Responding Post: Enloe

Like many who have already posted, I also think that this is a great way to end our WMST class. Enloe reminds us to do what we do best - to think. When we talked about patriarchy, we also talked about the path to least resistance. Enloe's two chapters are reminders to not cross that path or even consider it. It's easy to take things for granted. It's easy to not question or challenge. It's easy to feel comfortable underneath the "natural" or the "traditional." But what do we gain from doing the easy things?

Instead of the path outlined above, Enloe encourages critical thinking and to spark discussions. If we're not doing this, we are adding to the problem. This relates to many of the topics we've discussed, if not all. If we didn't challenge ourselves to see beyond the familiar, we would not have seen the effects of patriarchy, or the effects of globalization, or the effects of racial stratification on feminist groups. These are all ideas that come about because there was someone who dared to seek the strange in the familiar. Being curious is what Enloe advocates, hence the title.

What I thought was extremely interesting and true was the section about disrupting society. To incite change, one will eventually anger some people and step on some toes. But, Enloe says that that is better than to hide behind the protection of the "normal" or the "traditional." This is extremely relevant to the organization of activist and volunteer groups and something that I constantly struggle with. Sometimes, I did let the negativity from certain outsider groups get to me and I let go of some of my passion and drive. But like the Colgate alumni Vonzelle Johnson said, we need to remember to have a backbone to keep standing up straight.

Whether or not readers self proclaim as feminists or plan on majoring in Women's Studies, Enloe's message is relevant to all. Enloe advocates for curiosity, awareness, and the ability to challenge what we see to not be what they seem - to be a critical consumer of knowledge.

Response Post 4.27

The introduction chapter of Enloe’s book was a great way to end this semester of women’s studies. She does a great job of touching on many different topics that we have discussed throughout the semester, all in the introduction to her book! As a psychology major, I was especially interested in the first paragraph of the introduction, where Enloe discusses how humans like to “save mental energy”. She mentions that it takes energy to be curious and to question things, but it’s natural and easier for us to take things as they are, and not question them. I am currently taking a psychology class called Human Cognition, and we have learned about heuristics. Heuristics are “short cuts” that we, as humans, use in our daily lives. Heuristics provide a quick and easy way to solve problems, although the answers that we derive from heuristics are not always correct. While heuristics are useful, they are also partially to blame for stereotypes, racism, and sexism. As people, we have a natural tendency to categorize. Therefore, we make assumptions about people who we know nothing about.

This discussion of heuristics is directly relatable to Enloe’s introduction chapter, because she recognizes that it takes a lot of human effort to question what exists in our cultures. However, this is not an excuse, and we must continue to push ourselves out of our comfort zone. Enloe urges us to think about where “cheap labor” really comes from, and how our expensive Nike sneakers are made. We cannot settle for what is wrong with our society, and we must strive to change it.

In “The Surprised Feminist” chapter, Enloe discusses that it also takes a great deal of courage to admit to being surprised by something. Many people don’t like surprises because we don’t like things that we cannot control. She admits that, as a professor, it takes a lot of stamina to admit to being surprised about something her students have said. My favorite quote from this chapter is this one: “Being open to surprise, being ready to publicly acknowledge surprise, may be among the most useful attitudes to adopt to prepare one’s feminist self for what now lies ahead.”

April 25 Response Post

Allison Attenello’s article was interesting at many different levels. One specific quote really stood out for me: “identity and power intersect to privilege some and marginalize others”. I think this is something that is so easy to forget in our day-to-day lives, especially in the “Colgate Bubble”. I know we have talked about this before, but the vast majority of us are where we are (Colgate), not because of our own merrits, but because of the situations we have been born into. I think it is important to remind ourselves of this fact, especially at a place like Colgate.

Additionally, I loved what Attenello had to say about the way we identify ourselves. After working with the Unidad de New Brunswick group, Attenello questioned whether it was helping or hurting the cause, having herself as a leader of the organization. She began to believe that she was hurting the cause, as a white, Italian, middle class college student. However, after time, Attenello came to realize that may be she was defining her identity in a very limited way. Instead of thinking of herself simply as the previously listed characteristics, she began to think of herself in relation to the Unidad de New Brunswick. She realized that her identity did not bother them, and she realized that her identity could be used as a “tool” to help Unidad de New Brunswick achieve its objectives. Although she did eventually end up leaving the group, it’s great that Attenello came to see her identity “privilege” (as a white Italian middle class woman) as a possible tool to help others who are facing discrimination because of their racial/ethnic/socioeconomic identities.

In “Blurring the Lines that Divide”, Pruce discusses her experience as a Jewish female and her activism on campus in the midst of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict. As opposed to Attenello, Pruce used her own identity and experiences to support her own cause. She wanted to fight anti-Semitism and anti-Zionism on her campus, and she channeled her past experiences (in Israel before college), and became an activist on her campus. Finally, Pruce moved to Israel and pursued an internship. I respect how Pruce took her cause abroad, to the country that she so loved. This strikes home for me because one of my best friends from home decided to move to Israel last summer, out of his passion for his religion. I struggled with his decision, mostly from a safety standpoint, because he told me that he intended on joining the army. I know he has moved there because of his faith, but I hope that he remains safe.

Leading Post: Attenello, Pruce, and Greenston

Attenello’s Navigating Identity Politics in Activism

Attenello has a strong sense of her identity, from her race, ethnicity, social class, gender to her culture. From her writing, it is apparent that Attenello is very aware of the privileges and disadvantages each identifying factor has. In activism, she is always conscious as to not overstep her boundaries and become the leader that actually further marginalizes the minority group. What she keeps reiterating is the role of a leader. Though some think of very vocal leaders, Attenello stresses that it’s important for a leader/researcher to not come off as “the expert” that has all the answers. This overshadows the true stars of the activism group. Even when she got the leadership vice president position working with Unidad de New Brunswick, Attenello thought about who she possibly taking that position from. Would it help the Mexican women learn about empowerment if she had stepped down? The balance between supporter and an overshadowing leader is what Attenello struggles with the entire chapter. Eventually she starts to wean off the group and get the group to wean off of her by merely training the activists how to organize and organize effectively. In the end she felt like she didn’t have enough in common with the movement and participants itself to continue. She felt like an illegitimate leader so she stepped down.

I have many criticisms of Attenello’s piece, but I do have to admit that she is still someone to admire. She taught the group how to be independent and this is very impressive. Instead of relying on an “outsider”, so to speak, the group could operate by itself. I thought Attenello was very observant and very analytical in the way she understood her identity and how it plays out in the world she lives in. However, this that makes her such a strong woman is also what flaws her, in my opinion. I think she’s too aware to the point that it paralyzes her and hinders her from being that go-getter. Her mind was just filled with differences – how am I different from these group of women? What about things she has in common? What about unifying factors and things that can bring them together? I think these women really could have benefitted from Attenello staying in the group because she is privileged in comparison. Like we talked about in class, sometimes having an “outsider” advocate strengthens the argument and the cause. I think Attenello definitely had the potential to do great things with Unidad de New Brunswick, but her impeccable awareness of identity differences stifled it. But I do understand that if she doesn’t feel like she belongs, then she doesn’t.

Pruce’s Blurring the Lines that Divide

Pruce also talks about the development of her identity and how she nourishes it by travelling to Israel. At the same time, it is a journey in realizing biases she has, how to control it, and to just be aware. Like Attenello, Pruce also discovered women’s studies in the midst of a breakdown from the harsh feedback she received by challenging stereotypes and the negative political messages about Israel. What was very interesting about this chapter was how we got to read from a woman that could not use feminism. She said how she had to keep her feminist goals and passions “in the closet.” I think this is a very realistic piece because realistically, there are some identities one has to hide at one point and play up at one point. All the other pieces we’ve been reading talked about feminism, straight up. Pruce talked about how she struggled to keep that low-key in order to emphasize and equally important part of her identity. This, in my eyes, doesn’t make her less of a feminist than the other writers we’ve read from.

What I enjoyed about Pruce’s piece was that she was speaking directly to the reader – to me – and gave us advice. It made the reading more personal and I felt as if I was in conversation with Pruce.

Greenstone’s Learning the Meaning of One

Greenstone was given the position as the exception when her friends made harsh comments about Jews. Remarkably, even under the safety of this position, young Greenstone turned down this position to stand up for her identity. This experience prompted her to continue exploring her identity, to explore social justice. Afterwards, she was employed and very involved with ADL, where she was the youngest employee. This presented challenges for her and she spoke about the “imposter syndrome.” She acknowledges that some men experience this, too but I agree with her when she says that it is very pertinent to women. Even though a woman may feel fully qualified for the job, there is an internalization of what society says women can and cannot do. There is a doubt and it affected the way people saw Greenstone. When she worked with ADL and conducted leadership programs, she saw this at work first in hand in the classrooms. She observed that girls were much shyer about sharing their thoughts. Instead of trying to gain attention through what their mind had to share, she observed that the girls were trying to gain attention through their clothing, for the most part sexualized clothing. This became such an influential experience that she went back to school. Before ending her chapter, she leaves the reader with a message to stand one’s ground, even if it means “compromising relationships.” We all have to do our part as agents of change.

Response Post April 26

Allison M Attenello reflects on her early days of activism in her article “Navigating Identity Politics in Activism.” What was unique about Attenello’s position was that she was thrust into a leadership role for an organization with which she struggled to identify. Despite her interest in identity politics and knowledge of the power a strong cause has to unify people, she felt like an outsider amongst the disorganized group of Mexican immigrants she had initially only planned to assist in a struggle against gendered violence. When she learned that this was not among their main concerns, she felt distanced from the group and ignorant of what their goals were. Nonetheless, she was held to high standards and expectations because of her connections and education. Attenello chronicles her struggle to organize and lead a group with which she had very little in common. The challenge was even more complicated than she expected because she felt that her identity as a white, privileged citizen might have actually been hurting the group she was trying to help. She decided that the best way to help the group was to offer her advice in organizing but to stop being any sort of figurehead, which she thought was only further marginalizing the group, their image, and their identity.

The same message rings true from Shira Lynn Pruce, though her challenge in student organizing was exactly the opposite. She was fighting for the rights and respect of the Jewish community, with which she is very closely aligned. So, her challenge was to be aware of her bias and maintain control of her emotions. This can be very difficult, as her experience shows, because opposition (or even apathy) to your cause feels like a personal attack. Furthermore, any struggle or delays you might experience in these kinds of fights carry that much more weight and stronger sense of defeat. Pruce’s challenge was to sometimes suppress her strongest feelings and her identity in order to work alongside certain people for the purpose of a mutual goal.