March 25, 2007
ABCCCC'S
CCCC's was an experience this year. I have to say that I didn't enjoy it as much as I did last year, due partly to arriving with work that had to be completed, and partly because sometimes you just shouldn't bring sand to the beach...if you know what I mean. I did, however, see some great panels, meet some new people, and talk to some amazing scholars. AND, I have to give props to my girl and Scholar for the Dream, Tamika Carey, who was one of ten emerging scholars chosen to receive this honor. Otherwise, my hometown was amazing, and what I felt was akin to what I imagine most tourists feel when they walk along 42nd street in awe of the illumination. The lights were beautiful, and the weather reminded me that there actually are four seasons instead of just the two we get in Upstate NY.
Next year, the conference is in New Orleans, and I came home to find the call for papers waiting in my mailbox. I have already begun thinking about what kind of rhetorical contribution I can make to the conversation concerning all of the post-Katrina changes that the state has had to deal with. Of particular interest in the current influx of Latino/a immigration due to the need for reconstruction labor, and the response they are receiving from the residents. The articles that I have read thus far talk about the resentment building because some workers feel that the new workers are making more money than the residents. To be honest, there is a problem with this latest development that exceeds the fiscal. These people are still trying to rebuild their lives, and after all of the devastation and loss already suffered, the last thing needed is a wage war with another marginalized group. What I want to know is who is pulling the strings. What corporation is responsible for this "divide and conquer" plan? And more importantly, how does it help the people of New Orleans more than the big corporations? Maybe that's where my next CCCC's paper and the rhetorical conversation begins.
It really hasn't been that long since...
Posted by dvaldesd at 07:48 PM | Comments (1)
April 17, 2006
Women's Work
This is the project I am attempting for one of my classes. Suprisingly, I was able to find quite a bit of work on Latina women, specifically those that worked in the factories in the early 19th century, which is near to my heart as that was my grandmother's fate. Despite being the rare (female) high school graduate in her family, once she came to Nueva York, her training as a stenographer and book keeper was stilted because "her English just wasn't good enough". Ah...yet another reason why I think that I was destined to be a rhetorician. Exactly how much language does it take to do book keeping? But I digress... What follows is the work I am now actually thinking of pursuing with more scholarly vigor. Who said dissertation? I'm just expressing an interest is all.
When we think of societal contributions made by women, segregated images of family, motherhood, and domesticity are recalled with nostalgic warmth. Feminism conjures up another exclusionary image; White women working towards temperance and suffrage, and the overall liberation of their sisters. Seldom are these versions of womanhood expanded to include women of color, or the various contributions (fiscally, culturally, and politically) that they have made by assuming what were (and in some instances still are) considered by some to be less feminine, or less traditional roles. To that end, this paper will explore the ways in which Puerto Rican women entered the workforce during the late 19th and early 20th centuries respectively, why they were compelled to enter this male dominated arena in the first place, and how said involvement ultimately led to feminist awakenings and the Latina suffrage movement. By charting the migration pattern of Puerto Ricans and the political promises made to native islanders which initiated (what is known as) the great migration for Puerto Ricans, this paper will shed light on the pivotal roles that Boricua women played in maintaining the family structure while gaining independence through work, suffrage movements, and the fight for unionization for female factory employees. Incorporating the work done on Luisa Capetillo, it is my intention to argue that despite the patriarchal underpinnings of Latino culture, these women demonstrated agency in a way that was unique to the current historical understandings of feminism as it occurred in the early 19th and 20th centuries.
Wish me luck!
Posted by dvaldesd at 01:59 PM | Comments (0)
March 28, 2006
Not quite the entire story...
Well, I'm just not ready for the official post CCCC's write up, and here's why...
1. Missed my flight Saturday morning due to the fact that they stop allowing you to get your boarding pass 45 minutes prior to boarding.
2. I missed the cut off by 5 minutes.
3. Spent the next 36 hours trying to get home.
4. Finally get home at 1 a.m. Monday, with sever knee pains that require an emergency room visit (more on that one later!)
5. Luggage? Right...mine is still on the missing list, and of course, as the novice presenter I felt compelled to pack virtually all of my dress/professional clothing, which may now be lost forever, along with my travel receipts that I need to get reimbursed for the trip.
6.You know in Spanish we say "no hay mal que por bien no venga". Loose English translation: every cloud has a silver lining. My silver lining came in the form of a one night stay at the Best Western which only cost $50 a night, and kicked the Palmer House in the nalga (you can figure that one out, right?) when it came to value, comfort, and amenities! Free internet (both wireless AND high speed), free chargers for any cell phone, free coffee and bottled water, free printing, and a restaurant that provides room service at a mere 15% of your total check. I wonder how close the Best Western in Nashville is to the Opryland Hotel (where the NCTE convention will be held in November)? If it's not too far away, they can count on me as their new loyal and faithful customer!
The official write up and pics should be on later this week...si Dios quiere!
Posted by dvaldesd at 09:22 AM | Comments (1)