T2 - bell hooks, Il femminismo in classe

PAROLA D AUTORE | T2 bell hooks Feminist thinking in the classroom right now, in Ead., Teaching to transgress. Education as a practice of freedom, Routledge, New York-London 1994, pp. 112-114 Il femminismo in classe Il brano che proponiamo è tratto da Teaching to transgress. Education as a practice of freedom, un libro del 1994 in cui bell hooks raccoglie alcuni saggi dedicati al tema dell insegnamento, con l intento di aprire un dialogo sia con le studentesse e gli studenti sia con i docenti. L autrice si sofferma sulla propria esperienza di insegnamento, analizzando le dinamiche che emergono sia nei corsi specificatamente dedicati agli studi di genere (Women s Studies) sia in altri corsi, in cui adotta una prospettiva femminista. As a feminist teacher, theorist, and activist, I am deeply committed to black liberation struggle and want to play a major role in rearticulating the theoretical politics of this movement so that the issue of gender will be addressed, and feminist struggle to end sexism will be considered a necessary component of our revolutionary agenda. Commitment to feminist politics and black liberation struggle means that I must be able to confront issues of race and gender in a black context, providing meaningful answers to problematic questions as well as appropriate accessible ways to communicate them. The feminist classroom and lecture hall that I am speaking in most often today is rarely all black. Though the politically progressive clamor is for diversity , there is little realistic understanding of the ways feminist scholars must change ways of seeing, talking, and thinking if we are to speak to the various audiences, the different subjects who may be present in one location. How many feminist scholars can respond effectively when faced with a racially and ethnically diverse audience who may not share similar class backgrounds, language, levels of understanding, communication skills, and concerns? As a black woman professor in the feminist classroom teaching women s studies classes, these issues surface daily for me. My joint appointment in English, African American Studies, and Women s Studies as well as other disciplines usually means that I teach courses from a feminist standpoint, but that are not listed specifically as women s studies courses. Students may take a course on black women writers without expecting that the material will be approached from a feminist perspective. This is why I make a distinction between the feminist classroom and a Women s Studies course. In a feminist classroom, especially a Women s Studies course, the black student, who has had no previous background in feminist studies, usually finds that she or he is in a class that is predominantly white (often attended by a majority of outspoken young, white, radical feminists, many of whom link this politic to issues of gay rights). Unfamiliarity with the issues may lead black students to feel at a disadvantage both academically and culturally (they may not be accustomed to public discussions of sexual practice). If a black student acknowledges that she is not familiar with the work of Audre Lorde1 and the rest of the class gasps as 1. Poetessa femminista statunitense, 1934-92. 272 | SEZIONE 2 | Dalla Resistenza agli anni Ottanta del Novecento: educazione e cambiamento sociale |