I don’t know how we got there, but somehow in a conversation with a student we ended up talking about her ex-boyfriend’s father, who lived in Thailand.
Her: He lives in Thailand.
Me: Oh, is he Thai?
Her: No, he married a Thai woman
Me: Oh (thinking about exotification and sexualization of Asian women already)
Her: Yeah, and I used to talk to him all the time, and they do everything for you, they’ll even wipe your ass.
Me: Huh? You mean the wife?
Her: Yup. He calls his wife into the bathroom to wipe his ass.
Me: Wow. Seriously? That sounds kind of degrading…
Her: It’s not degrading if its in your culture to do it. She’s happy to do it.
Me: Interesting…
(conversation continues with me trying to convince her that ass-wiping is degrading across all cultures…I am unsuccessful.)
How is it not degrading to have to wipe the shit off of your husband’s ignorant white ass? How does that not create dynamics of power, and privilege, when a white person is asking a brown person to kneel down and service you? How does it not create sexism? Clearly the husband is not wiping his wife’s ass…
Damn WPs.
February 28, 2007
February 24, 2007
Nono, your REAL name.
At work, I have to sign off on papers when I hand them to my manager. Typically, you have to first print your name and then sign next to it. So, I figure that I should probably print my given/legal name, since Jean is a nickname. My given name looks pretty "foreign" and "unspellable"... but I figure.. yeah.
So I print my given name and hand it off. My manager comes back and tells me, "Its okay, you can put your real nem when you sign off." I look at her like.. what? I seriously didn't get what she meant. And seeing my look of utter confusion, she clarifies, "Oh, you can just sign Jean."
So I print my given name and hand it off. My manager comes back and tells me, "Its okay, you can put your real nem when you sign off." I look at her like.. what? I seriously didn't get what she meant. And seeing my look of utter confusion, she clarifies, "Oh, you can just sign Jean."
February 23, 2007
Communication Breakdown
I was tabling for a charity I'm involved with (that shall not be named), and I showed up at my allotted time and stood with another member to wait for the prime organizer of the event. She showed up in a huff, just a little bit late:
"Hey guys, I'm sorry I'm late. These construction workers were trying to tow my friends car, and we had such a hard time getting them to realize that they couldn't do that, but they couldn't speak ANY ENGLISH!"
"..."
"Yeah, and it's so difficult to talk to them because you can't communicate... it makes your life so hard."
...
And that makes YOUR life difficult? I'm pretty sure that you make THEIR life difficult. When people are living in a world made to obstruct non-English speakers, in a place where they are ostracized and stigmatized, when they are busting their ass to build YOUR buildings...whose life do you think is difficult?
BLARGH. It didn't help that she constantly bossed around the APIDA who was from our co-sponsor organization.
"Hey guys, I'm sorry I'm late. These construction workers were trying to tow my friends car, and we had such a hard time getting them to realize that they couldn't do that, but they couldn't speak ANY ENGLISH!"
"..."
"Yeah, and it's so difficult to talk to them because you can't communicate... it makes your life so hard."
...
And that makes YOUR life difficult? I'm pretty sure that you make THEIR life difficult. When people are living in a world made to obstruct non-English speakers, in a place where they are ostracized and stigmatized, when they are busting their ass to build YOUR buildings...whose life do you think is difficult?
BLARGH. It didn't help that she constantly bossed around the APIDA who was from our co-sponsor organization.
February 16, 2007
Another Primate to Consider
This post is one of the happier ones...
We're learning about the Great Apes, or the Old World Monkeys in my Human Biology class. Most of the primates live in male-dominated, male-centered communities with females as secondary individuals in each society. Most of the primates only have heterosexual sex.
The Chimpanzee is generally regarded to be the most closely related primate to humans. In chimp communities, food is passed on in this order: the alpha male, the close friends of the alpha male, other males, and finally, females are able to eat the scraps. Now, a species of primate that is just as genetically related to us challenges assumptions about male supremacy and norms of sexuality in human evolution.
Enter the Bonobo. I won't give all of the juicy nerdy super-science-ie details, but the bonobo lives in female-dominated, female-centered groups. Status of males depends on status of their mothers (a stark contrast to human societies), and females are given priority access to food. Additionally, casual sex occurs in every possible partner combination. The Bonobo has separated sex from reproduction, and uses sex as a way to diffuse tension and prevent aggression. Aggression is virtually non-existent in bonobo communities because sex is used so effectively to calm anxiety.
The last paragraph of an article:
"Just imagine that we had never heard of chimpanzees or baboons and had known bonobos first. We would at present most likely believe that early hominids lived in female-centered societies in which sex served important social functions and which warfare was rare or absent."
And bonobos are so cute! Just look at them: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bonobo
And if you're super-interested, an article: http://www.bio.utexas.edu/courses/kalthoff/bio346/PDF/Readings/02de_Waal(1995)BonoboSoc.pdf
-Darlenica
We're learning about the Great Apes, or the Old World Monkeys in my Human Biology class. Most of the primates live in male-dominated, male-centered communities with females as secondary individuals in each society. Most of the primates only have heterosexual sex.
The Chimpanzee is generally regarded to be the most closely related primate to humans. In chimp communities, food is passed on in this order: the alpha male, the close friends of the alpha male, other males, and finally, females are able to eat the scraps. Now, a species of primate that is just as genetically related to us challenges assumptions about male supremacy and norms of sexuality in human evolution.
Enter the Bonobo. I won't give all of the juicy nerdy super-science-ie details, but the bonobo lives in female-dominated, female-centered groups. Status of males depends on status of their mothers (a stark contrast to human societies), and females are given priority access to food. Additionally, casual sex occurs in every possible partner combination. The Bonobo has separated sex from reproduction, and uses sex as a way to diffuse tension and prevent aggression. Aggression is virtually non-existent in bonobo communities because sex is used so effectively to calm anxiety.
The last paragraph of an article:
"Just imagine that we had never heard of chimpanzees or baboons and had known bonobos first. We would at present most likely believe that early hominids lived in female-centered societies in which sex served important social functions and which warfare was rare or absent."
And bonobos are so cute! Just look at them: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bonobo
And if you're super-interested, an article: http://www.bio.utexas.edu/courses/kalthoff/bio346/PDF/Readings/02de_Waal(1995)BonoboSoc.pdf
-Darlenica
"Black people don't have pretty eyes"
I don't have a point with the post, it's just an interesting observation. I've gotten this link in 2 emails today already. Photographer Terry Green did a photoshoot for a baby boy who's family was affected by Hurricane Katrina. Both the parents of the baby are African American and Laren, the baby, was born with blue eyes.
You can view the gallery here:
http://terrygreen.smugmug.com/gallery/1280988#62728180
What's interesting are the comments that random "guests" left behind. "Lighter=better."
(they are 35+ pages long!)
And a few dozen comments about how this proves that God can work miracles(which blue eyes must be) and even comparisons to Jesus. Plus insinuations that the parents stuck contacts on the infant or that the image was photoshopped. Would all these comments about Laren having "pretty eyes" be there if Laren had brown eyes?
You can view the gallery here:
http://terrygreen.smugmug.com/gallery/1280988#62728180
What's interesting are the comments that random "guests" left behind. "Lighter=better."
(they are 35+ pages long!)
I have never seen such beautiful eyes on a black
child.
He is a beautiful baby regardless of his eyes. It's just
a plus for him. I love brown babies.
Yeah, he's cute now, but
who knows what will happen when he gets
older...all the attention may get to
his head, he then turns into a thug, gets a
grill, and then most of you that
said he was cute will say..."I CANT STAND THESE
THUGS!...but his eyes are
cute!" WTF....
This adorable baby has the same eye colour that I do
and I'm a WF. I would love to see more AA's with blue eyes. Actually looking
at him, it is like looking at my own eyes..... HE'S GORGEOUS!!!!!!!!!! I
just wish my son or daughter had my eye colour. Truly amazing....
And a few dozen comments about how this proves that God can work miracles(which blue eyes must be) and even comparisons to Jesus. Plus insinuations that the parents stuck contacts on the infant or that the image was photoshopped. Would all these comments about Laren having "pretty eyes" be there if Laren had brown eyes?
February 15, 2007
Institutionalizing Homphobia in the classroom
Today a friend and a fellow teaching assistant, J, called me. He explained that after lecture this morning (when the professor teaches), Professor M came up and told him he was going to move 5 students out of his class and into the electronic sessions (don't even get me started on the fact that he's willing to teach electronically). He asked if that was okay. J said it was fine but asked why. Professor M told him: "they're frat and sorority types, you know?" J looked blankly at the M, because he did, in fact, not know. M repeated again, "you know? You know." And then M walked away and put the 5 students in another teaching assistant's already overloaded class. The important thing to know in this situation is that J is legibly queer, and the only reason that any of us can come up with for why sorority and frat types (and only them) want out of J's class is that they're homophobic. This is further supported by the fact that M has made comments disparaging underepresented groups from queer people to individual ethnic groups in lecture so that the students have no question about his views of these groups. Professor M supports and affirms the students homophobia, and they know that he will.
February 13, 2007
Diversity "Training"
At work at this big not-to-be-named fortune 500 firm, we must go through this diversity session. Sounds great? Let's examine this more closely.
1. The diversity module is done online through a series of windows you click through.
2. Nothing keeps employees from clicking through the screens without even glancing at them.
3. The diversity module is done through the "self-honor" system. Which means, nobody reads a word.
And perhaps the saddest part of it all is that the diversity session offered is actually really good. It points out a lot of myths and really communicates the way we marginalize people in an effective yet professional way. I actually took the time to read every page of that module and I'm pretty sure the ones who actually needed the diversity-for-dummies module just kept clicking..
Jean
1. The diversity module is done online through a series of windows you click through.
2. Nothing keeps employees from clicking through the screens without even glancing at them.
3. The diversity module is done through the "self-honor" system. Which means, nobody reads a word.
And perhaps the saddest part of it all is that the diversity session offered is actually really good. It points out a lot of myths and really communicates the way we marginalize people in an effective yet professional way. I actually took the time to read every page of that module and I'm pretty sure the ones who actually needed the diversity-for-dummies module just kept clicking..
Jean
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)