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September 20, 2006
Now THIS is my kind of work
For this seminar paper I have chosen to evaluate the writings and theories of Victor Villanueva. Villanueva’s career began in 1986 and he is currently teaching at Washington State University. Villanueva is recognized one of the few (if not only) Latino rhetoricians in the field, and theorizes about the origins of Latino rhetoric and its connection to the Ancient Greek tradition, as well as issues concerning rhetoric and racism. I am uncertain if he is part of the current canon; but if we consider the reformulating of the canon, then he will certainly garner a position within it.
Villanueva’s work is interesting to me from two perspectives. First, as a future historian/ activist, his scholarship provides me with an entry point into the ancient tradition and a means by which to influence the canon in the hopes of gaining inclusion for under-represented scholars whose theories are (still) viewed as ancillary. Secondly, through his writing I am able to evaluate my own internal rhetoric and the rhetoric of other Latino/as, and examine how and why Latino/as have acquired a particular form of expression beyond cultural affiliation and issues of citizenship. In my dissertation, I hope to address these issues of identity and its effects on the construction of social identity of Puerto Ricans. Although Dr. Villanueva has written extensively about issues concerning both composition and rhetoric, I have chosen the writings that deal specifically with the marginalization of persons of color. Primary sources for this project will include:
· Holdstein Deborah and David Bleich (eds.). “Cuentos de mi Historia: An Art of Memory,” Personal Effects: The Social Character of Scholarly Writing, Provo: Utah UP, 2001, 267-76.
· Hollins, Etta R. and Eileen I. Oliver (eds.). “The Student of Color and Contrastive Rhetoric,” Finding Pathways to Success In School: Culturally Responsive Teaching. Mahwah, NJ: Erlbaum, 1999, 107-123.
· Hecht ,Michael (ed.). “Scenes from an Individual of Color: On Individuals and Individualism,” The Communication of Prejudice, Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage, 1997, 235-45.
· Eddy, Robert (ed.) “Literacy, Culture, and the Colonial Legacy,” The Politics of Multiculturalis,. Yarmouth, ME: Intercultural Press, 1996, 79-99.
· Purves, Alan C. (ed.). “Hispanic/Latino Writing: Rhetorical Differences.” Encyclopedia of English Studies and Language Arts, 2 Vols. New York: Scholastic, 1994, 1220-34.
· Villanueva, Victor. Bootstraps: From an American Academic of Color, Urbana: NCTE, 1993.
· ________ The Rhetorics of the New Racism or the Master’s Four Tropes, FYHC: An Online Journal, October 2005.
· ________ Memoria is a Friend of Ours: On the Discourse of Color, College English, September 2004, 1-10.
· On The Rhetoric and Precedents of Racism, College Composition and Communication, Summer 1999, 89-105.
· ________The Voice of Voices in the Writer of Color, English Journal, December 1995, 68-69.
· ________Hegemony: From an Organically Grown Intellectual, PRE/TEXT: A Journal of Rhetorical Theory, Spring/Summer 1992, 18-34.
· ________Reading Rhetoric Outside and In: Theory, Pedagogy, and Politics in Race, Rhetoric, and Composition, JAC: A Journal of Composition Theory, Winter 2000, 195-204.
· ________On Colonies, Canons, and Ellis Cose’s The Rage of A Privileged Class, JAC: A Journal of Composition Theory, Winter 1996, 159-69.
Ultimately, my hope is that this project will expand my understanding of the current conversations occurring in the field with regard to alternative rhetorics, so that I can knowledgeably contribute to the aforementioned conversations in the future.
Posted by dvaldesd at 11:11 AM | Comments (0)
September 19, 2006
More Tacit Racist Practices
This is an example of how far the ugly arm of racism stretches. The most infuriating thing is that we all know what is going on; this is less about hair care and more about the destruction of cultural practices that maintain or reinforce African (american) pride. And, of course, it is also about capitalism and the perpetuation of poverty among under-represented peoples. The more we have to pay for licenses, the more obstacles there are. Hence, the harder it is for us to acquire wealth, prosperity, and FREEDOM! It seems to me that although the maneuvers are subtle, they are obvious to those of us that have been and continue to be victimized by the power of racism-and those that wield the power.
States Debate Licenses for Hair Braiders
Tuesday, September 19, 2006 2:22 PM EDT
The Associated Press
By PATRICK WALTERS
PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Assatou Balde's hands flick smoothly back and forth above her client's partially uncovered head, quickly weaving strands of hair called microbraids and affixing them to the woman's natural hair.
Next to her, Nene Balde goes through a similar process while braiding the locks of another customer. The two sisters' hands twist and pull with silent, hand-over-hand movements they learned long ago and now come to them like a reflex.
But above the quiet artistry at Nene's Hair Braiding in West Philadelphia, rising over the sounds of a soap opera blaring in the background, simmers a burgeoning debate over a new state law that will require hair braiders to get special licenses.
"She got licensed to braid my hair when I paid her," Tasha Budd, 27, called out as Assatou Balde began the hours-long process of putting the tiny braids in her hair. "Why do you need a license in 2006 when they've been braiding all these years? They just want your money."
Supporters say the special licenses will keep braiders from getting unfair fines of up to $1,000 for not being licensed cosmetologists. But there is tension in the braiding community nationwide as some say the government is targeting an African art and may put immigrant braiders out of business.
At Nene's, braids like the ones Budd was getting cost between $140 to $160 for a process that can take five or six hours; cornrows come in at $50. Since the regulations haven't been finalized, the state hasn't determined exactly how much the permit and educational classes would cost.
Some also worry about the plight of immigrant braiders who came to America with very little to their name and often don't speak English, a skill they would likely need to get through certification classes.
"They came here with that craft," said Bertina Pelzer as she worked on a client's hair at Duafe Holistic Hair Care in North Philadelphia. "That is their only means of getting any sort of income."
Pennsylvania is the latest state to step into the debate over braiding. Nine others, including New York, Florida, Virginia, South Carolina and Louisiana, have special braiding licenses. Others, including Arizona, California, Kansas and Maryland, exempt braiders from cosmetology laws.
In Mississippi last year, the state removed a requirement for African-style braiders to have either a 1,500-hour cosmetology license or a 300-hour wig-specialist license. Braiders had called the licenses expensive and irrelevant. Under a new law, professional braiders have to take a self-guided test and pay a $25 fee; they also receive a brochure about sanitation.
The owner of Duafe, Syreeta Scott, believes there should be some sort of code of conduct for braiders, but has mixed feelings on the law. She recently had to let some braiders go, in part because they didn't want to get the hair-braiding license.
The law, which went into effect earlier this month, requires 300 hours of training through the state's Board of Cosmetology. If a braider can prove he or she has been practicing for at least three years, only 150 hours of training would be required.
Fines against braiding establishments have also ceased and now the Pennsylvania Department of State has 18 months to come up with specific braiding regulations, said State Rep. Rosita Youngblood, a Philadelphia Democrat who supported the legislation. Before the change, the law considered braiders to be cosmetologists and required them to have the associated 1,250 hours of training.
At Kinky Creation in the East Oak Lane section of Philadelphia, owner Jena Rogers said she understands the concerns of braiders who object to the licensing requirements.
"People look at braiding as a craft. It's like a God-given talent, so why pay taxes for something that's a craft or a gift?" Rogers said. "People like being underground."
Nevertheless, the licensing is a step forward for the profession, she said, one that will help ensure that braiders know more about sanitation and the various related medical conditions such as alopecia, a scalp problem caused by braiding too tight.
It also means the fines will stop. From 2000 through 2005, more than 30 citations were issued to braiders in the Philadelphia area for unlicensed activity, according to the Hairbraider's Association of Philadelphia and Vicinity.
"There's no real health and safety issue here," said Valerie Bayham, staff attorney with the Institute for Justice, a Washington-area group that has challenged state braiding laws across the country.
The regulation will put road blocks in front of people trying to earn a living, she said: "This is not chump change. It's a lot of money and a lot of time."
She pointed to states such as Florida and South Carolina have shorter programs geared toward health and safety. Kansas and Mississippi issue a one-page flier that needs to be posted in salons.
Pelzer counts herself among those torn over Pennsylvania's new law.
It's not a bad thing for customers to know their braider has been trained in their craft, she said. She also does believe braiders should be paying taxes and know about sanitary rules.
But can a school effectively teach part of a culture that is passed down through generations, learned on front stoops and sidewalks?
"With this, they're trying to take it away," Pelzer said as she starts locks on Charity Bell's hair. "Some of this stuff you can't be taught. When it's cultural, it's within, raised up in you."
Some see the change as a perfect example of government stomping on ethnic tradition.
"I think it's like stepping into our culture," Bell chimed in.
Supporters, however, point out that there can be serious problems if people are not properly trained how to braid. Braiding too tight can cause hair to fall out.
Amadou Balde, the owner of Nene's Hair Braiding and the father of Assatou and Nene, said he thinks the state's original cosmetology license requirement was unfair. But now that the license is specifically for braiders, people should do their best to comply, he said.
"Go learn some English and try to pass the test," said Balde, who moved to the U.S. from Senegal in 1987. "We are not in Africa anymore, we are here."
Posted by dvaldesd at 06:07 PM | Comments (0)
September 17, 2006
The Divine '09 at CCCC's
Yep, that's right. ALL of the divine '09 will be presenting at CCCC's in March 2007! We are so excited! And I am very excited at the idea of being their tour guide once we hit my beloved Manhattan. I plan to take them to Webster Hall, which happens to be the largest nightclub in the state, maybe the Planetarium, and definitely some museums and different eateries. All I can say is it's too bad we'll only be there for a few days! Oh, and to all those whose ENTIRE cohort won't be presenting, take heart...there's always 2008!
The Divine '09 is:
Tamika Carey aka "The Teacher"
Kurt Stavenhagen aka "The Preacher"
Kelly Rawson aka "The Babe"
Carolyn Ostrander aka "The Poet"
Denise Valdes-Doty aka " La Latina Divina"
Posted by dvaldesd at 11:45 PM | Comments (0)
September 13, 2006
The Habitual Writings Of...
The Habitual Writings Of …
When I reflect upon my identity as an author, I imagine myself as a scholar that writes from the perspective of a historian/activist that focuses on issues of language, bilingualism, and Latino/a rhetoric.
Throughout my academic career, I have always been interested in linguistics and the ways in which language both authorizes and dehumanizes persons that hail from marginalized cultures.
As a graduate student of linguistics, many of my papers focused on Spanish and English bilingualism issues, concentrating on dialect differences among Puerto Ricans, Mexicans, and other Latinos. What I have always found particularly interesting is the use of and the hysteria surrounding Spanglish. Many language purists view Spanglish not as the evidence of cultural amalgamation, but instead as the bastardization of two languages. I view the growth and expansion of Spanglish as the natural promiscuity of a language that seeks to incorporate the linguistic details of American assimilation in the most obvious way-by collapsing morphemes, phonemes, and grammatical details in an attempt to be larger and more efficient. My role as an author during my tenure as a student in the linguistics department was to shed light on the history of Spanglish and advocate for its usage in all settings. The difficulty was finding enough information about it beyond the two volumes that I had read. To date, the scholarship concerning this language (I refuse to diminish it by naming it a dialect) remains limited, as Spanglish continues to be treated as a linguistic anomaly.
As I completed my masters’ degree I decided that in order to effect any real change, I would have to pursue my interest in language and culture in a more focused program. Having taken classes with Professor Amardo Rodriguez while obtaining my masters, and knowing that he shared my interest in Spanglish and other forms of intercultural communication, I asked him for his advice. He told me that the program I wanted to apply to was CCR, because “they were constantly doing new things with rhetoric and composition”. In preparing my application to the program, it seemed natural to me to submit a paper I had written on Spanglish, since my plan was to continue my study of these semi-new language phenomena.
Upon acceptance to the program, I began to realize that it was not just Spanglish that I needed to focus on, but the rhetoric of Latino/as as well. Knowing the importance that language has on the construction of social identity, other questions concerning the importance of rhetorical practices began to formulate in my mind.
The first class I took was with Becky Howard, in which one of our tasks was to write a proposal to CCCC’s in the hope of being accepted (invited) to attend. The title of my abstract was “The Erasure of Spanglish within Composition Studies”. Much to my surprise, I was invited to present! While writing this paper I discovered that my desire to defend Spanglish needed to be rooted in more than a socio-linguistic history. This is when I realized how important it would be for my work to focus on the recovery of Latino/a rhetoric and make the case for inclusion of it in our field.
I have had several classes since then, all of which have familiarized me with our field, the most prominent and well-known scholars, and the most current conversations. Unfortunately, many of those conversations do not center upon the rhetoric(s) of different cultures, save the “special edition” issues that surface once a year, if that frequently. For me, that means that when I want to write a paper about Latino/a rhetoric, I immediately go to Victor Villanueva’s writings. His writing resonates with me; it makes me feel at home.
In evaluating the writing I have done during my tenure as a graduate student I see that language was the singular most important issue for me. I wanted Spanglish speakers to be comfortable within their lexicon, but now I also want them to have validation for it. I want those of us that are bilingual to know that we too can claim a tradition that is worthwhile and valid. But most importantly, I want to see Latino/a rhetoric addressed more than just once a year, or when it is fashionable. I want to see Latino/a rhetoric be included in more tables of contents, more anthologies, and by authors/scholars that are not Latino-just as we non-Greeks write about, discuss, include and refer to classical rhetoric in all of our current textbooks. I hope that my authorial identity will develop into one that will combine history, activism, and egalitarianism, and give the gatekeepers of the canon reason to broaden their horizons. Utopic indeed.
Posted by dvaldesd at 12:25 AM | Comments (0)
September 12, 2006
Speculation is the key word
Tonight's assignment is deceptively simple: write a speculative paper about how your "authorial identity". Sounds easy, right? Well, don't believe the hype. Despite the simple phrasing of the assignment, it's not easy to think or look back on everything you've written and then evaluate it. Off the top of my head, I can say with some very real certainty that I want to think that I am an activist; but in order to do that, I have to be a historian; and in order to that, I have to be a passive vessel that consumes the information my instructors demand that I authentically become familiar with and own. Like I said- not that easy a task. Especially when I consider that the most of the things I have read have little to do with my scholarly interests. See, I want to make the case for Latino/a rhetoric to be taken seriously. I want to draw the connection (like Villanueva does) between us and the ancient Greeks. I want to see Latino/a writers all over the place. And, I want to learn about it while I'm still in grad school. How many opportunities have I had to do this? Zip, zero, nada-because none the things I read, (importance to the field notwithstanding) apply to my vested interest. So what's a Latina to do? S-P-E-C-U-L-A-T-E on what I want to be when I leave the academy. For me the real question is not what I want to be, but how I can get there and be as informed as possible. Anyone want to speculate on that?
This is for those of you that are interested in the perils of authorship
Posted by dvaldesd at 06:42 PM | Comments (1)