settled on this:
In my volunteer work, I had come across websites, like HollaBack and HarassMap, that allowed people who were harassed on the street to write about the incident they experienced and, if possible, post a picture of their harasser. Because these sites existed in cities all over the world, I decided to analyze the postings to see what "truths" I might uncover about using a technology geared towards women to combat something they faced in their everyday lives.
But the dissertation I ended up writing was much different than the original idea. Rather than proving how these sites are beneficial to women, I ended up defending almost the exact opposite opinion. My conclusion was that, though there is probably a psychological benefit to writing about these personal experiences, these websites could actually contribute to a worsening of relations between genders.
This conclusion came from several points of data. First, the postings themselves almost always focused on the gender of the harasser (or harassed) and rarely any other characteristics, reducing street harassment solely to an incident of a opportunistic male harassing a female passer-by. Though there is ample evidence that street harassment occurs because of characteristics such as race, religion, clothing, sexual orientation, etc. this wasn't made evident in the postings. Second, many of the postings discuss regret for what could have been done to prevent the harassment - this puts too much of the focus on the victim, rather than the societal structures that contribute to a environment that leads to street harassment. Finally, the repeated story of the overly-aggressive male taking advantage of the naive female fits into a narrative that women should fear men, a story women hear frequently throughout their lives. Again, if women are taught to fear and be cautious around men, then it is their fault if they are harassed or assaulted, because they did not heed the warnings.
See why I feel bad now? I seem to be attacking organizations that I should be uplifting! Even though, as someone pointed out to me the other day, the point of research is to be critical, it still felt as if I was going against everything I'd learned throughout my year in school. I'm actually afraid sometimes of telling other feminists what I wrote about. What if they cast me as a heretic?
Despite my conclusion, I do believe HollaBack and HarassMap are doing amazing work, and I hope the continue to do it for many years (until street harassment is abolished!). Many times in my life I've been on the end of a lewd comment or gesture, and I hope one day no one has to walk down the street in fear of any of these actions. They are on the front lines of activism everyday, while I hide in my white tower, behind the easily constructed fence of "research."
In the end, my professors gave me a relatively good grade, commenting specifically on the "originality" of the research. My dissertation will be held on the shelves of the Gender Institute to be an example for future students. But I still feel bad about my dissertation.
What do you think? Should I have this moral dilemma? Should I feel bad? Or since my professors liked it, I shouldn't worry? Would love to hear from you in the comments.
In my volunteer work, I had come across websites, like HollaBack and HarassMap, that allowed people who were harassed on the street to write about the incident they experienced and, if possible, post a picture of their harasser. Because these sites existed in cities all over the world, I decided to analyze the postings to see what "truths" I might uncover about using a technology geared towards women to combat something they faced in their everyday lives.
But the dissertation I ended up writing was much different than the original idea. Rather than proving how these sites are beneficial to women, I ended up defending almost the exact opposite opinion. My conclusion was that, though there is probably a psychological benefit to writing about these personal experiences, these websites could actually contribute to a worsening of relations between genders.
This conclusion came from several points of data. First, the postings themselves almost always focused on the gender of the harasser (or harassed) and rarely any other characteristics, reducing street harassment solely to an incident of a opportunistic male harassing a female passer-by. Though there is ample evidence that street harassment occurs because of characteristics such as race, religion, clothing, sexual orientation, etc. this wasn't made evident in the postings. Second, many of the postings discuss regret for what could have been done to prevent the harassment - this puts too much of the focus on the victim, rather than the societal structures that contribute to a environment that leads to street harassment. Finally, the repeated story of the overly-aggressive male taking advantage of the naive female fits into a narrative that women should fear men, a story women hear frequently throughout their lives. Again, if women are taught to fear and be cautious around men, then it is their fault if they are harassed or assaulted, because they did not heed the warnings.
See why I feel bad now? I seem to be attacking organizations that I should be uplifting! Even though, as someone pointed out to me the other day, the point of research is to be critical, it still felt as if I was going against everything I'd learned throughout my year in school. I'm actually afraid sometimes of telling other feminists what I wrote about. What if they cast me as a heretic?
Despite my conclusion, I do believe HollaBack and HarassMap are doing amazing work, and I hope the continue to do it for many years (until street harassment is abolished!). Many times in my life I've been on the end of a lewd comment or gesture, and I hope one day no one has to walk down the street in fear of any of these actions. They are on the front lines of activism everyday, while I hide in my white tower, behind the easily constructed fence of "research."
In the end, my professors gave me a relatively good grade, commenting specifically on the "originality" of the research. My dissertation will be held on the shelves of the Gender Institute to be an example for future students. But I still feel bad about my dissertation.
What do you think? Should I have this moral dilemma? Should I feel bad? Or since my professors liked it, I shouldn't worry? Would love to hear from you in the comments.
Saturday, December 3, 2011
Welcome to Citizen Idealist!
I never pictured myself as one of "those people" that blogged. I didn't think I had enough time to keep up with it, or didn't have anything to share, or was scared of what other people would think. But I recently finished a masters degree, leaving me with the necessary requirements for the construction of prose: (1) lots of free time, (2) an interesting/controversial topic on which I have many opinions, (3) no money (blogging is free!).
Though I may go off-topic once in awhile, the majority of this blog will deal with issues pertinent to my degree in international development and gender. That means it will cover everything from the Revolutionary Association of the Women of Afghanistan to the Campaign for Female Education (CAMFED). It will cover issues of women at work, women at play, women at home. It will cover topics that address the struggle for women's rights in places where they are wholeheartedly denied and places where they are wholeheartedly embraced. There is no one question this blog is trying to answer, but it is simply a further exploration of the ideas I struggled with during my studies. Nor is this a one-way conversation, as that would only lead to the belief that there is only one opinion on these topics, which is simply not true! This is an open conversation. Although the issue of women in development has been on the international agenda for many years, there is still so far to go. We may not have the answers, but let's keep talking.
Enjoy!
Though I may go off-topic once in awhile, the majority of this blog will deal with issues pertinent to my degree in international development and gender. That means it will cover everything from the Revolutionary Association of the Women of Afghanistan to the Campaign for Female Education (CAMFED). It will cover issues of women at work, women at play, women at home. It will cover topics that address the struggle for women's rights in places where they are wholeheartedly denied and places where they are wholeheartedly embraced. There is no one question this blog is trying to answer, but it is simply a further exploration of the ideas I struggled with during my studies. Nor is this a one-way conversation, as that would only lead to the belief that there is only one opinion on these topics, which is simply not true! This is an open conversation. Although the issue of women in development has been on the international agenda for many years, there is still so far to go. We may not have the answers, but let's keep talking.
Enjoy!
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