Moderator Isobel Coleman begins by pointing out that there is some controversy over the title of the panel itself. She asks: "Is this a new agenda? Who's agenda is it?"
The first panelist to speak is Lamia Karim (pictured right), from the Department of Anthropology at the University of Oregon. She speaks to all of the various human rights discourses, many of which she obviously doesn't think are complex or ethical. "What I am most interested in is grassrooots, indigenous, human rights movements organized, not around an individual human, but much more on a group rights basis.This is taking up these rights discourses but trying to renegotiate with the realities on the ground."
"As feminists we need to really go beyond the rhetoric of the empowerment of women and ask carefully, 'What does it take to empower women? Is money enough? What does it mean to give women access to capital without giving them skills training?' This is the Grameen Bank model--based on neo-liberalism."
Larnia has a book coming out through UC Press in spring 2010 which she describes as "a radical critique of this model, this particular model. I wanted to put it out there because this has become a very innovative way of framing how women, especially in the global south and very poor women, can be economically and socially empowered." Can't wait for that!
Isobel turns to Jill Lester next, who is the ED of The Hunger Project, to ask her what her reaction is to the radical critique of micro lending.
"Unfortunately, I think we're going to be in violent agreement." [audience laughs]
"The Hunger Project believes in an integrated approach to poverty. Part of that is having a micro finance facility. We ask the community to form a micro finance committee of 100% women to set their own agenda."
Next up is Radhika Balakrishnan (pictured left), of the Marymount Manhattan College:
"Rather than talking about the crisis as if it something that fell from the sky, we're calling it the 'manufactured crisis,' caused by deliberate changes that the government made in the regulatory framework."
"We're trying to turn human rights around on them. You want to oppose human rights all over the world? What about the human right violation right here. What about the TARP legislation? There's no transparency. That's public money. This is our institution. Therefore there's a human rights obligation on the state."
Cynthia Enloe (holy amazing) jumps in as the pinch hitter:
"One has to be able to think analytically in order to act. I've hated the theory-practice divide. It's stupid. Anyone who acts, especially if you try to act collectively, if you try to mobilize beyond your best friend, it means you've done some causal thinking. You are an analyst. Out of your action come new analytical understandings. It works and you think why did it work? Or it didn't and you have to go back to the drawing table. We are all analysts. We are all thinkers who think thinking matters. Thinking is in handshake with action."
"If we've learned something from feminist thinking from around the world, it is that you have to think big in order to think small--the guys say that of course--but you also have to think small in order to think big. It works both ways and it's really one of the great strengths of feminist thinking for action."
"We are at a moment now where we've got a pool of schools and an understanding of what needs to be acted upon, some people call it an agenda, and we are at a moment, not just because we have a new president of one country, not just because the institutions of capitalism are wobbly (they're not as wobbly as we'd liked)."
"We really are at a moment amongst all of us, and I mean all of us who aren't in the room, where we have the capacity to think as if it matters and the capaity to know what needs to be acted upon. This is a very, very exciting moment. We shouldn't let cynicsm let that moment pass."
"Think as if it matters and then act as if it affects our thinking."
Jill reminds us not to lose sight of the time-sensitive Millennium Development Goals.
I have to jump on a feministing conference call, so Laura is going to take over from here!
Radihka mentions that the larger project she's been working on for the past four years is to question the orthodoxy of analysis done by hedonomics around the issues of human rights. An economist would immediately think of the IMF, but she wants them to think of her!
Isobal asks Cynthia if she sees a new agenda for Global Human Rights. She says,"You don't want to be too Americanist about this, not everyone has a new president. Ask a Zimbabwean feminist." But this question is the elephant in the room. Cynthia speaks honestly about her domestic worry. She's afraid that Obama is going to become militarized. "It's a dangerous moment for anyone who tried to put Obama in office, and it comes from the ongoing militarization, and patriarchal nationalism that makes them feel secure, proud, and nationalist (which is synonymous to patriotic in the United States she points out). Only a feminist analysis can really make clear what kind of pressures the administration is feeling. "We all need to really sit up, act up and really wave some bright neon fuchsia flags and do something about it. It will derail all the possibilities that are so fruitful around this possible militarization." Damn. Where's my paintbrush?
They're now opening it up for questions from the audience...
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I really appreciate you reporting on events that many of us are unable to attend. Thank you!
I just finished a course this term taught by Professor Karim, and it was wonderful. I couldn't believe it when I saw her featured on Feministing...
As someone who took a summer class with Prof. Karim (as a visiting student, no less), I have to agree that she's awesome. I was also shocked (in a good way) when I saw her picture here.