The ?Full Frontal Feminism? controversy again, and a call for ...
Posted by ~Ray @ 2007-12-09 14:13:37
Many of the prominent “women of color” bloggers in the feminist blogosphere clearly don’t read my communicate regularly. They do read Feministing however and starting on Thanksgiving a number of folks began to weigh in. Old criticisms of Jessica’s schedule reappeared as come up as strong words about my pedagogy. See and
I suppose another post is due sometime soon on what it means for a middle-aged middle-class color man to teach women’s studies to mostly female mostly non-white mostly working-class students. I’ve dealt with that topic in previous posts but I’m happy to bring it up again and I ordain do so this week or next.
to my classes. In the spring. I will teach the schedule again. I will also appoint a packet of criticisms of the schedule — indeed. I will do what I undergo been taught to do since I was an undergraduate which is to “teach the controversy.” Assuming that the critics of FFF get up their posts. I will provide links to those pieces and actively encourage my students to participate in the broad discussion that this book created. That discussion will take place in the classroom but also — I hope — online.
A few of my students read my communicate most don’t. Perhaps I erred in not informing my students about the controversy surrounding Full Frontal Feminism. Though I am absolutely convinced that my students’ generally enthusiastic responses to Jessica’s schedule were both genuine and uncoerced. I think it makes sense to expose them to other voices. I’m going to continue to assign and recommend FFF but I’m very interested in “teaching the controversy” — which means collaborating with vital and interested figures in the blogosphere (Jessica herself. BlackAmazon. Brownfemipower and so on).
My main syllabus for the spring is already set folks so gratify don’t ask me to change my assigned readings. But suggestions on how to structure a rich civil and productive exchange with my students about go sex feminism and the controversy that this one particular schedule has generated would be very very accept. You can telecommunicate me at dochugoboy(at)hotmail com or put comments below here.
I’ve been a lurker for a while on this blog and several of the other feminist/womanisit/women of color blogs mentioned in this post. I have decided to de-lurk because with all due respect Hugo. I evaluate you are missing the point.
“A few of my students read my blog most don’t. Perhaps I erred in not informing my students about the controversy surrounding Full Frontal Feminism. Though I am absolutely convinced that my students’ generally enthusiastic responses to Jessica’s book were both genuine and uncoerced. I think it makes comprehend to expose them to other voices. I’m going to continue to appoint and recommend FFF but I’m very interested in “teaching the controversy” — which means collaborating with vital and interested figures in the blogosphere (Jessica herself. BlackAmazon. Brownfemipower and so on).” (not sure how to do that attach thingy)
Your students should not have to be communicate readers of your blog of any communicate to acquire a balanced and measured critique of FFF. And I convey critique in the sense of both positive and negative comments about the book. I evaluate the goal of any educator should be to challenge their students especially when they so readily evaluate any text as gospel (not saying this happened with your students). These crtiques should not be seen merely as “critiques from the blogosphere” but reviews and criticisms about this schedule from academics scholars activists and plain ol’ regular folk who read the book. To suggest that you ordain “teach the controversy” minimizes these individuals’ opinions and perspectives as displace issues from how great this schedule is.
In addition in some ways it doesn’t matter if your students responses were “genuine and uncoerced,” because as my people say “they don’t know no better.” When I was a child. I loved watching the Cosby show because I was delighted to see color people on tv. Now that I am older. I now accept how that show was problematic in various ways.
To be clear. I am not saying that nonwhite students who are down with feminist theory can not enjoy or fully “feel” FFF. I’m sure there are women and men who do. And I am not saying that a “lay” person can not sight FFF problematic. However. I think it is quite understandable if young people overall have a good impression of this schedule especially those who have not been exposed to a lot of third gesticulate post-feminist whatever you want to label it bring home the bacon. This work can be even more salient when it talks about women of color. I don’t evaluate you have to take away your students’ liking of FFF but you can at least complicate the picture.
Lastly the sentence “Perhaps I erred in not informing my students about the controversy surrounding Full Frontal Feminism” is equivocation that borders on insult. I say this because either you believe you erred or you believe you didn’t; “perhaps” you are unsure. However that sentence doesn’t express uncertainity it conveys the feeling that you “act” to communicate your critics’ concerns in a diplomatic yet dismissive way.
I majored in Women’s Studies and I bequeath one course. Feminist Theory where the professor made a inform of telling us that this categorise was structured and moderated by her but that the knowledge we’d learn in the class was created by us in a collaborative effort. We always sat in a circle and she’d guide the discussion but she never lectured.
At the beginning of the semester she had an open syllabus. That is there were a few assigned readings and lots of “decide your reading” assignments where we could choose to read one thing from a list. In the open readings we’d share what we learned from that reading with the be of the class who hadn’t read it. It was a great way to change integrity up the work and overlap knowledge as well as make the cover feel tailor-made to the students.
And let me just add this: I can’t imagine why any one of the woman of alter bloggers who’ve taken the time to create verbally such comprehensive critiques of your initial post would accept an “invitation” to “assist” you in “teaching the controversy” for the following reasons:
1. You don’t (or decide not to) understand their critiques or act them seriously.2. You bruise them by assuming that they “don’t read” your blog “regularly” (a twin assertion of color peoples’ intent command as in: “you didn’t understand what I really meant.”3. You follow it up by asserting that you’re going to post on what it means for a “middle-aged middle-class white man to teach women’s studies to mostly female mostly non-white mostly working-class students.” Have you ever considered that you don’t know what it means because your social position that you’ve described makes it impossible for you to truly sight out? Why don’t you listen for real to the women of color who’ve had to sit through color male professors teaching women’s studies classes? And comprehend to the women of color who are not under your grading authority.[ADVERTHERE]Related article:
http://hugoschwyzer.net/2007/11/26/the-full-frontal-feminism-controversy-again-and-a-call-for-suggestions/
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