teff

     So I’ve been thinking about my place in the general state of things. Selfish, right?

     I suppose I could say this contrasts with the archaic fe/male stereotype of where a woman’s place is in other states of things (I, in fact, see my domestic role as being in the kitchen: it’s too much fun to pass up). I see it as, “Where do I, as a male-by-genetics, fit into feminist and social equity movements?” I’m not supposed to be caring. It is easy for me to not care. It was expected of me to subscribe to the patriarchy speaking through my employer when she said, “Xander, I don’t think your 23% statistic is applicable to Alaskans. If I were a man applying to the Sustainable Village, I would feel cheated.” Certainly, I’m not supposed to shut down with awkwardness at my own social privilege of being male, able, ethnically of-the-majority, financially-stable, and educated. But in terms of dispensing information that many people don’t want to hear, how do I help?

     I suspect I can and do simply act as a force of social justice than nobody was expecting: a male-by-genetics actively trying to destabilize the labyrinth of inequity keeping partiarchical systems intact; a discontented citizen otherwise encouraged to be content with my social status. At the same time, I sense that reminding men of their social privilege often makes them feel guilty, followed by angrily insecure, which is either unavoidable or problematic. I encountered this with one of my coworkers after I had finished explaining to them that women do not, after all, actively seek out lower-paying positions than men, which made me wonder how they would then mention this to their spouse.

     To further confuse what I am making into an issue is the academic nature and settings of what we’ve been learning. Empathy is the bridge between a deplorable circumstance and a desire to help, for example. This concept is easily understood by the well-educated audiences present at that professor’s symposiums. They, like him, are either from ethnic backgrounds which laid the groundwork for their encouragement of his ideals, or, through uncertain and negative circumstances, have realized that his conclusions can/have changed their lives for the better. To apply his empathy project to a psychologically-bereaved population, say, of impoverished Latinas in New York city, might not work, however. For one thing, they may hold his appearance, his whiteness, against him (sorry, I forget his name), since they might not know any better. His attempt at assistance may simply pass as an intrusion. There is also the problem that the patriarchical oppression speaking to our professor through these women is very difficult to extract: they are just as damaged by oppression as their male oppressors. Think of Lily’s mother from SFSF: could a citizen of the 21^st century tell her that her mutilation of her daughter’s feet was a product of the male self-importance agenda? She would assume that the act simply guaranteed a more prosperous future for her daughter, not weakened her morally, as well as physically.

     At the same time, all is not lost. What is learned in an academic institution isn’t supposed to stay academic. White savior complex is only a problem if social workers insist on doing things their way. Empathy, even in cultures where it isn’t seen as a virtue, can be easily retranslated into something universally understood, like non-aggression, or the desire to help. Men aren’t always as bad as I make them seem.

     So goodbye semester, and goodbye to all you amazing people in it. It’s been my best so far.

     P.S.: I've decided to incentivize people coming to the final (I hope that's okay, Dr. Sunwood): since I’ve been forgetting to make cookies for everyone after International Women’s Day, I’ve decided to make a ton and bring them in for anyone who decides to show up. We could have a little breakfast party? Tell me what you think.

     Have fun in the meantime. Good luck with everything.