Different Approaches to Feminism

This semester I'm taking a few GWSS courses, two of which have very different approaches to feminism and activism. One of them (the one that's not this class) is very theoretical. We are always critiquing ideas, theories, and ways of seeing the world. It has a decidedly post-modernist and post-structuralist tilt, one that constantly emphasizes complications. I enjoy this approach - it is, after all, one approach that I learned early in my years at the U and one that challenges my assumptions. But, as many students complain, it does get a little removed from the real world. I can see both sides: it's important to view our world in new ways, but what about what's happening, day-to-day on the ground? We can say with full belief that gender doesn't have an essential component but that idea plays out every day in our real lives. And the "real world" needs to be discussed as much as our theoretical progress does.

In this class (3590) I am enjoying the "real world" component. I work at a women's shelter, so our recent discussions on violence are extremely applicable to what I do with a good chunk of my time. It's important to sit down and work through examples, like we did with different types of violence and the restrictions particular women face when they try to exit or deal with a violent situation in their domestic lives. This spurred an interesting discussion at work about why we receive the types of women we do and why certain demographic are simply missing from our shelter. Are there services for these women? What are the constraints that are placed on us, or what do we do ourselves, that is limiting our ability to assist women in all situations? I'm looking forward to continuing this discussion in the classroom and in my everyday life.