call for discussion: item 1c.i

[Andrew Barke]

Hi all,

As I wrote in a previous message, I am for an organisation that focuses on
all genders, as opposed to one that is more specific such as, say, "women
and language". With regard to a feminist set of values, if this means an
organisation whose philosophy encourages the advancement of equal
opportunities for all members of society, regardless of sex, ethnicity and
so forth, then I am all for that too. I hope though, that the main aim of
GALA will not be to promote a particular political agenda, but rather to
encourage a broad dialogue on matters relating to gender and language.

Andrew Barke

> 1. Issues to consider
>
> a. Will the organization presuppose a feminist set of values? If so, will
> these be stated explicitly?
> b. What would it mean in practice to define ourselves as a feminist
> organisation: political aims in our constitution, refusing to consider
> nonfeminist pieces submitted to a hypothetical journal, requiring members
> to endorse a set of ideological principles?
>
> 2. Feminism and gender
> a. Will the association be focused on feminist issues rather than gender
> issues (i.e., both female and male genders, at least, as well as other
> 'genders')?
> b. Being a feminist organization doesn't exclude work on men's language.
>
> 3. What it might mean to be a feminist organization
> a. Beginning with the definition of "feminist" as "a person who advocates
> the equality of and equal opportunity for females," GALA should be
feminist.
> b. A feminist organization need not be based on ideology but on an
> alternative structure: - For example. if there is to be a journal, would
it
> be limited to academic style, or could there be more accessible papers
that
> might attract a wider audience? - If there are conferences, could there
be
> alternatives to the 20 minute paper and the 5 minute response, the
> traditional conference model based on the traditional academic lecture? -
> If there is a governing board, could there be representation for a
student
> member or independent scholar and some way of subsidizing them? And what
if
> instead of offering a prize for the best paper  (something thatrewards
> competition and individualism), there would be a prize for the best
> collaboration between an established scholar and a student or independent
> scholar (something which rewards collaboration and mentoring)?
>
> 4. Objections to a feminist organization
> a. GALA should be open to scholars and teachers who are not working in a
> feminist framework. Admittedly, many members will be, but it shouldn't be
a
> requirement.
> b. We don't really want to be giving litmus tests on people's feminist
> principles.
>
> 5. Alternatives to a feminist organization
> a. Rather than being focused on feminism, we should promote dialogue
> between feminism and gender scholarship: this kind of dialogue shouldn't
be
> avoided, but welcomed where it is engaged in seriously on both sides;
> serious challenges help us sharpen up our arguments, whether we are
> nonfeminists being challenged by feminists or the reverse, or indeed
> feminists being challenged by other feminists, which is where most of
this
> field's vital energy has been over the past few years.
>
> Discussion is now open on the following question: What will GALA's
> relationship to feminism be?

==============================================
Andrew Barke
PhD candidate                       Tel:   022-233-7927
Graduate School of International Cultural Studies
Tohoku University
Sendai, Japan
==============================================