Congratulations to Susan Sterett for her recent award from the National Science Foundation. Professor Sterett intends to use the award to hold  a workshop to be held at the beginning of the 2019 WPSA conference. A key component will be a session on managing conflict and improving our lives in the academy, facilitated by a professional from a university office on diversity and inclusion.  The workshop will close with brainstorming some of the challenges people find in the profession, including managing rejection, and brainstorming what gatekeepers can do.  

Amelia Meman, ’15, is the program coordinator in the Women’s Center. She has worked in the Women’s Center as an intern, a student staff member, a volunteer, a part-time coordinator, and now as a full-time staff member. Throughout this tenure, Amelia has attended every Take Back the Night (and is looking forward to attending many more).

Among the fraught ethical tensions that anyone negotiates in their lives, there is one that the Women’s Center constantly must work through:

Are we honoring stories of trauma or are we passively consuming tragedy?

This is a conflict that comes up most often when we begin planning and setting up for our sexual violence-related events. We have to ask ourselves during Take Back the Night (TBTN): is this an event that is empowering for survivors and victims? Or is it spotlighting stories that are shocking and uncomfortable for an eager audience? Are we listeners observing moments of healing or are we spectators in awe of what trauma can be?

Now, we realize that we can’t control how participants are taking in the material we offer, but we can try like hell to build a context to our event that encourages folks to act as witnesses to a difficult and powerful process. Hence this blogpost.

Take Back the Night is an emotional and incredible event. As a staff member and an alumna, I have been to every TBTN since it was renewed in 2014, and every year, I am aware of the way the survivor speak out shifts the gravity in the room. I know there are tears and tense muscles and people holding one another–partially because I’ve been in that same position. I know that in the march that follows the speak out, I yell so so loud with this big chorus of powerful people and it is the closest I come to righteousness. The catharsis of shifting the emotional weight in my heart to my lungs and into the night air, it’s a feeling that you don’t soon forget.

That said, I’ve also been behind the camera for many of my TBTN’s and I know, as an artist, what lengths we can go to in order to get that shot that distills the moment as if the chant could echo through whatever gelatin or pixel displaying utility you’re using. Get that shot. Capture that moment. Frame it. Click. Shutter. Stop.

I get it.

But just as the Women’s Center frets about building a moment of witnessing rather than consumption, we must also ask our photographers and our artists to consider how they’re documenting this world.

As we get ready for another Take Back the Night, we meet and Jess is beleaguered: “Just please don’t be that guy running and hanging off of light posts with a camera in my face,” referring to the antics of some eager photojournalists who took the 2018 Take Back the Night march by storm. People with cameras ran in and out and through and about the march, and it led us as organizers to question whether or not this was the sort of event we wanted to organize.

Were we getting people together simply for the right Instagram grid?

Were those who were brave enough to tell their stories being minimized to the portrait of tears and traumatization?

Did these folks weaving and mending their way through the march even know what it was that brought us all together and why our voices were high with urgency?

Are we staging tragedy for people to consume? Are survivor stories a tragic movie montage–to feel things that we aren’t typically used to feeling?

There’s a responsibility here, as a narrator or a creator, to honor the folks whose stories we are trying to enliven. We teeter on that tension I spoke of earlier, between exploitation and empowerment. So as we move into another TBTN and another year of difficult publicly told truths, I hope that we can learn how to honor and respect the stories that are shared among us.

Some simple questions for all of the photographers out there, looking to document things like Take Back the Night and other important movements in our world:

Why are you taking pictures?

Where are you posting them?

If you had to write a caption, what would it say?

Who are you taking a picture of? Are they in a state you would want to be captured in?

Do you understand what this event is about and the goals?

How can you ensure that your creative work builds off of organizer goals?

Did you ask to take the picture? If you didn’t, should you?

Ultimately, this issue is one of exploitative objectification versus humanizing empowerment/embodiment. Viewing real human conflict, sadness, trauma does things to us. It might help us through our own shit. It might provoke a piece of ourselves we’ve never been in touch with. Either way, let’s make sure that in our reception, we are viewing, listening, etc. from a place of equal footing, rather than from the top down. Reach out, not down to the folks who have different experiences from you, and if you plan on taking their picture–hold up your mirror first.

This year, for Take Back the Night, the Women’s Center is assigning press passes to photographers. We hope this is a way to hold artists and journalists accountable to our mission, and create a firmer understanding of the context that brings us all together. If you’re interested in acquiring a press pass, email us at womenscenter@umbc.edu.

Further reading/viewing/listening:

7 with VII: Ethics in Photojournalism, Q&A with photojournalists Ron Haviv, Maciek Nabrdalik, Stefano De Luigi, Davide Monteleone, Ashley Gilbertson, Ed Kashi and Arthur Bondar

A Thousand Stakes: Photojournalism and Exploitation, Teresa Mathew

The Colonialism of Photojournalism, Clary Estes

Inspiration porn and the objectification of disability, Stella Young at TEDxSydney 2014

Briscoe Turner is a student staff member at the Women’s Center. She is a sophomore Psychology major and Writing minor and a co-facilitator of Women of Color Coalition, a bi-weekly discussion group at the Women’s  Center. 

Do you know whether you are an introvert or extrovert? If not, take this quiz to find out!

Myers-Briggs: Are You Extroverted Or Introverted?

Here is a more in-depth version of the personality test:

16 Personalities Test

Before taking the quiz, you probably had distinct ideas of what introversion and extroversion were and the perceptions that come along with them. Often in movies, books, and even leadership conferences, the image of a leader is painted as an extrovert with a loud, commanding voice who enjoys being the center of attention. Introverts are normally depicted as the shy outcast who is more of a follower than a leader. Right off the bat, this narrative perpetuates a misconstrued idea of the terms introvert, extrovert, and ambivert. To clear it up, here is a basic breakdown of the terms:

Introvert: Drained by social encounters and energized by solitary

Extrovert: Finds energy in interactions with others

Ambivert: Exhibits a blend of introverted and extroverted tendencies

Although introvert simply means that you need time to yourself to recharge, many introverts do happen to be shy and quiet. We are capable of navigating social situations, but often we prefer not to for extended periods of time. With that being said, every introvert is different and has varying levels of comfortability in social settings.

As a quiet introvert myself, I have felt pressured to “come out of my shell” to the point where I would not be authentically acting as myself. I always wonder why people can’t accept me for who I am rather than trying to fit me into a fixed image of what they imagine a leader to be. For example, when I facilitate discussion groups, I welcome moments of silence because I know that silence isn’t always empty.  Some may view this as my inability to engage the group, but I see it as time for group members to take in what has been said and process their thoughts.

I simply do not fit the mold of the outspoken and energetic leader, and I’m perfectly okay with that. The way I make contributions in group settings is unique to me. I do not like small talk, and I prefer to engage in conversations when I feel that I have something important to say. I hold the belief that it’s not always about the amount you say and how loudly you can say it. Making your point louder or with more bravado does not make it more valid or persuasive. Sometimes fewer words said by a quieter presence is more impactful.

Susan McCain, author of Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Won’t Stop Talking, introduces the concept of the The Extrovert Ideal which describes “the omnipresent belief that the ideal self is gregarious, alpha and comfortable in the spotlight.” In her book, she also talks about how introverts are forced into thinking that their natural, quiet demeanor is only holding them back.

Contrary to popular belief, many introverts do not look to extroversion as an ideal that they hope to achieve during their lifetime. We due aim to grow and push ourselves out of our comfort zones from time to time, but that doesn’t have to be at the expense of the essence of who we are.

This same issue unveils itself in the way that society has defined gender roles. Typically, men are expected to be assertive leaders, while women are expected to be quiet, submissive followers. Due to this, leadership has been associated with extroverted personalities to reflect patriarchal ideals. In reality, leadership is not a fixed concept that can be attributed to a particular gender. It is flexible and can change regardless of what gender someone identifies as.

McCain says she has “seen young women with these [introverted] styles exhorted to be louder, bolder, more uninhibited, when a more nuanced approach would have suited them better.”

If we look at some famous women, past and present, we will find many powerful women who have led revolutions or dominated their professional arenas that identify as soft-spoken introverts. For example, in Rosa Parks’s obituary, she was described as soft-spoken and sweet with radical humility and quiet fortitude. She was able to make such a powerful statement using few words.

Marissa Mayer, CEO of Yahoo, is a self-proclaimed introvert who feels that the media paints her as an extrovert. Other examples include: Martha Minow, the Dean of Harvard Law School, who McCain describes as the “ultimate quiet leader”; founder of Teach for America, Wendy Kopp; and actress Emma Watson. These are just a few of the many women who have gotten where they are because they are authentic to themselves.

A common thread among all these women is that society has made the assumption that they must be extroverted to be as successful as they are. There’s no way that someone who doesn’t like to be in the spotlight or is more calculated about how much they speak could hold the positions that they do.

The truth is, introversion and quietness are personality traits that are an asset. Introverts are comfortable with silence and introspection; this allows us to assess a situation and take a thoughtful approach in our response. We understand that we don’t have to be the loudest person in the room to be heard because often times we command attention just by our presence. People often wonder what we have to say, and when the the time is right, we’ll let you know.

You wouldn’t force a fish out of water and expect them to swim, so why would you try to diminish defining aspects of a person’s personality and expect them to thrive? It is important to remember that there is room for both extroverted and introverted leadership styles. I would encourage people to make space for introverts, without assuming that we are fearful to speak or participate. Sometimes we simply don’t want to, but we definitely have the ability to. I would also suggest instead of trying to get us to speak louder (unless we are completely inaudible), try and listen more and be patient.

Yes, our calmer, quieter demeanor can provide a sense of ease to a room, but don’t be fooled into thinking that we do not have a fire burning inside of us to achieve our goals and help address the world’s most pressing problems. Don’t mistake our silence as passive agreement. Change is only possible through the mobilization of all different types of people, so there’s space for all personalities.

Check Out These Resources Below:

10 Successful Women for Introverts to Look Up to

Does Feminism Make Room for Shy or Introverted Girls?

Meyer Briggs Extraversion or Introversion

Shrijana is a Student Staff Member at the Women’s Center. She is a co-facilitator of Women of Color Coalition and co-leading the Telling Our Stories Project. 

Before starting my statistics class this semester, I was feeling apprehensive due to the fact that I’ve never taken a statistics course before, not even in high school like most students do. However, today, I can say that I thoroughly enjoy my statistics class (nerd alert!). The numbers make sense to me, the formulas light up a bulb in my brain. As an Economics major, I am fascinated by how economists use statistics. But the factor that makes STAT 351 an influential course for me goes beyond the content of the class. This influence is embodied by my STAT 351 professor, Dr. Nandita Dasgupta.

She is an Indian woman, who comes into class every day wearing a silk or cotton saree, a traditional article of clothing typically worn by South Asian women.

The first day I saw her attire, I was shocked; my jaw dropped to the floor. I have never witnessed a person of color, teacher or professor, show up to class in traditional cultural wear in all my years of schooling in the American educational system. I was so moved by what seemed normal to her.

Growing up, I was ashamed to share my background of being Nepalese because I felt like I stood out in a negative way as an outcast. I just wanted to be accepted, and I was too afraid to truly be myself.  When I was little, I was so anxious and embarrassed to walk around in public in the United States with my grandmother because she would be wearing a saree. I would think: will people criticize, are they staring at me, are they being racist in their minds, am I seen as weird? But seeing Dr. Dasgupta has inspired me, she was there to teach statistics, her race and gender did not matter.

Upon this realization, I became sorrowful for my grandmother because she was not given the same educational opportunities as I was. My grandmother was married at the age of sixteen and become a stay at home mom in Nepal. If she was presented with the same academic opportunities as me, I am sure she would have been a very successful woman, possibly a professor like Dr. Dasgupta.

STAT 351 has proven two points to me: math is an intriguing subject and all girls and women should have the right to an education.

After seeing Dr. Dasgupta in an empowering light and reading about her work as an economist and statistician (and to ask her permission to publish this blog), I met with her to get to know her more and explore my own identity.

On a warm, bright Thursday afternoon, we sat outside the RAC at the black tables. Dr. Dasgupta started off the conversation by asking me, “What does Shrijana mean?” And I told her, “Creation.”

Smiling, she replied, “Good. Most people are not even aware what their name symbolizes.” From there, our personal connection was set and the conversation kicked off.

What does the saree symbolize for you?

The saree is a part of me. I have grown up with the saree and have been inseparable from it. I have never worn anything else before. I would love to wear something else; but, somehow, I feel like my personality would be compromised.

Have you had others comment about your saree before? What was it like?

No. No one has made a bad comment. If they have commented, it was always good, never a derogatory comment.

What made you want to pursue economics/statistics? What do you like most about it?

In high school, I took economics and I loved it. I also loved math; therefore, using math was my priority. Economics and math combined really well. Growing up, English was also my favorite subject, I wanted to be an English major. But, my mother who was also a professor influenced me to pursue economics. She said that it was a more economically sound field.

If you feel comfortable sharing, have you experienced any racism or sexism in the academic world?

No. To my knowledge, I have not felt any sort of discrimination. I do not know why I have not felt it, I like to believe that people are good, kind, and open.

What advice would you give young women of color out there? What about women of color economists/mathematicians?

First of all, I do not look at women of color differently from non-color or Caucasian women.

I do not like the idea of one gender being inferior or superior. I am a human being and I look at everyone else as human beings too. I do not believe in any sort of bias or question of bias. I want individuals to be their best selves. But, there must be some bias somewhere, because we still have gender inequality. To everyone and women of color, I would say have dignity, integrity, honesty, and perseverance. Be proud of your culture, embrace the world and try to develop the world. Women are not an end; they are the means to an end. At the end of the day, be a good human being.

After meeting with Dr. Dasgupta, I felt empowered in my confidence as a woman. My conversation with her served as reassurance that I am enough in my abilities and skills. Talking to her also reminded me that I should not run away from my culture, but embrace it with pride. I went to talk to her about her choice of an article of clothing, but I walked away with wisdom about life.

Check out these resources to learn more about the topics that were covered in the blog:

A dispiriting survey of women’s lot in university economics

A Brief History of India’s Traditional Saree

Position description available here (text below) and application available here. 
In addition to a completed application, your submission should include a cover letter, resume, and two writing samples. 

All materials are due via email (womenscenter@umbc.edu) or hard copy (deliver to the Women’s Center) UPDATED: no later than Sunday, April 28th @ 9 PM. 

Position Description: Women's Center Staff/Intern Position 

April is Sexual Assault Awareness Month, and the Women’s Center is hosting its seventh consecutive Take Back The Night (TBTN) on Thursday, April 13th. Over the years, we’ve had a lot of questions about what Take Back the Night exactly is, why it looks the way it does, and how students can get involved. To help get those questions answered this year, we’ve doing a “What You Need to Know” series focused on TBTN so stay tuned for more posts over the next couple of weeks. This is the fifth post in the series and it focuses on the last part of Take Back the Night which is craftivism and community building.

Hearing and sharing survivors’ stories of sexual violence can be empowering, challenging, and emotional. We know that people process their feelings in different ways, and so following survivor speak out and march, the event continues with Craftivism on Main Street. This portion of the program is intended to provide space for reflection, creative expression, and community building.

When the marchers return to Main Street, there will be tables set up with art supplies for anyone wishing to contribute to one of the community craft projects we’ll have available: sachet bags to fill with scented dried flowers and herbs, the Clothesline Project, and the Dear Survivor scrapbook. We also encourage attendees to check out the resource tables to learn more about various campus and community organizations and services.

All are welcome to add a page to our Dear Survivor scrapbook, which features messages of hope, healing, and solidarity from survivors and allies who have attended TBTN in past years. The scrapbook can be found in the Women’s Center lounge.

Materials for the Clothesline Project will be available for survivors who would like to give voice to their experience by decorating a shirt that will be displayed during Sexual Assault Awareness Month. Every April, these shirts are hung shoulder-to-shoulder on a clothesline on Main Street to give public testimony to the problems of sexual and gender-based violence. Please note that while allies are invited to participate in the Monument Quilt and Dear Survivor scrapbook, the Clothesline Project is intended for those who identify as survivors.

For those who prefer a quieter space for reflection, there will be a self-care station set up in the commuter lounge available during the survivor speak out and the rest of the evening. There will be tissues, stress balls, coloring supplies, and other resources for self-care. The station also provides a more private space where attendees can speak with one of the counselors on call, if needed.

For more information about UMBC’s TBTN (check out Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter too by searching the hashtag #UMBCTBTN):

• Stop by the Women’s Center on April 17th to make a rally sign for the march
• A blog post about UMBC’s 2005 TBTN march written by alum, Dr. Grollman.
• The Women’s Center 2018 TBTN roundup
• A BreakingGround post about how the 2013 TBTN came to be – Our Own ‘Take Back the Night’

April is Sexual Assault Awareness Month.

Highlighted Events:

Other Events Throughout the Month Include:

Ongoing Events and Resources for Survivors and Allies: