Saturday 10 May 2008 1:30 pm
( Spoilers )coffee and inkLet the whole world crumble, so long as I can read another page. And then another after that. And then a hundred more. --Michael Dirda, Readings |
People of colo(u)r/nonwhites attending Wiscon: ![[info]](http://p-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif)
ktempest has a poll about when to hold the POC-only panel and the logistics of holding a POC-only space.
White allies -- Tempest has a list of other tasks to do, and I think some of them (such as flyer design and distribution and blog publicity) are good places to chip in.
ktempest has a poll about when to hold the POC-only panel and the logistics of holding a POC-only space.White allies -- Tempest has a list of other tasks to do, and I think some of them (such as flyer design and distribution and blog publicity) are good places to chip in.
loligo passed on this information:I'd been looking around for NGOs that are able to do something to help the storm victims in Myanmar, but as you might imagine, the regime there doesn't make it easy for foreign aid groups to work there. The only two I'd found with reliable, current operations or connections there were Church World Service and World Vision. But MoveOn.org tells me that contributions can also be made to the International Burmese Monks Organization here. They will funnel the aid to local Buddhist monasteries throughout Myanmar.
(Watching the death tolls rise feels like watching the bad news come in about the 2004 tsunami all over again.)
eta: Removed link because original poster is offline and my issue is really not with a single person, but with the frequency and context with which these arguments are presented.
Critcizing "dogpiles" as inherently "moblike," destructive, negative, and childish without considering the content which has evoked this response has the same in-built political and structural issues as the demand that oppressed, discriminated, or harassed groups moderate their tone before their objections will be considered. Both actions attempt to codify behavior while treating speech content as empty; they ignore power differentials; they treat actions or speech acts as if they take place in a vacuums free of social circumstances, historical knowledge, or political influences, rather than as if they are what constitutes or destroys communities.
Wear courtesy's velvet gloves as often as you like. They do not disguise the steel fingers beneath, especially when they're choking some of us to death. The RP community formerly known as Kristallnacht and the![[info]](http://p-stat.livejournal.com/img/community.gif)
daily_deviant mods who decided to use "miscegenation" as a prompt clearly thought that their responses were polite because they were using "polite language." This is sophistry. There is no polite way to tell someone you do not care about the genocide or oppression of their people. There is no polite way to make rape jokes. There is no polite way to use "gay" or "girl" as a synonym for "bad," "weak," or "ugly." There is no polite way to blame a victim for their own harassment or abuse.
To riff off Stephen Sondheim: polite language is not good, it's not right, it's just nice. And when nice is prioritized over right or good, it's just another form of oppression. It's just another attempt by those in power to attempt to maintain the status quo.
Arguing that polite language in the face of offense is "more effective" is specious. People initially approached f/k/a Kristallnacht andtheferrett with tactfully phrased objections, in some case approaching with an assumption and history of friendship. Politeness got nowhere. Outrage and group protest got somewhere. They didn't necessarily change the minds of the offenders: defenders f/k/a Kristallnacht clearly don't understand what's wrong with calling someone a Nazi for protesting the trivialization of the Holocaust and theferrett is clearly nursing a sense of his grand utopian intentions having been foully misunderstood. What these protests do is establish the limits of community tolerance. You may think whatever you like; what you may not do is take public action in our community space--whether virtual or actual--that perpetuates harm to members of our community. Fandom, like the societies it comes from, has historically not recognized racism, anti-Semitism, or many forms of sexism as harmful. Group protests are an attempt to change that.
That said: Is group protest always right or good? No, it's not. It's a way to establish and enforce community norms, and it's only as right and good as the community norms are. It can be profoundly oppressive and profoundly abusive. But silence in the face of injury is also a way to establish and enforce community norms. You don't opt out of a community by remaining in it and never commenting on its big controversies; you just opt to abide by whatever party wins. You only opt out of a community by leaving that community. You can leave the fannish community, sure. Leaving the human community, that's harder.
Critcizing "dogpiles" as inherently "moblike," destructive, negative, and childish without considering the content which has evoked this response has the same in-built political and structural issues as the demand that oppressed, discriminated, or harassed groups moderate their tone before their objections will be considered. Both actions attempt to codify behavior while treating speech content as empty; they ignore power differentials; they treat actions or speech acts as if they take place in a vacuums free of social circumstances, historical knowledge, or political influences, rather than as if they are what constitutes or destroys communities.
Wear courtesy's velvet gloves as often as you like. They do not disguise the steel fingers beneath, especially when they're choking some of us to death. The RP community formerly known as Kristallnacht and the
daily_deviant mods who decided to use "miscegenation" as a prompt clearly thought that their responses were polite because they were using "polite language." This is sophistry. There is no polite way to tell someone you do not care about the genocide or oppression of their people. There is no polite way to make rape jokes. There is no polite way to use "gay" or "girl" as a synonym for "bad," "weak," or "ugly." There is no polite way to blame a victim for their own harassment or abuse.To riff off Stephen Sondheim: polite language is not good, it's not right, it's just nice. And when nice is prioritized over right or good, it's just another form of oppression. It's just another attempt by those in power to attempt to maintain the status quo.
Arguing that polite language in the face of offense is "more effective" is specious. People initially approached f/k/a Kristallnacht and
theferrett with tactfully phrased objections, in some case approaching with an assumption and history of friendship. Politeness got nowhere. Outrage and group protest got somewhere. They didn't necessarily change the minds of the offenders: defenders f/k/a Kristallnacht clearly don't understand what's wrong with calling someone a Nazi for protesting the trivialization of the Holocaust and theferrett is clearly nursing a sense of his grand utopian intentions having been foully misunderstood. What these protests do is establish the limits of community tolerance. You may think whatever you like; what you may not do is take public action in our community space--whether virtual or actual--that perpetuates harm to members of our community. Fandom, like the societies it comes from, has historically not recognized racism, anti-Semitism, or many forms of sexism as harmful. Group protests are an attempt to change that.That said: Is group protest always right or good? No, it's not. It's a way to establish and enforce community norms, and it's only as right and good as the community norms are. It can be profoundly oppressive and profoundly abusive. But silence in the face of injury is also a way to establish and enforce community norms. You don't opt out of a community by remaining in it and never commenting on its big controversies; you just opt to abide by whatever party wins. You only opt out of a community by leaving that community. You can leave the fannish community, sure. Leaving the human community, that's harder.
I don't see an online version of the program up yet; usually it comes out during the week or two after programming assignments go out. "Guerrilla programming" is called something else at the con, but I forget what; basically there are some rooms kept open for people to create their own programming items at the con. Last year, IIRC, there were impromptu programming items on discrimination against transpeople (in response to a flyer inserted in the programming packet) and a vidshow (because cofax7 and veejane are agitators who like watching vids).
Some of the program items came up after the program process and some are program items for which I volunteered. In the latter case, I want to wait for the full schedule, because there's no point in creating an impromptu program item if the item already exists. Myself, I would love to see/attend all the items in my last post, but I don't think I will have the energy to organize more than two.
Seal Press girlcott
The Seal Press imbroglios broke out after programming planning. I think that it's important to discuss, and I want to solicit involvement in it from the feminist and particularly feminist academic community at Wiscon (Wiscon has a fairly strong academic track). My take towards the session is more persuasive than exploratory: I am going to argue for a girlcott. I'm not sure whether or not to solicit a co-moderator who would argue against the girlcott; I do think that it's important to discuss the questions and objections people are going to have. I'll be putting a post about this up in the Wiscon LJ community later this week, advertising the panel/discussion and soliciting help making and distributing informational flyers, once I have time to put together a description and obtain permission to link to explanatory posts.
For me, this is the most emotionally difficult and most politically important of the impromptu items. Now that I have confirmation it won't be me talking to an empty room, I am determined to hold it.
Octavian Nothing
M.T. Anderson's Octavian Nothing is a brilliant and heartbreaking young adult novel that examines race, capitalism, history, science, and the racial and political implications of the construction of knowledge, liberty, property, and freedom in the colonial U.S. It is heartbreaking. It is not science fiction and it is not alternate history or even secret history: it's historical fiction about history in ways that history books have not put history together. Reading it was like reading, in narrative form, a story that perfectly exemplified what so many of us have been trying to articulate over the past few years in fandom about the connections between race, power, oppression, and how the constructions of "objectivity," "science," and "knowledge" are affected by and implicated in the oppression of people of color. It is both specifically about American history and globally about world history and how the principles of the Enlightenment acted as instruments of European imperialism and white supremacy.
oyceter suggested a panel on this, and we both volunteered to be on it. If there's already a program item, then I will happily attend that. If not, I would love to have a book club discussion and/or panel on the book with other Wiscon attendees.
The Sarah Connor Chronicles
I know there were a bunch of SF TV panels which will probably include some discussion of SCC, but perhaps because it began airing so close to the programming deadline, I don't think there were any panels devoted to this. I adore this show; I don't think it's perfect. I'd love to talk about its virtues and flaws, aesthetic and/or political, with other fans.
Again, if there turns out to be an item on the show already on the program, I don't think this will be necessary.
Vidding
I'd love to see a vidshow and/or participate in a discussion of vidding, whether among people already familiar with the concept or to introduce it to the Wiscon community. I think there's some terrific feminist and antiracist critique and celebration going on here in this underground, sometimes undercover art form; I want more people who will appreciate it and benefit from it to become familiar with it.
But I also don't think I will have the energy to wrangle all the tech stuff. So I encourage the other vidders and vidfans I know will be attending to organize this.
cofax7 and veejane are agitators who like watching vids). Some of the program items came up after the program process and some are program items for which I volunteered. In the latter case, I want to wait for the full schedule, because there's no point in creating an impromptu program item if the item already exists. Myself, I would love to see/attend all the items in my last post, but I don't think I will have the energy to organize more than two.
Seal Press girlcott
The Seal Press imbroglios broke out after programming planning. I think that it's important to discuss, and I want to solicit involvement in it from the feminist and particularly feminist academic community at Wiscon (Wiscon has a fairly strong academic track). My take towards the session is more persuasive than exploratory: I am going to argue for a girlcott. I'm not sure whether or not to solicit a co-moderator who would argue against the girlcott; I do think that it's important to discuss the questions and objections people are going to have. I'll be putting a post about this up in the Wiscon LJ community later this week, advertising the panel/discussion and soliciting help making and distributing informational flyers, once I have time to put together a description and obtain permission to link to explanatory posts.
For me, this is the most emotionally difficult and most politically important of the impromptu items. Now that I have confirmation it won't be me talking to an empty room, I am determined to hold it.
Octavian Nothing
M.T. Anderson's Octavian Nothing is a brilliant and heartbreaking young adult novel that examines race, capitalism, history, science, and the racial and political implications of the construction of knowledge, liberty, property, and freedom in the colonial U.S. It is heartbreaking. It is not science fiction and it is not alternate history or even secret history: it's historical fiction about history in ways that history books have not put history together. Reading it was like reading, in narrative form, a story that perfectly exemplified what so many of us have been trying to articulate over the past few years in fandom about the connections between race, power, oppression, and how the constructions of "objectivity," "science," and "knowledge" are affected by and implicated in the oppression of people of color. It is both specifically about American history and globally about world history and how the principles of the Enlightenment acted as instruments of European imperialism and white supremacy.
oyceter suggested a panel on this, and we both volunteered to be on it. If there's already a program item, then I will happily attend that. If not, I would love to have a book club discussion and/or panel on the book with other Wiscon attendees.The Sarah Connor Chronicles
I know there were a bunch of SF TV panels which will probably include some discussion of SCC, but perhaps because it began airing so close to the programming deadline, I don't think there were any panels devoted to this. I adore this show; I don't think it's perfect. I'd love to talk about its virtues and flaws, aesthetic and/or political, with other fans.
Again, if there turns out to be an item on the show already on the program, I don't think this will be necessary.
Vidding
I'd love to see a vidshow and/or participate in a discussion of vidding, whether among people already familiar with the concept or to introduce it to the Wiscon community. I think there's some terrific feminist and antiracist critique and celebration going on here in this underground, sometimes undercover art form; I want more people who will appreciate it and benefit from it to become familiar with it.
But I also don't think I will have the energy to wrangle all the tech stuff. So I encourage the other vidders and vidfans I know will be attending to organize this.
My Wiscon schedule:
Navigating the Id Vortex
"What's in the Id Vortex? The hangups, kinks, and hot-buttons that suck you in, even unwillingly--and threaten to stretch and distort story logic and characters that venture too near. In this panel, we'll talk about how we navigate the Id Vortex as readers and texts that harness its power without falling in, and the tools they use; whether and when plunging right into the vortex can be a good idea; and how stories change for readers coming in with different buttons. "
Saturday, 1:00-2:15 P.M.
629
M: Evelyn Browne
Micole
Sigrid Ellis
Jennifer Stevenson
"Publishing, Profit, Agendas, and Ideals: The Eclipse One Cover Debate"
"Last year when Night Shade Books released the cover for their anthology, Eclipse One, a debate broke out over the names represented on the front. Namely, in an anthology that had 50/50 male and female authors, only male names appeared on the cover. The ensuing argument centered around two main points -- the publishers felt that, of the authors in the anthology, the names they'd put on the cover were likely to attract the attention of more casual buyers. And because they were in the business of making money, they could not afford to put an 'agenda' ahead of anything else. Readers felt that, because no women were given a slot on the cover, the publishers were reinforcing patriarchal assumptions about who sells books, and who doesn't. Some expressed the opinion that the lack of women on the cover was actually likely to deter them from buying the book. In this panel, which will be a debate, let's explore both sides in depth. Does indulging agendas and ideals hinder profit? Or !
can adhering to an ideal lead to different and/or better ways of creating more profit? "
Sunday, 2:30-3:45 P.M.
Wisconsin
M: K Tempest Bradford
Micole
Eileen Gunn
Jeremy Lassen
( Wiscon polls )
Navigating the Id Vortex
"What's in the Id Vortex? The hangups, kinks, and hot-buttons that suck you in, even unwillingly--and threaten to stretch and distort story logic and characters that venture too near. In this panel, we'll talk about how we navigate the Id Vortex as readers and texts that harness its power without falling in, and the tools they use; whether and when plunging right into the vortex can be a good idea; and how stories change for readers coming in with different buttons. "
Saturday, 1:00-2:15 P.M.
629
M: Evelyn Browne
Micole
Sigrid Ellis
Jennifer Stevenson
"Publishing, Profit, Agendas, and Ideals: The Eclipse One Cover Debate"
"Last year when Night Shade Books released the cover for their anthology, Eclipse One, a debate broke out over the names represented on the front. Namely, in an anthology that had 50/50 male and female authors, only male names appeared on the cover. The ensuing argument centered around two main points -- the publishers felt that, of the authors in the anthology, the names they'd put on the cover were likely to attract the attention of more casual buyers. And because they were in the business of making money, they could not afford to put an 'agenda' ahead of anything else. Readers felt that, because no women were given a slot on the cover, the publishers were reinforcing patriarchal assumptions about who sells books, and who doesn't. Some expressed the opinion that the lack of women on the cover was actually likely to deter them from buying the book. In this panel, which will be a debate, let's explore both sides in depth. Does indulging agendas and ideals hinder profit? Or !
can adhering to an ideal lead to different and/or better ways of creating more profit? "
Sunday, 2:30-3:45 P.M.
Wisconsin
M: K Tempest Bradford
Micole
Eileen Gunn
Jeremy Lassen
( Wiscon polls )
Monday 5 May 2008 11:58 am
Mari J. Matsuda, "Beside My Sister, Facing the Enemy: Legal Theory out of Coalition" (reposted by Sylvia/ProblemChylde):The way I try to understand the interconnection of all forms of subordination is through a method I call “ask the other question.” When I see something that looks racist, I ask, “Where is the patriarchy in this?” When I see something that looks sexist, I ask, “Where is the heterosexism in this?” When I see something that looks homophobic, I ask, “Where are the class interests in this?” Working in coalition forces us to look for both the obvious and non-obvious relationships of domination, helping us to realize that no form of subordination ever stands alone.
Andrea Smith, Heteropatriarchy and the Three Pillars of White Supremacy: Rethinking Women of Color Organizing (PDF) - The title is the most obscure part of this essay; it is short, straightforward, and thought-provoking.
Sudy, Accepting Kyriarchy, Not Apologies
WOC, PhD, Feminist Reading Tools for Recognizing and Countering Racism
There are non-trivializing ways to incorporate real-world tragedies and atrocities into fiction. Naming your Harry Potter role-playing game "Kristallnacht" is not one of them.
I think the part where the organizers explain how Jews objecting to "Kristallnacht" for their game name is the same as conservative Christians protesting the existence of the Harry Potter books for popularizing magic is my favorite part.
The InsaneJournal theme, once again, doesn't help, as added to its innate trivializing effect is the irony that the mentally ill and developmentally retarded were other major targets of the Holocaust.
I think the part where the organizers explain how Jews objecting to "Kristallnacht" for their game name is the same as conservative Christians protesting the existence of the Harry Potter books for popularizing magic is my favorite part.
The InsaneJournal theme, once again, doesn't help, as added to its innate trivializing effect is the irony that the mentally ill and developmentally retarded were other major targets of the Holocaust.
Friday 2 May 2008 11:03 pm
( I don't know why I'm cut-tagging, since spoiling you for this would be doing you a favor )
baffled
"Relevant" doesn't necessarily mean "I agree with this." Am refraining from long & prejudicial prefatory comments (in favor of short & prejudicial prefatory comment).
backupproject
Another female participant comments on The Open Source Boob Project
rivkat: The right of making available
Laura Quilter on Cultural appropriation, property, rhetoric, acknowledgement
(via Laura Quilter) Law review articles on "appropriation" from feminist law prof
Yale junior who filed sexual harassment complaint about frat hazing of Yale's Women Center responds to university's verdict (frat not guilty of sexual harassment), gets predictable responses in comments
backupprojectAnother female participant comments on The Open Source Boob Project
rivkat: The right of making availableLaura Quilter on Cultural appropriation, property, rhetoric, acknowledgement
(via Laura Quilter) Law review articles on "appropriation" from feminist law prof
Yale junior who filed sexual harassment complaint about frat hazing of Yale's Women Center responds to university's verdict (frat not guilty of sexual harassment), gets predictable responses in comments
Tuesday 29 April 2008 6:30 pm
This is my list of books I have purchased this month. It has been a heavy book-buying month because the last week and a half have demanded much consolation. Sadly, I do not have much to say about most of these books, because I have not read them yet. I suppose I could explain why I wanted them, if anyone were curious.I ought to be too ashamed to post anything this dull, except I know that some of my friends will immediately click on the cut tag below, and furthermore, if they were to post their lists of books bought this month, I would do the same exact thing.
( Cutting for the uninterested )
I think I have forgotten some books. I may update when I get home and can check my book database.
Um. I bought most of them used? Also, last week it was either buy books or strangle people, and it's hard to strangle people over the Internet. And I'm morally opposed to violence. But mostly it's hard to strangle people over the Internet.
Yesterday I forgot my keys at the office and my umbrella in a bookstore. I have already placed my keys carefully in my bag for tonight. Fortunately it is no longer raining.
I have been eyeing many apartments on Craigslist. It is soothing and yet enflaming. New York rental market, why so mean?
I have been eyeing many apartments on Craigslist. It is soothing and yet enflaming. New York rental market, why so mean?
Tuesday 29 April 2008 3:06 pm
Just because I never linked to it: loligo's post on houses and architecture in The Cain Saga.Just because I am still seeking non-enraging topics: have some belated thoughts on duplicity and duplication in The Cain Saga.
One of the series' frequently repeated themes is the disguise of objects as themselves. For persons, this often features as an induced personality or affected persona which turns out to be a "true" expression of the inner self.
( Spoilers for Angel Sanctuary and The Cain Saga )
In conclusion: I need more Kaori Yuki icons.