Feminist, Gender, and Sexuality Studies Commons^™

Safe Schools For All" Sign, Betsy Parsons

Betsy Parsons Collection

Sign created by Betsy Parsons for demonstration or march. Text reads: "GLSEN Safe Schools for All".

Black and rainbow text on white background with GLSEN bumper sticker. Acrylic or tempera on poster board.

"Glsen" Sign, Betsy Parsons

Betsy Parsons Collection

Sign created by Betsy Parsons for event. Text reads: "GLSEN Gay Lesbian Straight Education Network

Black text on yellow background. Acrylic or tempera on poster board.

"Gsta Youth Testimony" Sign, Betsy Parsons

Betsy Parsons Collection

Sign created by Betsy Parsons for demonstration or march. Text reads: " GSTA Youth Testimony Helped Protect the Maine Human Rights Act".

Black, red, green, and blue text on white background. Acrylic or tempera on posterboard.

"Love Is Compassion..." Sign, Betsy Parsons

Betsy Parsons Collection

Sign created by Betsy Parsons for demonstration or march. Text reads: "Love is Compassion Love is Caring Love is Beautiful Love is Love"

Pastel marker on white background.

"Safe Schools For Glbt People" Sign, Betsy Parsons

Betsy Parsons Collection

Sign created by Betsy Parsons for demonstration or march. Text reads: "GLSEN Safe SChools for GLBT People".

Black and red text on white background. GLSEN bumper sticker.

"We Are All In This Together" Sign, Betsy Parsons

Betsy Parsons Collection

Sign created by Betsy Parsons for demonstration or march. Text reads "We Are All In This Together" in several languages.

"Proud Gay Student" Sign, Betsy Parsons

Betsy Parsons Collection

Sign created for march or demonstration. Text reads: " Proud Son Christian Student Gay". Note, the word "Gay" is written vertically next to "son", "Christian" and "Student".

Acrylic paint on white background.

"Trans Students Are Everywhere" Sign, Betsy Parsons

Betsy Parsons Collection

Sign created by Betsy Parsons for protest or march. Text reads "Trans Students Are Everywhere".

Handpainted rainbow text, likely acrylic or tempera on posterboard.

Toxic Masculinity: An Outcome Of Colonialism And Its Effects On The Latinx/Chicanx Lgbtq+ Community, Monica Martinez

McNair Research Journal SJSU

This research examines masculinity in the Latinx community within the U.S. Much of the theory behind masculinity involves discussing toxic masculinity and machismo. To do this, I look at film, poetry, and literature to discuss how toxic masculinity affects Queer Latinxs. Although this research focuses on fictional characters and the analysis of fictional works, these characters’ stories do not fall far from current LGBTQ+ Latinxs who may be experiencing the same issues. I examine La Mission, Mosquita y Mari, Gun Hill Road, “I am Joaquin,” “La Loca de la Raza Cosmica,” Rain God, and What Night …

The Evolution Of The “We Can Do It” Poster And American Feminist Movements, Reina Aguirre

McNair Research Journal SJSU

World War II created mass destruction and economic distress but was also responsible for creating new opportunities for women. The war had torn families apart and had altered family dynamics. The high demands of the wartime economy called for a reevaluation of American women’s roles in society. In 1942, Pittsburgh artist J. Howard Miller was hired by the Westinghouse Company’s War Production Coordinating Committee to create a range of propaganda posters to encourage women to join the war effort.^[1] The most iconic was christened “Rosie the Riveter” and further popularized by Norman Rockwell. These images exemplified how the government …

Let's Change The Subject: Grounding Social Change In Indigenous History And Philosophy, Robert Michael Ruehl

The Seneca Falls Dialogues Journal

This article urges altering the discourse around social change. Too often it is antagonistic and negative; it also overlooks continuing colonizing practices and how injustices to Indigenous peoples have helped to shape past and current injustices toward other groups. First, the article foregrounds the religio-political ideology of the Doctrine of Christian Discovery and the boarding-school experience to remind readers about the broader criminal history of the United States toward Indigenous nations and peoples and how colonization is not a thing of the past. Any call for social change should remember this. Second, the article looks at three dimensions of Indigenous …

Media And Social Media Best Practices For Feminist Activist Groups And Organizations, Arien Rozelle

The Seneca Falls Dialogues Journal

Feminist organizations and activist groups from the Women’s Suffrage movement to the Women’s March have utilized media relations tactics and techniques to share organizational messages. Over time, the art of media relations has evolved from a tactical role to a strategic necessity, one that is vital to the success of any activist organization or group as they seek to inform, educate and/or persuade their intended audience through the use of media and social media.

This essay identifies best practices for feminist activist groups and organizations to help begin or improve their media relations efforts, ranging from initial hiring, to media …

Mapping Injustice Towards Feminist Activism, Wanda B. Knight, Karen T. Keifer-Boyd

The Seneca Falls Dialogues Journal

Strategies for crafting feminist activism begin with a conversation, invites and involves the participation of many people, involves artists and creative communicators, and generates action. The essay is a discussion with examples of how to craft feminist activism from dialogue to committed action—to stop injustice and work toward intersectional justice. We begin the dialogue with intersectional theory and then facilitate a group process of visualization using metaphors of entanglement. The concept of intersectionality considers how hegemonic structures intersect to oppress the lives of racially marginalized communities. The goal of the dialogue is to examine the potential consequences of the interaction …

#Blacklivesmatter: Intersectionality, Violence, And Socially Transformative Art, Denise A. Harrison, Denise Bedford, Laura C. Fong, Linda Hoeptner Poling, Evonne Fields-Gould, Yuko Kurahashi, Dianne Kerr, Alexis A. Blavos

The Seneca Falls Dialogues Journal

This paper is designed to elicit dialogue on the impact of the #Blacklivesmatter (BLM) movement and be a call to action in the wake of murder and sustained oppression of the Black body in America. The paper focuses on the intersectionality of the BLM movement using art, “racial” analysis, creative pedagogy, and the theatre of the oppressed. Included is a monologue of a mother whose child has been murdered by a “peace officer” that leads the audience on an emotional journey. In addition, sobering statistics of documented murders of Black transgender women are presented, as are the health effects of …

Doing The *: Performing The Radical In Antisexist And Antiracist Work, Barbara Lesavoy, Angelica Whitehorne, Jasmine Mohamed, Mackenzie April, Kendra Pickett

The Seneca Falls Dialogues Journal

The essay summarizes excerpts from the 6^th Biennial Seneca Falls Dialogue’s (SFD) session, “Doing the *: Performing the Radical in Antisexist and Antiracist Work.” In this dialogue, students read, displayed, or performed excerpts from feminist manifestos that they authored in a feminist theory or women and gender studies course at The College at Brockport. The manifesto assignment asked students to select a contemporary feminist issue, and using text or text with performance, expose and analyze the issue drawing from “The Combahee River Collective” joined with “Trans *: A Quick and Quirky Account of Gender Variability.”” …

We Marched. Now What?!: Positionality, Persistence, And Power As Catalysts For Change, Kaelyn E.L. Rich

The Seneca Falls Dialogues Journal

Keynote address delivered on October 20, 2018, at the Seneca Falls Dialogues Bi-annual Conference, Seneca Falls, New York.

Editorial Introduction: We All Write: Reclaiming A Sacred Space, Deborah Uman, Barbara Lesavoy

The Seneca Falls Dialogues Journal

The project of the Seneca Falls Dialogues is founded on hope in the face of continued discrimination and inequities, and the essays in this journal continue to move that agenda forward.

The Seneca Falls Dialogues Journal, V. 3, 2019 (Complete Issue), Deborah Uman, Barbara Lesavoy

The Seneca Falls Dialogues Journal

No abstract provided.

Watch Your Language! A Foundational Course Exploring Language Of Gender And Sexuality, Raeann Risko

Gender, Women's, and Sexuality Studies Summer Fellows

How do language and word choice influence the way people think about gender and sexuality? This question is addressed through a syllabus for an entry level college course, which includes suggested readings and activities along with explanations and advice for instructors. This course provides a foundation for understanding the power of language and the impact that the vocabulary used to describe people in relation to their gender and sexuality has. The purpose of the course is to offer an interactive guide for students to consider the many different ways that words may be used or misused, understood or misunderstood. This …

A Silent Voice (Koe No Katachi): The Intersection Of Gender And Disability In Japanese Society, Amanda Weber

East Asian Studies Summer Fellows

Nishimiya Shōko is the female protagonist in the hit Japanese manga and anime film adaptation, A Silent Voice. She is introduced as a transfer student to a sixth-grade classroom and is immediately ‘othered’ for her deafness. Nishimiya goes on to suffer from relentless bullying at the hands of classmates she tries to befriend with little to no intervention from the homeroom teacher. Doing her best to participate in everyday classroom and extra-curricular activities proves fruitless, and her mother pulls her from school. Seven years later, several former classmates attempt to reconcile with Nishimiya and seek redemption and forgiveness for their …

“Gender (As Constant) Labor”: A Consciousness Raising Dialogue On Transfeminist Scholarship And Organizing, Melissa Autumn White

The Seneca Falls Dialogues Journal

This co-authored essay draws on student research conducted for an upper-level course called Trans*Studies that was originally presented at the Seneca Falls Dialogues Conference in October 2016. Drawing on Jane Ward's generative concept of "gender labor", our Dialogue highlights the material effects of representational politics, and articulates the need to centre a transfeminist critique of normative regimes of power, including the representation of "women's" history in the United States.

Intersectionality And Feminist Pedagogy: Lessons From Teaching About Racism And Economic Inequity, Lisa J. Cunningham, Pao Lee Vue, Virginia B. Maier

The Seneca Falls Dialogues Journal

This paper utilizes Rochester, NY, as a case study to argue that approaching race intersectionally and across disciplines creates a stronger model of feminist pedagogy. It is based on our work in the classroom and on the Fisher Race Initiatives—a series of three interactive workshops we created on our campus to create change in the aftermath of the Michael Brown shooting in Ferguson, MO, and in the subsequent rise of the #BlackLivesMatter movement. Our goals were to promote dialogue on race, to expose participants to factual information on race, and to emphasize the intersectional causes of poverty in the Rochester …

The New Normal: Wgs Programs And Professionally-Driven Students, Kathryn I. Sheffield, Elizabeth Ursic

The Seneca Falls Dialogues Journal

In today’s volatile economic climate, students are increasingly choosing courses and majors that are primarily focused on professionally valuable skills and employment opportunities. This trend poses challenges for Women and Gender Studies programs, calling for a shift in both instructional and institutional strategies within the field. Yet, far from finding this a detriment, we have found that Women and Gender Studies courses have considerable value for professionally-driven students. In addition, we have found that the presence of professionally-driven students in Women and Gender Studies courses present opportunities for WGS programs. This article discusses the instructional and institutional implications of the …

Empowerment Through Dialogue: Women’S Experience With Division Of Labor As A Leisure Constraint In Family Life, Sarah Agate, Joel Agate

The Seneca Falls Dialogues Journal

Women in American society experience high levels of stress and the resultant physical and psychological challenges. While leisure is often seen as a context for stress relief, a variety of leisure constraints make it difficult for many women to have this experience. A focus group was conducted with five women who are mothers of young children to explore the division of labor in family travel. This paper reports on the experience of participant empowerment, which occurred through the dialogue that took place. Findings from this study have implications for those seeking to empower people who experience discrimination and marginalization in …

Constructing Sexuality And Fetishizing Women In American History: Debunking Myths In Popular Culture From Pocahontas To The Cold War, Jamie Wagman, Katlynn Dee, Alison Tipton, Adrienne Whisman

The Seneca Falls Dialogues Journal

This paper features recent teaching and scholarship produced in U.S. Women’s History and Women’s History coursework at Saint Mary’s College in Notre Dame, Indiana. We discuss using visual culture analysis and intersectionality in the U.S. History and Women’s History classroom to produce scholarship that interrogates the intersection of race, class, gender and sexuality at a particular historical moment and examines visual primary sources. We give examples of scholarship produced in coursework using these methods, from studying the Lavender Scare and popular culture’s constructions of Democracy that equated communism with homosexuality to the ways in which middle class social reformers used …

Appearance Discrimination: Lookism And The Cost To The American Woman, Alyssa Dana Dana Adomaitis, Rachel Raskin, Diana Saiki

The Seneca Falls Dialogues Journal

Lookism, or ranking an individual based on attractiveness, is a prevalent employment prejudice. Research has shown that looks influence salaries, career growth and even hiring (Warhurst, van den Broek, Hall, & Nickson, 2009). Because it is difficult to prove, there is no legislation that specifically addresses lookism. The current economy gives employers a vast selection of job applicants and candidates for open positions and “beauty premiums” (individuals considered above average with pretty faces) may have a better chance at being hired. According to a Newsweek national survey (2010) of 202 human resource staff which revealed that corporate hiring managers indicated …

Add Women And Stir: Female Presidents In Pop Culture, 2012-2016, Angela Laflen, Michelle Smith, Kristin Bayer, Riana Ramirez, Jessica Recce, Molly Scott

The Seneca Falls Dialogues Journal

In this article, we argue that there was a representational shift in popular culture representations of female presidents following Hillary Clinton’s 2008 primary run, from earlier representations that were entirely preoccupied with gender to more recent depictions that tried to set aside “the gender question.” We explore three representations of female presidents produced since 2012 that can illuminate popular understandings of gender and the presidency between the 2008 and 2016 elections: Veep, State of Affairs, and Scandal. While all three texts attempt to normalize images of female presidents and break from earlier representations by treating a female …

Disrupting The Lean: Performing A 2016 Declaration Of Sentiments, Tambria Schroeder, Barbara Lesavoy, Melissa Brown, Brooke E. Love, Maggie Rosen, Brooke A. Ophardt, Audrey Lai

The Seneca Falls Dialogues Journal

Inspired by the spirit of disruption, this article narrates the making of a “2016 Declaration of Sentiments,” invented in a roundtable, “Disrupting the Lean: Performing a 2016 Declaration of Sentiments,” at the fifth Biennial Seneca Falls Dialogues (SFD). We open the essay with a brief theoretical overview that informs manifestos written in a feminist theory or senior seminar course that take up questions of gender equity, labor, and acts of resistance. We follow with excerpts from these manifestos as read in the roundtable, closing the essay with a “2016 Declaration of Sentiments,” collaboratively authored and recited by roundtable participants. Looking …

Remembering Kate Gleason: Introducing A Twentieth-Century Businesswoman To Twenty-First Century Students, Michael J. Brown, Rebecca Edwards, Tina O. Lent

The Seneca Falls Dialogues Journal

In the fall of 2015, the faculty of the Museum Studies Program at RIT mounted an exhibition titled "Kate Gleason, Visionary: A Tribute on Her 150th Birthday." While Kate Gleason’s name is familiar on the RIT campus because the College of Engineering is named for her, this association obscures recognition of her many and varied accomplishments. The challenge we undertook was to contextualize her work in engineering within her other entrepreneurial endeavors in manufacturing, banking, and building, focusing on the innovation and vision that united them. In addition, we wanted Gleason’s career and accomplishments to be compelling and relevant to …

Editorial Introduction: Women Have Achieved This, I Follow: What If?, Deborah Uman, Barbara Lesavoy

The Seneca Falls Dialogues Journal

In turning to questions of gender, economics and entrepreneurship, the 2016 Seneca Falls Dialogues asked participants to explore how various forms of labor and compensation affect individual lives, societal movements, and institutions. One of the sub-themes for the conference was “Arts and Activism,” which led to our choice of keynote speaker Brenda Ann Kenneally and inspired Eastman professor of music education, Philip Silvey, to propose a performance of the University of Rochester’s women’s chorus at the Dialogues. With the full support of the Department of Music at University of Rochester, chaired by Professor Honey Meconi, and the full enthusiasm of …