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Signifying the south

Signifying the south

Anne Dalke's picture

As you will all have heard by now (and I know that some of you have been involved in these conversations for the past week or so), Bryn Mawr's campus is offering us another "local" opportunity to work on identity matters, and questions of representation ("what's the sign? what's it signify?"). Two students in Radnor dorm have been displaying a confederate flag there -- first in the hallway, then, after efforts to seek its removal, from their window -- as well as a line of duct tape labeled "Mason-Dixon Line" leading to their room.

This evening at 7 pm in the Campus Center, the group that met last week to discuss Ferguson and its implications is meeting again, and now intends to use the occasion for dialogue about this concern in Radnor: what it means, the many narratives it generates and interacts with, and what it calls for by way of response, continued dialogue and learning. So here's another occasion to think and write about the local ramifications of the questions we've been exploring in class: What happens when you start identity work with place? What role does environment play in the construction of identity? How might we work together in this particular contact zone?

Identity Matters Tags

Clarifying

 

Supporting

 

Complexifying

A friend just forwarded me this video about the "White Student Union" at Towson University. The leader identifies as an "identiarianist" which is basically an crazy way to justify racism in the name of watered down eugenics. It's gross but brings up an interesting (/terrible) view of identity politics in light of our own identiarianists on campus. 

They also spend their nights being "campus watchmen" because they believe Towson has a black on white crime problem. 

Weaving

 

Challenging

 

Unspecified

Just wanted to share what's happening right now at Colgate College (a private liberal arts college in upstate NY):

http://studentactivism.net/2014/09/24/worth-watching-sit-in-at-colgate-admissions-office-happening-now/