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Portal magazine commits to showcasing under-represented voices
Portal magazine commits to showcasing
under-represented voices
In 2021, Portal magazine created an inclusivity statement and an annual Portfolio Spotlight section highlighting more diverse cultural perspectives. Portal is VIU’s nationally distributed student-run literary magazine and is published each April. “There was a concerted effort to address today’s cultural moment with the greatest respect for the Black Lives Matter movement and all anti-racist initiatives. We didn’t want to just pay lip service to these ideas, but rather to put them into practice,” says Joy Gugeler, Portal’s Publisher and a VIU Creative Writing and Journalism Professor. “We are trying to reach every population on all campuses to welcome them into the pages of Portal, not just as contributors, but as members of the class and masthead.”
The Arts and Humanities’ Decolonization and Anti-Racism Committee (DAARC) formed in March 2021. It was Gender Studies Professor Vicki Nygard’s initiative along with professors from other departments. The inclusivity statement resulted from that committee.
Kali Moreno, DAARC Research Assistant and a VIU Bachelor of Arts student, found diversity and inclusivity statements from other universities and identified potential models for Arts and Humanities departments to inspire customized approaches. Moreno says these are important to establish student and faculty expectations regarding equality and respect for diverse backgrounds and experiences at the institution. “Some inclusivity statements appear performative without being supported by action,” says Moreno. “Portal’s statement is a good step away from this because it includes direct commitments to support Black, Indigenous and People of Colour (BIPOC) and other marginalized groups in the creative writing community, which I hope will encourage institutional change and make it easier for BIPOC to bring their own experiences to their work and study at VIU.” Gugeler says the Portfolio Spotlight section will commission the work of two or three BIPOC students annually and will deliberately seek out challenging points of view. In 2022, it featured the work of Indigenous (Skwxwú7mesh Úxwumixw - Squamish Nation) student Susan Garcia and Zeel Desai, a student from the Rabari tribe in the Kutch district of the Gujarat state in western India. “We wanted to communicate to all readers and writers that the magazine is a welcoming and safe space for content about their own cultural experience, their countries of origin, and for the broadest range of perspectives along the ability and gender spectrum,” says Gugeler. To view the inclusivity statement visit portalmagazine.ca.
Joy Gugeler
