Fall 2015 - volume 3, issue 2
contents 3 4
About & Letter from the Editor
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Meet the Faculty: Christina Henderson
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Campus News: “Domestic Violence Awareness Month 2015” by Dr. Allison Foley
Letter from the Director
Campus Resources
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Campus News: “Lambda Alliance” by Tyler Huggins
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Feminist Scholarship: “Manifestations of Hegemonic Masculinity and Gender Essentialism in Orange is the New Black, and Their Roots in Society” by Kathryn DelGenio
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Feminist Scholarship: “Dead Before Birth” by Natasha Venugopal
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Feminist Scholarship: “The Exacerbation of Homophobia in Post-WWII Germany” by Meggie Kotson
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Spring 2016 WGST Courses
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Meet our Contributors
Spring 2016 Yell! Call for Submissions Triota advertisement
Credits
Find the Augusta University Women’s and Gender Studies Department online Website: http://www.gru.edu/colleges/pamplin/wmst/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AUGWGST/ Tumblr: http://aug-wgst.tumblr.com/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/AUG_WGST
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about Yell! • • • “A cheer of support: a rhythmic word or phrase chanted by a group of people to give support or encouragement.” This elementary four-letter word seems so inadequate when put alongside its synonymic counterparts. Bellow. Vociferate. Holler. Exclaim. They all sound so dignified, so regal. But Yell! is a word of a very different caliber. Yell! describes our mission in a way that its predecessors cannot. To us, Yell! means to reclaim women’s voices, not only on the GRU campus but in the community. Yell! means to uplift and galvanize ourselves and everyone we interact with. Yell! is our rallying cry, and we fully intend to embody the vehemence with which it is described here. We are no longer satisfied waiting in the shadows. We will Yell! in solidarity, our mission and our goal. We are a unified front, ready and willing to step into the line of fire for social justice. We will approach our obstacles with intrepidness and pugnacity, never being afraid to fall. Because what is failure but an opportunity to improve? That is what Yell! means to us here in the GRU Women’s Studies Program. It is who we are, and it is what we do. Join us.
Megan Pugh
letter from the editor • • • This is my first semester as Editor-in-Chief for Yell! and student assistant for the Women’s and Gender Studies Department at Augusta University. When I first applied for the student assistant position I was not entirely aware of what my duties would be. Already after one semester I have accomplished and learned so much that I know is going to be valuable to me both in my academic and professional careers. The WGST Department at our university is diverse and incredible. I have to say when I took Intro to Women’s Studies in 2013 I did not have high hopes for a well-rounded, inclusive course given our location in Georgia but I was pleasantly surprised. Our affiliated faculty teach a wide range of interesting courses and the coursework is always varied, inclusive, and intersectional. Personally, I am proud of what I have produced for this department and I have plans in the works for the Spring semester. I hope to continue to serve the department to the best of my ability and I hope all of you will continue to support me in my endeavors. In keeping with tradition, I have kept Megan Pugh’s original “about Yell!” description but you may notice some other formatting changes throughout the magazine. I have really enjoyed adding my personal aesthetic touches to this continuingly evolving publication and it is my wish that you enjoy reading through it as much as I have enjoyed putting it together for you.
Meggie Kotson Editor-in-Chief 3
letter from the director • • •
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t’s a new school year, and changes are afoot in the Women’s and Gender Studies Program! As Augusta University continues to grow and change, so does WGST. The program has welcomed a number of new faculty as affiliates this fall, including Dr. Christina Henderson, who is teaching Introduction to WGST. The program is also offering History of Gender and Family in East Asia for the first time, thanks to Dr. Sandrine Catris. And in the spring we’ll be able to offer six courses in WGST. Speaking of the spring, WGST will be partnering with the Office of Diversity and Inclusion to co -sponsor some great events for Women’s History month in March. We will post a schedule on our website, as well as on Facebook, Twitter, and Tumblr. Feel free to leave a comment or otherwise make contact! Meggie Kotson, the fantastic student assistant for WGST, and I would both love to hear from you. I’m very excited to serve as Interim Director at this time of change and development. Many thanks to all of those who donated to WGST as part of the fall iGRU campaign, and to all who have supported the program in other ways as well. I hope you enjoy this issue of Yell!
Ruth McClelland-Nugent Interim Director Women’s and Gender Studies Department
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meet the faculty As of this issue of Yell! we will be featuring a faculty spotlight to introduce students to one or more of our many talented, dedicated, and unique Women’s and Gender Studies affiliated faculty members. Since this is my first semester as editor-in-chief of Yell! and this is the first “meet the faculty” section so to speak, I thought it fitting to interview one of our newest affiliated faculty members who also happens to be new to our school at large and is taking over the course taught by our previous WGST director.
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r. Christina Henderson is one of our newest additions to the Women’s and Gender Studies Department here at Augusta University. She has a PhD in English from the University of Connecticut and works out of our English and Foreign Languages Department. Dr. Henderson is teaching Intro to Women’s and Gender Studies as of Fall 2015. Of the course she said, “My favorite part of the course is the students. They’re smart, engaged, and inquisitive, and I learn from them on a daily basis… I hope to introduce students to new perspectives and equip them to think critically about gender issues so they feel empowered to be themselves and be kind to those around them.” In regards to her personal interest in the subject of Women’s and Gender Studies, Dr. Henderson had this to say: “My research focuses on women’s literature as well as women’s reform and activism in the 19th and early 20th centuries. I get to study fascinating things ranging from women’s involvement in world’s fairs, to dress reform, to stories about women’s labor written by women telegraphers. These women faced so many obstacles and yet often still strove to create a better world, to lobby for their rights, and to help others around them. In order to fully understand the women’s and gender studies issues we face today, we have to understand the nineteenth-century literary, historical, and cultural contexts that shaped these issues.” Dr. Henderson is not only new to our department, she’s new to the city as well: “This is my first semester here! I finished my PhD in June and moved to Augusta in August. I enjoy reading, traveling, playing piano, and spending time with my new puppy, Gus… Since I’m new, I’m still in the process of getting to know the area and the department!” I hope everyone joins me in giving Dr. Henderson a warm welcome to our school and our department. Augusta University’s Women’s and Gender Studies Department has a bright future indeed.
Meggie Kotson Editor-inChief, Yell! Magazine
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campus resources • • • Women’s Studies Student Association
Lambda Alliance Lambda Alliance is a student led organization whose purpose is to provide a welcoming and supportive environment for LGBTQIA persons of Georgia Regents University and their allies. We strive to educate the student body and the community on LGBTQIA issues and to promote understanding and acceptance on campus and in the community through social and educational events. All are welcomed, regardless of sexual orientation, gender identity or other factors! No member of Lambda's sexual orientation or gender identity is assumed.
The Women's Studies Student Association is an official student-run organization. It was formed in 1997 to address women's issues both on and off campus. The WSSA serves as a forum for all students at Augusta University. The organization participates in the annual Take Back the Night Rally and the Take Back the Day Walk to Prevent Sexual Violence—both events that increase public awareness and prevention of sexual violence. WSSA students are also heavily active in carrying out Love Your Body Week each October, with events that have included film showings, goodie bag distribution, Operation Beautiful notes, and healthy body fitness classes.
Contact: Vice President Tyler Huggins thuggin1@gru.edu
Contact: Secretary Michelle Haynes phaynes@gru.edu
Safe Zone
GRU Equality
Safe Zone Programs are part of a national initiative dedicated to training faculty, staff, students and support services at colleges and universities in an effort to create safe and inclusive environments for individuals of all sexual and gender identities. The Primary objectives are to: Promote the emotional and physical safety of GRU’s sexually and gender diverse student, faculty, staff, and patient populations. Cultivate a supportive and respectful environment conducive to educational achievement, professionalism, and overall health and well-being. Train students, faculty and staff as SZ allies and advocates so that they may serve as resources for the GRU campus, the GRU Medical Center, and the broader Augusta area.
We are an independent organization of administrators, faculty, staff, and graduate & professional students within the Georgia Regents University enterprise who are joining together to improve the experience of sexual and gender minority employees, students, and patients throughout the enterprise. The enterprise includes Georgia Regents University, Health System, and Medical Associates.
Contact: gruequality@gmail.com
GRU Equality Clinic
Contact: Student Assistant Kathryn DelGenio kdelgeni@gru.edu
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• • • campus resources Counseling Center
Our services are free of charge, confidential, and available on both the Summerville and Health Sciences Campuses. We understand that students experience a wide range of concerns that impact their overall wellbeing and ability to succeed as a student, and we are here to help. Our main Counseling Center is located on the Summerville campus in the Central Utilities Building Annex, 2nd floor (CE Building). If you have a physical condition which prevents you from walking up the stairs (unfortunately, there is no elevator at this location), please call us ahead of time so that we can make accommodations for you. We also have a satellite office on the Health Sciences campus, within the Student Health Center in Pavilion II. The physical address is 1465 Laney Walker Boulevard. Office Hours Monday-Friday 8 AM - 5 PM Telephone 706-737-1471
Emergency Suicide Prevention Lifeline: 1-800-273-TALK (8255) Georgia Crisis & Access Line: 1-800-715-4225 Office of Diversity and Inclusion The GRU Office of Diversity and Inclusion (ODI) reports to the Office of the Provost and is the hub for planning and implementing organizational systems and practices to ensure that our enterprise accomplishes its goal of creating a diverse and inclusive environment. Working hand-in-hand with Human Resources, Office of Employment Equity, academic units, Department of Patient Engagement, and senior leadership, and several others, the ODI will build, align and coordinate diversity efforts as a strategic approach that contributes to organizational goals and business performance. Augusta University Health Sciences Campus 1120 15th Street Augusta, GA 30912 Telephone 706-721-9265
GRU Cares Whether a student, staff or faculty, if you or someone you know is in a distressing situation, support is available for you on this website. You will find helpful resources on a variety of issues including:
Emergency or crisis situations and safety concerns
Medical concerns
Multicultural, psychological and personal issues
Interpersonal conflict both in workplace and amongst students
FILE A CARE REPORT
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campus news
purple light nights
DOMESTIC VIOLENCE AWARENESS MONTH 2015
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id you notice the purple lights shining each night on campus in October? They were there in recognition of Domestic Violence Awareness Month. This year was the seventh year that our university hosted a series of events to educate and raise awareness about intimate partner abuse. Each year the lights themselves ignite for the first time during the month’s kickoff event: the Purple Light Nights® ceremony. They remain illuminated each night through the end of the month, which is marked by the annual SafeHomes Survivors’ Walk. A variety of other events took place at Augusta University, Paine College, and in the community as well. There were many exciting additions to this year’s programming. The annual Safe Exits panel, where local practitioners explain the legal processes involved in leaving an abusive relationship safely, was hosted both on campus and in the community at the Maxwell Branch Library. More events were hosted on Paine College’s campus, including a dating violence presentation by SafeHomes and an open-mic night. The Augusta University Department of Art also became involved; its Mad Potters Organization worked with Tire City Potters to host a ceramics activity for SafeHomes clients. They created and painted ceramic pumpkin lanterns that were lit up to illuminate the pathway of the candlelight walk, which is held each year as part of the SafeHomes Survivors’ Walk.
As the chair of the Domestic Violence Awareness Month planning committee, and the faculty advisor of the students who started this programming seven years ago, I am proud to witness the ongoing growth and development of this event series. Just under 400 people participated in these events. The growth is truly most evident in the Purple Light Nights® ceremony. I’d like to tell you about this year’s ceremony to illustrate for you what you can learn when you choose to take action to get informed about intimate partner abuse. A domestic violence organization in Covington, Washington created Purple Light Nights® in 2007 and Augusta University was the first to bring the event to Georgia. After brief welcoming statements from the Provosts of both Augusta University and Paine College, Augusta Mayor Hardie Davis, Jr. spoke on the importance of the entire community uniting in support of victims and the organizations like SafeHomes that help them transform their lives. An exciting addition to this year’s event involved the Purple Purse Allstate Foundation, who presented a Purple Purse award—an actual purple purse designed by Kerry Washington and valued at $350.00—to SafeHomes’ development director, Jennifer Frantom. You can learn about the Purple Purse Foundation at their website purplepurse.com; it is an impressive site full of excellent resources and next year this organization will be even more involved in our programming. The guest speaker of note was an intimate partner
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october 2015 abuse survivor named Valerie Williams. Although, if you ask Valerie, the word “survivor” is one she had difficulty applying to herself. You see, over a decade ago, her intimate partner tried to kill her and then attempted suicide, but it was an attack she said occurred with no history of abuse and no red flags as warning signs. Their relationship wasn’t perfect, she explained, but whose is? The act was preceded by a rather irrational conflict over who would give Valerie a ride back to work after lunch. She survived, however, as did he! She did not need surgery despite being shot in the head; thus, she considers her physical recovery a miracle of “God’s Divine Intervention”—which is also the title of a book she wrote about the experience. She sold copies of the book at the event. Curious to wrap my mind around how there were no red flags or warning signs, I bought a copy. I learned more. In the year prior to the attempted murder-suicide, she felt disconnected from her husband in some way and felt they needed to work on their communication. While poor communication is tied to certain kinds of intimate partner violence, according to scholar Michael Johnson, it is also a common issue many couples face at some point in their relationships. They sought counseling from a church pastor and became Christians. After this point there were virtually no other issues, as Valerie tells it. The day before he attempted to take their lives, he secretly purchased a gun. Hours before he tried to kill her, he wouldn't get out of bed, wouldn’t talk to her about why, and didn't call in to work. Months later, she discovered that he forged her signature on some bankruptcy documents. Did this have something to do with it? Perhaps. Valerie herself can’t be sure. He himself has never really provided those answers. Could any answer be satisfactory, though? Valerie describes struggling to comprehend what is incomprehensible, and this is one of many ways that her experience mirrors that of other survivors. Similar to other survivors, she describes frustration with the criminal justice system—months passed before her husband was arrested; years passed before he entered prison. Similar to other survivors, she must grapple with a punishment she feels does not fit the crime—he was sentenced to a mere ten years. Similar to other survivors, her journey was one of police interviews, court proceedings, divorce proceedings, physical
campus news therapy, medical bills, and helping her children cope with what their father had done. Her journey was one of rebuilding one’s life after surviving abuse or, as she tends to refer to it, overcoming and thriving after the ultimate act of violence.
We dig through the past to identify warning signs as a way of preventing others from experiencing further abuse. When we find those signs, though, we must be careful not to blame ourselves or others for overlooking or ignoring the signs. Searching for them can be counterproductive. Society is so curious about the causes of crimes like these, but sometimes we don’t solve the crime and can’t explain the cause. Valerie’s story, like those of so many others, shows the need for ongoing services and support for those who experience the inexplicable. You can help provide that support. Seek out the organizations who help transform victims into survivors who overcome and thrive. Contacting SafeHomes of Augusta is an excellent place to start. To close, I would like to extend my gratitude to every person and organization who provides the support that makes this programming and such learning experiences possible. The Domestic Violence Awareness Month Committee is comprised of faculty and staff who
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campus news
purple light nights
volunteer their time and energy as a labor of love. This type of service work is valued but not recognized and rewarded to the degree that it could or should be in an academic climate increasingly focused on research and grantsmanship. Of course, the practitioners in this nonprofit field face a similar conundrum. There are too many volunteers to thank, but I will try. Thank you SafeHomes of Augusta and Aimee Hall, Jennifer Frantom, and Rebecca Rodriques. Thank you Paine College faculty and staff: Brooke Robertson, Dr. Lawanda Cummings, and the Paine College Counseling Center. Thank you community volunteers: Joahn Sperry. Thank you Augusta University faculty and staff: Karen Mobley, Dr. Sandrine Catris, Dr. Jessica Ziembrowski, Raoul Pacheco and the Mad Potters Organization, and everyone in Classroom Services, Media Services, Environmental Services, and Facilities Maintenance— especially Jason Crafton and Bill Sealey for lighting our Teardrop purple every year. Thank you also to my student volunteers: Kathryn Delgenio, Ivy Mann, Lucretia Hunt, Talia Smith, Andrew Buckner, Delino Miller, Nino Morell, Andreana Robinson, Ashea' Whitfield, Megan Bowdre, Willie Blockum, Shaderian Williams, Matt Lewis, Briana Torrence, Danielle Murphy, Rashanna Ayers, and Montana Dawkins. Financially, the Domestic Violence Awareness Month Committee would like to thank the Department of Sociology, Criminal Justice, and Social Work; the Division of Enrollment and Student Affairs; the Women’s and Gender Studies Program; the Department of History; Tire City Potters; Ladybugs Flowers and Gifts; and Delightful Bites Cakery. And thank you, Yell! Sincerely,
Dr. Allison Foley Assistant Professor of Criminal Justice Department of Sociology, Criminal Justice, and Social Work
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lambda alliance
campus news
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s Lambda Alliance’s Vice-President, educating and spreading awareness about gender and sexual identities has been a central theme for the organization. Education is part of Lambda’s theme this year because it is essential to
teach students about the history of the LGBTQ+ community to help reduce ignorance around campus and to help explain to students why it is necessary for the LGBTQ+ community to have pride movements. The best way to educate students is to host events such as forums, bake sales, movie nights, information tables etc. Lambda proudly has dedicated officers, avid members, and supportive faculty who help plan, arrange, and host events related to the LGBTQ+ community around campus. In October Lambda helped spread awareness for “Coming Out” week by chalking proud and inspirational messages about their sexual and gender identities all over the Summerville campus of Augusta University. Following the Chalking event Lambda had a forum in the breezeway with face painting, hula hooping, and music to celebrate “Coming Out” week and to create a safe environment for LGBTQ+ students at Augusta University. October 15th Lambda Alliance held an information table with purple cupcakes, cookies, and punch to help spread awareness of violence towards the LGBTQ+ community and to help bring an end to it. Those who signed Lambda’s “I Pledge Not to Bully,” sheet got one cupcake or cookie and a cup of purple punch. Lambda also gave out purple ribbons for every student to wear to show their support for Spirit Day. Some upcoming events Lambda will be involved with and hosting will start December 1st for World AIDS Day. Lambda will have an information table in the JSAC breezeway from 11:30 to 1:00pm to give out red ribbons to students to help spread awareness and show their support for World AIDS Day. Some other events Lambda plans to host are more movie nights, bake sales, information tables, and the annual LGBTQ+ prom in April.
Tyler Huggins Vice President of Lambda Alliance
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feminist scholarship • • • MANIFESTATIONS OF HEGEMONIC MASCULINITY AND GENDER ESSENTIALISM IN ORANGE IS THE NEW BLACK, AND
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n unavoidable fact of life is that the content people create and consume will mirror the realities of their own lives or the society they live in to some degree, no matter how large or small. Content cannot be created without the lived experiences of the creator, content cannot be created without influence from society, and ultimately, content cannot be created from nothing. This understanding— that our experiences, symbolic interactions, and conceptions are reproduced or referenced within the content we create and consume—is particularly valuable when analyzing works where the lines between fact and fiction are less than distinct. By looking at content which ostentatiously blurs the lines between reality and fantasy—works that advertise as being “based on true stories” or “inspired by real events,” for example—consumers are faced with important questions: “How much of this is real? And which parts? Do I myself experience this? Do other people? What does that mean?” Sometimes such content will revolve around, perpetuate, and/or exhibit forces in society that have become normalized, justified, erased, or ignored to such an extent that the work itself, now an exemplar of society and its forces, becomes easier to talk about and react to than the actual events that inspired the work. In cases like these, studying the content and seeking out the events and experiences that inspired the content becomes a crucial step in realizing, understanding, and resolving social problems in our real lives. Orange is the New Black, a television drama based off of a woman’s memoir written about her time in prison, can be regarded as one such exemplar. How much of the show is true to the memoir or the authors personal experiences is not a particularly useful question for the purposes of this essay, the true question is instead: how much of the show reflects the lived experiences of the people viewing it, acting in it, producing it, and living in the society that serves as its basis? By comparing events in the show with scholarly research and participant observation, this essay will explore that important question, and describe the ways Orange is the New Black (OITNB) reflects certain patriarchal social fixtures— gender essentialism and hegemonic masculinity—that
are terribly normalized, deeply embedded, and omnipresent in our society. One of the most prevalent features of our society is the presence of hegemonic masculinity, though we may not necessarily be aware of it at all times. Hegemonic masculinity manifests itself in a number of ways, the most obvious and easily observable way being the widely perpetuated and accepted idea that masculinity is not only synonymous with power, dominance, control, and prestige, but that masculinity is also, therefore, the ideal that all must strive for and be held to. It operates in a way that has been so normalized in our daily lives that its presence becomes mistaken for something organic, naturally occurring, and inherent. In order to function it relies entirely on a strict adherence to the
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• • • feminist scholarship gender binary, normalized violence, racism, and the belief that femininity is inferior to masculinity. In OITNB there are numerous manifestations of hegemonic masculinity, many of which mirror perfectly the hegemonic masculinity that is operational in the lives of viewers. The most acute of these manifestations is George “Pornstache” Mendez, who is a frighteningly accurate personification of violent, hegemonic, hypermasculinity. In the show he is a white-passing, heterosexual prison guard who regularly abuses inmates, flaunts his authority, and engages in oppressive behavior. In addition to his hypermasculine, violent personality, Mendez reaps the benefits of symbolic interactionism, sporting the iconic badges, blue shirts, and patriotic emblems associated with law enforcement officials. These symbols not only serve to frame and maintain his interactions with inmates, they also provide physical reminders of his status and authority, and help create a visual representation of the “hegemonically ideal” law enforcement official.
through a process of participant observation, composed an article that sought to expose a sort of “hidden curriculum” (Prokos & Padavic, 2002) embedded within the training undergone by law enforcement officials which served to “encourage hegemonic masculinity among recruits” (Prokos & Padavic, 2002), enforce and ingrain the idea that “masculinity is an essential requirement in policing” (Prokos & Padavic, 2002), and ultimately perpetuate patriarchal values and glorify masculinity to the utmost degree. The study done by Prokos and Padavic enlightens readers to the fact that characters like Mendez— hyper-masculine, dominant, and hegemonically ideal antagonists— are not wild beasts dreamed up by screen writers who want to terrorize their cast in new and groundbreaking ways, but rather are monsters of a much more familiar nature, monsters who are not dreamed up for works of fiction, but are realistic portrayals of men who are carefully created, nurtured, and raised by our society to be employed in positions of power.
According to the information unearthed by Some of the characteristics of hegemonic Anastasia Prokos and Irene Padavic, authors of masculinity that Prokos and Padavic cite in their ‘There Oughtta Be a Law Against Bitches’: Masculinity research, “subordination of women, heterosexism, Lessons in Police Academy Training, much of Mendez’s uncontrollable sexuality, competitive individualism, aggressiveness” (Connell, 1995; Messerschmidt, 1996) to name a few, are traits that Mendez exhibits in nearly every interaction with inmates and peers. Similarly, findings like the common employment of “language and sexual harassment” (Prokos and Padavic, 2002) as cudgels against women inmates and women coworkers by male law enforcement officials in real life prisons correlates directly with the on screen portrayal of Mendez and his excessive use of gendered slurs, weaponized sexuality, and aggressive manipulation of the women in his care in OITNB. Some specific examples of this behavior include Mendez engaging in sexual relations with an inmate who could not, by law, behavior is a true reflection of law enforcement give consent; exposing himself in front of Red, the officials outside of television, and a shining example woman in charge of the kitchen; urinating in food of the sheer power hegemonic masculinity has in intended for inmates in order to coerce her into the process of socialization. Prokos and Padavic, trafficking drugs for him; and regularly conducting
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feminist scholarship • • • aggressive shows of masculinity such as raising his voice and disregarding personal space. More parallels between Mendez’s behavior and the behavior of officials from Prokos and Padavic’s research include the pervasive insistence that women are not able in the same ways men are, and the perpetuation of “women’s outsider status” (Prokos & Padavic, 2002). Prokos and Padavic, during their participant observation, saw these hegemonic practices manifest through the regular
problem that tends to be reproduced and referenced by the media we create and consume, and it certainly is not the only social problem represented in OITNB. Gender essentialism, a fixture as deeply embedded in American society as hegemonic masculinity and a fixture crucial to the maintenance of hegemonic masculinity itself, is also easily observable in the show as well as in the lives of people living in our society. Gender essentialism is the driving force behind transphobia, sexism, and a plethora of other issues that influence the way we live our lives and are socialized. It perpetuates the idea that gender is denoted only by bodies, hormones, and genitals, it strictly maintains the gender binary, and it refuses to acknowledge gender as a social construction. Gender essentialism manifested in OITNB in a number of ways, and could be found within character interactions, onscreen medical practice, the rampant conflation of genitals and gender exclusion of women from lecture material during police by nearly every character on the show, the constant training, the delegation of desk and office related work attribution of various shortcomings to certain genders, to female law enforcement employees, and gendered and especially in the dialogue and story surrounding the differences in recruitment standards for men and only openly trans character in the show, Sophia Burset. women during the hiring process. In OITNB, these The storyline surrounding Sophia’s character phenomena could be observed during interactions was filled with—outside of the heart wrenching familial between Mendez and his female coworkers in which he schism—atrocious transphobia, transmisogyny, and regularly demeans and devalues the work they do and gender essentialism. From her wife insisting she “man their ability to carry out said work, and his refusal to up” and be the father their son needed, to prison guards offer the women inmates basic human respect. and inmates continually referring to her as “tr*nny,” While the accuracy of Mendez’s representation of hegemonic masculinity in the show would make it truly easy to focus solely on hegemonic masculinity and its roots in society, it is not the only example of a social
“sh*male” or “abomination,” and perhaps most shockingly, to the prison reducing her dosage of estrogen hormones and switching her medication to generic without her consent, Sophia Burset spent the
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• • • feminist scholarship entire series battling assumptions and socially constructed “truths” about gender. Throughout the show, prison staff and inmates could be seen qualifying and questioning Burset’s femininity, questioning her gender identity and expression, and requiring her to prove or reinforce her status as female in ways that cis women exempt from. This unwillingness to accept a trans person’s identity and the constant need to qualify and prove and enforce said identity are direct reactions to gender essentialism that have been internalized by not only characters in OITNB, but also by many of us living outside of the television screen. To accept that someone who was assigned male at birth, as Sophia Burset was, could be a woman would require us to have no attachment to biologically essentialist ideas like genitals and reproductive organs determining gender, it would require us to reevaluate our criteria for womanhood and manhood, and it would require us to accept that gender is not stagnant, inherent, or binary. Time and time again throughout the show, Sophia Burset called for this reevaluation, she called for this acceptance, and she called for this lack of attachment to essentialism and false truths. She is not the only one who has called for this, however, and this struggle was not born with her. Like hegemonic masculinity, gender essentialism and the complex issues that blossom around it did not originate in OITNB, rather they arrived there, growing from the roots that are embedded in our society. In fact, in the article Enforcing Gender: The Constitution of Sex and Gender in Prison Regimes by Sarah Pemberton, it is argued that the very establishment of sex-segregated prisons is essentialist and detrimental to trans and intersex inmates. Pemberton also argues that gender binaries originate from and are heavily enforced by “disciplinary institutions and every day interactions that enforce gendered discipline” (Pemberton, 2013). This research provides a tangible link from a semi-fictional character to the lived experiences of people inhabiting the prison system and experiencing gender essentialism in our society in a way that is similar to how Prokos and Padavic’s research provided links from hegemonic masculinity in the show to lived experiences outside of the
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show. Upon analyzing OITNB and identifying the hegemonic masculinity and gender essentialism strewn throughout, one may be able to relate their own lived experiences with the experiences of characters in the story. This allows viewers to identify and educate themselves on the roots of hegemonic masculinity and gender essentialism in society in ways they might not be able to otherwise. Millions of things can blind people from being aware of social problems and fixtures in their society and everyday lives: privilege, inexperience, lack of education, lack of resources, being desensitized to the problem, the list could go on. Sometimes, the ability for social problems to be reproduced and referenced in the content we create gives us opportunities to see our experiences in new ways and analyze them more critically. By comparing character experiences from OITNB with lived experiences of real people, it becomes apparent that the attitudes, ideas, and manifestations in media are directly linked to those within our culture. It also becomes apparent that there are certain problems and fixtures that are so deeply ingrained in our society that when they are reflected back at us through media, we see how truly oppressive, devastating, and impactful they are. Whether or not OITNB depicts an accurate portrayal of everyone’s prison experience or no one’s prison experience, it does accurately depict major social forces that shape and manipulate the lives of real people every single day, and it depicts them in way that requires viewers to take notice. Perhaps that is the best thing about the roots of social institutions growing so broad and large that they begin to creep into the content we create, it allows us to evaluate our lives on a much deeper level, and it gives us the opportunity for revolutionary reflection on ourselves and our society.
Kathryn DelGenio Sociology Major Written April 21, 2014
feminist scholarship • • • DEAD BEFORE BIRTH
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ex selection in Asia has resulted in the deaths of hundreds of millions of women. The lack of action on the part of the government and law enforcement means that the burden of solving the gendercide problem lies on the shoulders of the public. While male children stay in the family and take over all responsibilities, female children are married off, essentially becoming the “property” of the husbands’ family. Many families feel that, rather than paying to raise a child that will live with someone else, it is easier to simply kill female children as fetuses or as infants. This practice, often atrociously ignored by governments and horrifically supported by health professionals in these countries, has resulted in the deaths of countless infant girls and the exploitation of many adult women. People must fight for what they believe is right, fight to reduce and eventually eliminate gendercide, fight to save the lives of innocent and helpless babies who are never even given a chance to live and succeed. In order to fight female feticide and female infanticide, people have been emphasizing the reasons for females to live: women produce children; women are beautiful; women, in addition to men, contribute to society. Such an argument is offensive to the female gender. The fact that people must use logic as a reason to keep females alive is outrageous. As living beings, as humans, they have an inherent right to live that should never have been questioned or argued over in the first place. By offering reasons that women should live, advocates against female infanticide are in fact exacerbating the issue by admitting there was even a question in regards to those rights. Many mothers in
countries around the world feel no qualms about strangling or poisoning their infant daughters. The practice of murdering infant girls is in these countries is common. The crimes are not solely committed because of male hatred directed towards the female gender. The opposite is also true. Due to their own experiences, many mothers feel that a quick death for a female infant is better than a life plagued by suffering and neglect. The fact that females in this region are unable to live a life without strife is morally wrong. Sex selection must be opposed in order to rectify the moral injustice committed by people who see no other option available. As Hilary Clinton said, “Human rights are women’s rights and women’s rights are human rights”. Young girls in impoverished countries are helpless, unable to escape the horror that their gender brings them. If they are not murdered as infants, they are cast aside, left with little food and countless chores. They are ignored in favor of male offspring, who are seen as the future breadwinners of the family. In fact, the belief in some countries is that girls are leeches that suck food and money from their families. There are several Chinese or Indian proverbs that describe girls as being nothing but burdens that weigh families down. It’s a Girl, a documentary directed by Evan Grae Davis in 2012 and produced by Shadowline Films, is an account of the sex selection occurring in Asia. The heart-
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• • • feminist scholarship wrenching personal accounts in the film give the public faces to associate with the victims of these unforgivable crimes. One couple describes the regret of having to give up three daughters to relatives while having to work in menial factory jobs in order to support their family. Another couple describes the horror of losing their daughter, who was kidnapped in order to be raised as a future bride. Among all the tales of heartbreak and horror, the one beacon of light is the inspirational story of Dr. Mitu Khurana, who emerged after being exploited and imprisoned to fight against sex selection. Dr. Khurana, after refusing to abort the two female twins she was carrying, was pushed down the stairs by her husband, who attempted to force a miscarriage. Rather than getting her and her unborn babies medical attention, the husband locked Mitu away for days, denying her sustenance and care. After escaping, Mitu wrote to the government and tried to report her husband to the police, only to realize that neither would help her. Instead of receiving assistance, Mitu was harassed and threatened. Despite the numerous obstacles in her path, Mitu began organizing marches and events to raise awareness of the issue of sex selection, hoping to make her daughters’ futures safer and brighter. Dr. Khurana’s story and the stories of the other families who suffered due to sex selection allow viewers to see actual victims, real people who are forced to deal with the wreckage left in their lives by these crimes. It is not just a hypothetical problem. Sex selection is real and devastating to the Asian population; the number of females killed due to gendercide is greater than the entire population of the
United States. In fact, according to the documentary, the number of women and girls that have died due to gendercide is greater than the combined total of the
deaths due to all genocides in the twentieth century, including the Holocaust. The issue of sex selection must be brought to the forefront for the American people, some of whom might not be aware of the serious problem halfway around the world. For the sake of all the females in the world, the public must accept that men and women are equals, capable of the same feats. They must realize that a woman is as suitable to lead a country as any man. They must realize that every human life is priceless, no matter what gender. Sex selection is wrong. To avenge the deaths of the millions of infants already murdered and preserve the female lives not yet born, we need to stand against gendercide, against inequality.
Natasha Venugopal Call and Molecular Biology Major
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feminist scholarship • • • THE EXACERBATION OF HOMOPHOBIA IN POST-WWII GERMANY
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here are few who would contest the idea that the rise of Adolf Hitler in the 1930s and the subsequent world war to follow shaped the entire rest of the 20th century’s political and social atmosphere in the West. Although it is well known that the Nazi regime and Holocaust affected people who did not fit into Hitler’s ideal Aryan race narrative, the plight of people, and particularly men, deemed homosexual in Nazi Germany is a lesser studied topic. The Nazi government had a profound and lasting impact on cultural views of homosexuality, and the direct involvement it had in shaping social acceptance (or rather lack thereof) of homosexuals existed without criticism even after the end of WWII and the dissipation of Hitler’s system of government. Fascism as a form of government existed at direct odds
with that of communism and democracy. Countries of all three types of government models sought to uphold traditional values and discredit the others, often at the expense of those considered abnormal by society. Thus, homophobia has been used by all three systems to promote respectability and nationalism. Germany is a unique example as it experienced all three forms of rule within a very short span of time, beginning with a leader who visibly and relentlessly attacked homosexuality. Despite a rejection of fascist ways of thinking and governing, particularly as it pertained to Nazism in Germany, and the vast differences between fascist, communist, and democratic ideals, Hitler’s unique and specialized use of homophobia as a political tool continued to be practiced by future governments throughout the country. The German homosexual community has a long history, both as a cultural phenomenon and as it has been outlawed or used to further certain agendas while discrediting others. In fact, it was a Hungarian-German psychiatrist named Karl Westphal who first coined the term “homosexuality.” While before, same-gender sex acts were viewed in positive, neutral, or negative terms, there had never been an identity associated with it. They were just acts committed by people and not an indication of inherent difference in characteristics or beliefs that affected interpersonal relationships. In this respect, it could be said that a German invented the entire concept and identity of homosexuality, at least as far as the Western world was concerned. Homosexuality first became an issue of German government and law enforcement in 1871 with the enactment of Paragraph 175 to the national criminal code. The code classified homosexuality as an unnatural behavior, akin to bestiality. The law was just vague enough to allow open interpretation, so that some judges may deem an act punishable by law only if penetration was involved, while others would condemn any and all sexual or even romantic acts between men. Despite stereotypes of general intolerance in times gone by, there was in fact a large portion of the German population who opposed the existence of this law, although stigma against gay men still existed. Most of this distrust manifested in a fear of pedophilia. Lesbians did not face the same level of criminal charges and social rejection due to the belief that women were not
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• • • feminist scholarship sexual beings in the same way that men were and could still participate in “normal” (aka heterosexual) reproductive behaviors while maintaining gay relationships. Lesbians were also seen as less likely to be a corrupting influence on young women as opposed to gay men. It should be noted that for the rest of this paper, the word “homosexuals” will be in reference to homosexual men only and not necessarily an indicator of the lesbian experience. Despite the illegality of being openly gay in Germany, homosexual communities began to flourish in Germany during the 1920s, as they did in America and other Western countries. However, while the Weimar Republic was on the brink of decriminalizing homosexuality between consenting adults, Hitler and his Nazi state emerged to dominate the German government and introduce a strict conservativism in the social sphere. The infamous Paragraph 175 was revised in 1935 to include specific references to age differences in homosexual relationships. This had the cultural impact of more solidly framing the homosexual man as a deviant master of seduction, particularly fond of corrupting young men. Hitler sought not only to rule absolutely, but to create a state of people he deemed to be morally upright and genetically perfect. Restrictions on homosexuality and abortions went hand-in-hand under his desire to control Aryan reproduction. A rigorous campaign of homophobic propaganda was introduced in Nazi Germany and led to an exponential increase in citizens reporting each other for violations of paragraph 175. Prisoners charged with this offense made up almost 40 percent of the prison population who had committed “crimes against morality” and up to 15,000 convicted homosexuals were subsequently sent away to concentration camps. Homosexuals were marked by a pink triangle that appeared on their prison uniforms. The regime sought to reform homosexual men so they could go forth and
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reproduce, thus ultimately benefitting the Aryan race. This reeducation involved ridicule, humiliation, aversion therapy, and physical abuse. Even castration was used in some cases, with or without consent. Knowing that homosexuals were one of the most abused groups in the concentration camps, political prisoners were often purposefully labelled homosexual upon arrival regardless of their true sexual identity. And in true Nazi fashion, eventually homosexuals even became the subjects of invasive laboratory testing.
By the end of World War II, homophobia was widespread and rampant in Germany thanks to Hitler’s enforcement of Paragraph 175. Despite the dissolution of the Nazi state, the adjustments that had been made to Paragraph 175 remained unchanged under the new systems of government to be established by the victorious Allied powers. Homosexual people who were imprisoned during the war were often made to carry out their remaining sentences and were not acknowledged as victims of Nazi rule and concentration camps. As such, little to no literature was created about their plight during this time. In essence, even the “good guys” were homophobic enough to allow the stories of homosexuals who died and survived Nazi persecution to be swept under the rug.
feminist scholarship • • • As Germany became segmented and outsiders helped to put new governments into place, the continued illegality of homosexuality was rebranded to suit new political agendas, although it was often similar to Nazi design. West and East Germany changed drastically due to outside influences of Allied forces. It is worth noting that initially, West Germany continued the harsher treatment and social stigma regarding homosexuals despite being influenced by those countries often framed as being on the moral high ground of WWII and the post war settlements. Repeal of Paragraph 175 was suggested at several points through the 50s and 60s. However, the law was upheld on moral grounds. Because of the secretive nature surrounding homosexual lives, it was assumed that gay men would be more susceptible to blackmail, and idea that caused high anxiety in the West during the Cold War. Homosexuality was finally decriminalized in 1969 after Christian Democrats lost power in West Germany. Despite the new legality of homosexuality, it was still looked at with distaste by much of the German population. In fact, some believed the idea to be so disgusting that they cited this as being a reason why decriminalization would not instantly cause a rampant vein of homosexuality to grow in the populace. Alternatively, East Germany which was under the influence of Soviet powers, framed as being in opposition to America and Western ideas of freedom, initially became more lax on the enforcement of Paragraph 175. The only Nazi adjustment to the law that they adhered to was the prohibition of sexual relations between homosexual people based on age. Despite less enforcement of homophobic laws, the popular view of homosexual men as pedophiles persisted in the public consciousness. A major shift occurred in 1953 with Josph Stalin’s death. East Germany’s government sought to seek to control public morality much in the same way Hitler did, but this time it was in the name of Communism rather than Nazism. Communist leaders directly twisted the recent past and began framing homosexuality as being associated with fascism. Homosexuality quickly became linked with espionage, bourgeois hedonism, and narcissism, traits highly looked down upon in a system that emphasizes contribution to the greater good of the community. An uncomfortable association
with Nazi Germany and a carefully crafted narrative of the ideal socialist man worked to spread homophobia throughout East Germany in the 1950s and 60s. It was not until 1968 that homosexuality among consenting adults was decriminalized in East Germany and by the 1970s, there were publications defending homosexual desire against harmful medical definitions. Even with the drop of criminal charges against homosexual men, socials stigma still existed at an extreme level. Many got fired from their jobs for their sexual orientation and faced verbal harassment. The three systems of government that existed in and influenced Germany both during and immediately following WWII used homosexuality in similar ways to discredit each other. All relied on vague definitions of what it means to behave in a moral way and upheld strict gender roles as standards for healthy citizens. There was also the finger pointing between the three that the opposing systems promoted homosexuality and therefore should be avoided to prevent becoming a homosexual as well. There are many parallels to be drawn between anti-communism and the distain for homosexuality. The extreme fear of communist invasions sparked massive amounts of official accusations without any solid evidence. Many closeted homosexuals were falsely accused of being communists after WWII because they led unusually secretive lives. Homophobia as a political weapon became the norm in Germany after Hitler’s takeover in the 1930s. Perhaps the most important information to be gleaned from these histories is the fact that three very different governing structures, those of democracy, fascism, and communism, were able to use homophobia to try to discredit the others. Despite intrinsic differences in ideologies, leaders of many Western governments were able to use the distrust and marginalization of homosexual men to their political advantage. Thus it shows that no matter who in power, actively fighting against oppressed groups on the outskirts of society proves to be a successful political strategy.
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Meggie Kotson History Major
courses • • • spring 2016 WGST 1101: Introduction to Women’s Studies Dr. Christina Henderson / MW F/ 12:00—12:50pm An interdisciplinary course designed to provide a foundation for the women’s studies minor. WGST/HIST 4950: Witchcraft, Law, and Culture Dr. Ruth McClelland-Nugent / MW / 4:00—5:15pm An examination of beliefs and practices related to witchcraft and popular magic, with an emphasis of cultural and legal responses to this alleged phenomenon. This course includes a special emphasis on gendered aspects and social consequences of witchcraft beliefs and persecutions. May be repeated for credit. Course may be accepted for upper-level ANTH credit. Prerequisites: HIST 1111 or 1112 or permission of instructor. WGST/SOCI/CRJU 3336: Women, Crime ,and the Criminal Justice System Dr. Allison Foley / Online A sociological analysis of women as criminal offenders and as workers in criminal justice fields. Examines the socio-historical construction of gender for its influences on criminal law and the practices of criminal justice agencies. Covers historical perspectives on women and crime, the adequacy of contemporary criminological perspectives for explaining female criminality. Prerequisites: WGST 1101 or SOCI1160; SOCI 1101 or CRJU 1103. WGST/COMS 4120: Gender and Communication Dr. Pamela Hayward / MW / 2:30—3:45pm This course explores gendered communication patterns in a variety of contexts and examines how communication creates and reinforces gender. Theories that explain how culture shapes gendered communication and how gendered communication shapes culture will be examined. WGST/ENGL/HUMN 4310: Studies in Feminism Dr. Seretha Williams / MW F/ 9:00—9:50am “Mad Women in the Attic: Gender and Trauma in Women’s Literature.” We will read texts (novels and essays mostly) written by women authors and scholars. We will apply feminist criticism in our readings of texts. Trauma theory and intersectionality are two of the lenses through which we will interpret texts. WGST/ENGL 4950: Major American Authors Dr. Cheryl Hopson / TR / 10:00—11:15am The course is designed to introduce students to the writings of major American author, Alice Walker. We will read the creative works (novels, poems, short stories) and nonfiction writings (essays, memoir) of Georgia-born African-American novelist, and self-named womanist (i.e. Black feminist), Alice Walker, and focus in on the confluence of Walker’s aesthetic and womanist/ feminist philosophies. Students will read across genres, with an eye toward Walker’s construction of 1) African-American female/ male subjectivity, 2) African-American inter-generational and inter-familial relations, and 3) the American socio-cultural landscape, both pre– and post– the Civil Rights, Women’s Liberation, and Black nationalist movements of the 1960s and 1970s.
SPRING 2016 REGISTRATION WILL BE JANUARY 8, 2016
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Yell! • • • get involved
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get involved • • • triota
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meet our contributors • • • Kathryn DelGenio Kathryn Delgenio is a senior sociology major at Augusta University. Her daily life consists of attending school full time and reshelving at a public library part time. She is also the student assistant for SafeZone. During summer vacations she liks to travel, and has gone on two study abroad trips with her university, one to Russia and one to Canada. Her long term goals include becoming a professor of sociology and spending time organizing within her community.
Dr. Allison Foley I was always fascinated by crime and deviance, and by the way gender shapes our experiences and understandings of the world. When studying these topics while obtaining my PhD. in Sociology, I discovered just how much gender inequality remains in our world and in our justice systems. I then began studying society's preventive and reactive approaches to girls' delinquency, looking specifically at animal-assisted delinquency programs. This provides the foundation for my Women, Crime, and the Criminal Justice System course. I continue researching in these areas and also teach courses on deviance, corrections, and popular culture.
Tyler Huggins I am currently a History major and Anthropology minor. My research interests are primarily in social and cultural history on topics that cover women, sexual and gender identities, and social movements in the United States. My first experience with student organizations began when I served my first term as senator for the Pamplin college of Arts, Humanities, and Social Sciences three years ago. I am currently serving a second term as senator this semester, fall 2015 and will be serving my last term next semester Spring 2016. I started working with Lambda as the Vice-President during my junior year and am currently serving another term as Vice-President this year my senior year. My goals are to turn Lambda from a social organization to more of an activist organization. My plans is to spread awareness about LGBTQ+ current issues on political and social movements and to educate students about LGBTQ+ history and why it necessary to have pride movements.
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• • • meet our contributors Margaret “Meggie” Kotson Meggie Kotson is a third year History major at Augusta University. She is minoring in Women’s and Gender Studies and currently holds two jobs as the WGST director’s student assistant and a sales associate at My Story Inc. She hopes to pursue a doctorate in history and reshape the way history is taught to encompass a more inclusive range of viewpoints. She is the current Editor-in-Chief for Yell! Magazine, president of Triota, and former president of Lambda Alliance. Her hobbies and interests include cartoons, comics, video games, musicals, and cooking shows.
Natasha Venugopal Natasha Venugopal is a freshman Cell & Molecular Biology major at Georgia Regents University, soon to be Augusta University. She has an avid interest in the healthcare applications of biology and chemistry. After completing her undergraduate degree, Natasha hopes to attend the Medical College of Georgia in order to pursue a career in medicine. Her interest in gender equality began in the eighth grade when she was asked to write a paper on whether women and men in the United States were actually treated as equals in professional and social settings. This paper led to further focus on the topic of gender inequality worldwide.
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credits Editor-in-Chief
Credit: Tyler Huggins
Meggie Kotson
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Program Director
Description: Poster for the Netflix original show Orange is the New Black
Dr. Ruth McClelland-Nugent
Credit: Titled Productions— CC-BY-SA-4.0
Contributors Kathryn DelGenio
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Allison Foley
Description: a person being placed in handcuffs by a police officer
Tyler Huggins
Credit: Pixabay Paolo Ghedini—CC0 Public Domain
Meggie Kotson
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Natasha Venugopal
Description: The US flag seen flying behind barbed wire
Special Thanks
Christina Henderson Asher Primus
Credit: Pixabay Barbara Rosner—CC0 Public Domain
Page 16 Description: A photo of a young Chinese girl Credit: Pixabay user feelian—CC0 Public Domain
Art & Photography Credits
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Page 01 Description: Dandelion seeds in black and white
Description: Two babies wearing traditional Korean clothing
Credit: Pixabay user HebiFot—CC0 Public Domain
Credit: Pixabay user kangheungbo—CC0 Public Domain
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Description: A red apple sitting on a stack of three books
Description: “Kennzeichen für Schutzhäftlinge in den Konzentrationslagern” photo from the United States Holocaust Museum of a poster detailing the meanings of different triangular identity markers used on prisoners’ uniforms in Nazi concentration camps
Credit: Pixabay user Michal Jarmoluk—CC0 Public Domain
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Description: Asher is a AUG student who volunteered to Credit: CC0 Public Domain photograph the Purple Light Nights opening event for our Page 19 magazine Description: A plaque in Germany memorializing the Credit: Asher Primus homosexual men who were kept in the Buchenwald Page 11 concentration camp Description: Photos of some Lambda Alliance members at Credit: CC0 Public Domain Atlanta Pride submitted by the vice president
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