Category Archives: 30/Jan/2017 – Table Talk

The closest thing to freedom is the struggle

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Historic. Moving. Inspirational. Unity. Those are the legacy of the Women’s March. Or so, I thought…

If you google images for women’s march, you will see that the first images are of drawings of historical all female protests that took place in 1800s. On January 20, 2017, nearly half million men and women of all different background and political beliefs gathered in Washington, DC – just one day after the Presidential Inauguration of Donald J. Trump. After a heated and divisive election, its assumed that massive crowds gathered near the nation’s capital to oppose the election. However, the purpose of the Woman’s march states:  “We stand together in solidarity with our partners and children for the protection of our rights, our safety, our health, and our families – recognizing that our vibrant and diverse communities are the strength of our country.”

I find it interesting that an women’s march, garnered so much support from so many groups of individuals. However, I think that has less to do with people recognizing the intersectionality of women, but the lack of other outlets for people to productively express their dissatisfaction with the political climate. This march was so inclusive that it included many female Trump supports. While this may be surprising to may. This wasn’t shocking to me at all. Being a trump supporter and a feminist aren’t mutually exclusive. While many would argue otherwise, let me make this clear: your opinion of what qualifies a man or woman as a feminist has no barring on how that individual identities themselves. But for many women who voted for Trump, it wasn’t a vote for him, rather a vote against Clinton. They wanted a new political regime or a breath of fresh air in the White House. But that doesn’t disqualify them form sending a strong message to the president that they will not stand for the toxic and destructive language.

Just as inclusive as this march was, it was equally exclusive. The organizers of the Women’s March closed its doors to pro-life activist. I found it distasteful that a movement would count people out because they stand on two different sides of a position, while most likely agreeing on many other points. I found it ironic that a feminist movement rooted in anti-abortion, would disqualify women who’s message aligned with the feminist movement.

During the dinner conversation with Rose residents and GRFs, it was brought up that many people who are pro-life, are actually pro-birth, meaning they are actually for the birth or babies, rather than the care and support of children. However, I found that position to just demean the arguments of pro-life activists. I think its this type of behavior which erects walls between women activists. I brought up the point that the “patriarchy” breeds off of disenfranchisement of minorities. If women want to begin making more of an impact, they need to be united. There needs to be a dialogue. And I was surprised to hear that many people didn’t think conservative women were worthy of that. I can’t help but think this is why there was such a surprise this election. People aren’t willing to listen or talk to one another.

While the impact of women’s march is to be seen, there are a few things that I can do that will help more my own personal political agenda forward. Firstly, I will start by researching how other in oppressive times combated the oppressive force and what techniques they used. And secondly, I want to start organizing small community projects that can impact the communities who Pres. Trump ignores.

Overall, this dinner conversation sparked the question: Do you have to check every box of a the principles to be considered part of the movement or even political party or any affiliation?

The Last Great Communal Event

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I am no fan of football, but I cannot help to be moved deeply each by this singular event, which brings together Americans from all walks of life in a single act. Whether they’re excitedly cheering for a favorite team, waiting anxiously for innovative commercials, or enjoying the spectacle of a halftime show, there’s nothing else like it. In a world where more and more people have been drawn apart from each other due to the advent of social media and the like, the Super Bowl is a rare opportunity to sit down with the ones you love or cherish and engage with them (a process repeated in millions of homes and schools across our nation).

This Super Bowl did not fail to disappoint in playing to our collective emotions. Aside from the Patriots’  extraordinary and unprecedented comeback against all odds, we saw bipartisan cheers for the elderly, ailing former President George H.W. Bush and his wife, Barbara, as he entered NRG Stadium in a wheelchair to perform the coin toss. In a time when partisan divisions are at an all time high, this was particularly moving to me, as was the regularly scheduled performance of the national anthem.

And of course, Lady Gaga’s elegant, but breathtaking halftime show left us all mesmerized. I don’t think we’ll ever see the likes of it again, and it cemented her as one of the all-time great artists of our age. Combining the power of her voice, spectacular acrobatics, and suave dance moves, she gave a performance that I suspect will resonate decades from now.

May all future Super Bowls try to live up to this one.

Women Unite, A discussion on Moving Forward

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On Monday I attending the table talk: Women Unite! that discussed the marches around the world the day after the inauguration. Two of the GRF’s who were leading the discussion both attended the march in Washington D.C. and were able to give us an idea of the feel of the march and their feelings after the march. Those who attended the march described it as a great experience that helped them feel empowered and have a sense of control in our current political climate. We were all shocked by the number of people who ended up attending the marches. I knew the event was going to be big, but I never realized that millions of people across the world would join. It is amazing how people can really mobilize when we start to realize the threats we are up against.

Throughout the talk we discussed feminism in a broader scope. For me, feminism has to be intersectional to be considered feminism. If you aren’t fighting against racism, ableism, transphobia, homophobia, and Islamaphobia when you are fighting for feminism, who are you fighting for? We also discussed the role of conservative women in feminism. We were very divided on this topic, as some at the table believed that liberal women should offer to include conservative women into the movement. Others, including myself, felt like they should try to join through their own means.

As a Maryland resident, I really wish I had gone to the march. I’m very interested in politics, now more than ever, and feel like the march would feel like a great space to vent out frustration and anger. We ended the discussion by slow clapping it out, which seemed like a really great way to finalize an empowering conversation with motivated people.

Women’s March or Anti-Trump Protest?

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I went to the table talk: Women Unite! It provided for a very interesting discussion to hear from the GRFs about their experiences in the women’s march. I thought it was particularly intriguing to hear about how there were so many people there for reasons other than just women’s rights. When it came up that there were even people in the march who voted for Trump, it seemed hypocritical to at least a few of the students in the discussion. This did seem strange, considering the march essentially acted as an anti-Trump protest. However, it could have been that the Trump supporters either regretted their votes or thought Trump was the lesser of two evils at the time, so to speak.

One thing seemed clear to me by the end of the discussion. The women’s march in Washington was not just a women’s march, but instead more broad in nature. It was basically a protest against the divisive campaign that Trump ran. It was a protest against the various things Trump had said about women, minorities, the LGBT community, etc. I believe peaceful protests are really good and serve a purpose. However, the talk made me also want to consider the alternate ways in which one can actively make a difference in politics. One piece of useful info I picked up in relation to this was that you can call your representative!

Marching to the Beat of Injustice

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Monday’s talk about the Women’s March was very interesting. There were many different opinions about the importance of the march and what it accomplished. This year’s march was the largest in the history of the Women’s March. So many different movements came together to stand up for their various causes. Although I did not attend the Women’s March, what I gathered from others at the table was that there was a sense of unity and strength during the March. Personally, I sometimes feel that marches do not accomplish much because people come and rally and then just go home and do nothing. It seems more like an opportunity to post a hastag photo on social media rather than a call to action. One thing that kept coming up at the table talk was the fact that since there are so many different groups and movements and ideas, it seems like even in unity, there is still some division. According to one of the GRFs, there were some Trump supporters at the women’s march and that puzzled some at the table. However, is it right to exclude conservative women because of their views of what it means to be a “woman?” How do we bridge the gap between conservative women and more liberal women or do we just exsist in opposition? Many of these questions came up during the table talk and ultimately there are some questions which are hard to answer. One thing that we do agree on is for people to stay active. Call your state’s representative, petition, boycott, and educate other people on what is happening and keep having conversations until there is change in legislature. At the end of the day, we can march to Timbucktu but if that’s where the action ends, nothing will change much.

For or Against?

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On Monday evening, I went to the Table Talk where we discussed the our views on the Women’s March. Since I am from DC, I was able to attend the Women’s March on Washington before I came back to Cornell, and it is an experience I will never forget. Everyone came to the March for a slightly different reason – some for immigrant rights, some opposed to Trump’s views on environmental protection, some for women’s rights, some for LGBTQ rights, the list goes on. However, people marched together, raised their posters up together, and chanted together, recognizing the intersectionality of the causes they were fighting for. Protestors ranged from toddlers to grandparents and it was incredible to see hundreds of thousands of people fighting back against the hateful language and threats that Trump used throughout the campaign to insult so many groups of people.

We had an interesting discussion about how people who voted for Trump were at the March. On one hand, what right do these people have to be at a protest against Trump’s hateful rhetoric and plans for his presidency, when they are part of the reason he is in power and able to follow through with these plans? How can you vote for someone if you are against what they stand for?  Were these people uninformed when they cast their ballots and have since reconsidered their position? And if so, how can you not take your vote seriously? Or did they vote for Trump and never expect he would win? It is hard to understand why these people voted the way they did and decided to march; however, doesn’t everyone have a right to march for something they believe in, no matter how they cast their ballot? These are tough questions to answer, and I go back and forth about how I feel. I hope to hear your thoughts!

The Women’s March, Inclusive Feminism, Intersectionality, and well, My Skepticism

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I attended the Table Talk on the Women’s March on Monday, and it was cool to see many different points and opinions by the other Rose Scholars and GRFs. I think all the comments are valid and valuable, even if I didn’t agree with some of them. Here are just a few of my thoughts after the talk, and a thing that I wish had come up in conversation (but hadn’t–but I don’t really blame the conversation, it was something that’s harder to bring up).

So… the women’s march. I won’t deny its impact on a lot of women who went, and I won’t deny its impact on the fact that it is the largest organized march in history, but I will say that I am skeptical on the idea of ‘inclusive feminism” and intersectionality behind the women’s march. I’m definitely impressed with the turnout and the overall message (“we won’t back down/we stand together/solidarity/etc.”), and I’ll be the first to say that it was definitely very powerful… but I’m skeptical about the future. White feminism is pretty rooted in our history and there were definitely anecdotes from women of color/LGBTQ+ identifying women who felt that there were people at the march who invalidated their existence.

At the table talk, it was mentioned that everyone who went had different reasons for going, whether it was to celebrate an identity or to fight for a friend or a loved one who was affected by the insane executive orders or Trump’s damaging and alienating words. But, it’s actually not that big of a secret that some women went to the women’s march because it was “cool.” To them, it was a just something to do because they were bored, not because the march held any significance for them. There’s a particularly heartbreaking story circulating around on social media as an indigenous woman recounts her experience at the women’s march. She was approached by white feminists who asked if she was a real human, who took pictures of her and her group (they were wearing regalia), who casually (and insensitively) said, “Guess we’re Indians today!” while marching alongside the group (and then proceeded to get offended when the group of indigenous woman said “We don’t get to choose if we’re native or not. This is our reality & you are not Indian. You are disrespectful & need to go.“)

It’s not a particularly well known fact, but Susan B. Anthony, an activist who played a large role in the women’s suffrage movement, employed some strategic racism to achieve her goals. She was an opponent of the 15th amendment (which granted all black men the right to vote), and quite casually “climbed” on the backs of people of color to achieve her goals. Moving forward, what evidence is there for us to believe that something like that won’t happen again?

A lot of women of color have critiqued the women’s march, asking questions like why it took white women so long to rally together–where were they at black lives matter marches, and where are they in the fight against DAPL? Moreover… why were BLM marches considered “divisive” while the women’s march was considered more “virtuous”? People cited low arrest numbers–but were they that way because of the message behind the march, or a different method of policing entirely because of who went to the marches?

Moving forward… I just wonder if this is a one time thing. I just wonder if women of color are always going to be seen as “lesser,” their causes less virtuous and existence a burden. There is power in the march, sure, but will this be the one time that women from all walks of life come together? Or will women of color/people of color/minorities/LGBTQ+ identifying people continue to fight the hard fight alone? Remember that the majority of white women voted for Donald Trump. In the past, white women climbed on the backs of people of color in order to achieve their goals. Of course, I hope with every fiber of my being that this is a step towards a good direction and that we will all come together and work towards a better world. But, at the same time. I don’t think I’m wrong in being just a bit skeptical.