This quote proves to me all the knowledge that we have gained as women through experience has gotten us where we are today.  We've defeated forces by gaining knowledge and learning tactics. Observational knowledge and self examination are the two that stick out to me. I believe you can learn a lot about yourself as well as others by observing oneself.   

In class my group had a discussion about the theme of Knowledge Variation found in Patricia Collins The Social Construction of Black Feminist Thought. I found it interesting how we all agreed that a majority of schools are more white empowered and do not benefit the black race. I made the statement that I feel as if Black schools (HBCUs) have conformed to what is more acceptable at a white university. Some would not agree with this statement however I believe that this the truth 100%!

-Brittany Dozier

Ethics of caring

In Patricia Hill Collins' "Black Feminist Thought", one topic named is "Ethic of caring." Collins says that the ethic of caring suggests thst personal expressiveness, emotions and empathy are control to the knowledge-validation process. I feel as if this relates to the fact that black women gain knowledge from personal experiences. When black women experience things, they most likely respond to it with a natural reaction. This is how they express themselves. When they express themselves, it shows their feelings and how much they care.

The video is a parody of the stereotypes associated with sexual assault. This video was made by All Indian Backhod. This video takes an sarcastic approach in letting women and the world know rape is not the victims fault but the  attacker, it also lets women know that your husband can be  your attacker as well. I feel that this is a very powerful video and everyone should see it, in order to end some of the stereotypes surrounding rape.

Angela Bassett-Get Used to It!

This is a very interesting clip on Angela Bassett talking about the "Black Ice" and responsibility of African-American women in Hollywood and the progress made thus far. Actresses such as Angela Bassett, Kerry Washington, Taraji P Henson and Jada Pinkett-Smith prove Black Women can do more than just play the role the sex symbol; they can lead and inspire all women to achieve more.
http://youtu.be/BvZ5hWfB2O4

I feel the meaning of this quote is that as Black women we know where we came from and what it took to get to where we are today. From being raped as slaves and women suffrage to finally have equal rights. It's already hard to be Black, hard to be a woman, but to be a Black woman is something to be proud of and never forget or let anyone take away either of the two.

Honorable Mention

Jennifer Lopez isn't a black woman, but I wanted to give her new video an honorable mention because she uses it as a platform to address the objectification of women in music videos, and flips the script by objectifying men in comical ways to show how ridiculous the concept is. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c4oiEhf9M04

Bill O' Reilly vs. Beyonce'

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1s1UO8slHfY
The above video is an interview that Bill O' Reilly recently did with David Letterman. O' Reilly has been on a smear campaign against Beyonce' recently for releasing a song entitled "Partition". Here is the "Partition" music video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pZ12_E5R3qc
Beyonce' has been lauded by many for the feminist stances she has taken explicitly and implicitly in her latest album, in which she is constantly asserting her own sexuality and womanhood.  In the Bill O' Reilly interview, notice how when David Letterman brings up Miley Cyrus's overtly sexual behavior, 'O Reilly glosses over it. Also, Letterman spends his time focusing on how Beyoncé is not the only one creating sexually explicit music, which is a distractive stance that I would expect another white male to take. 'O Reilly's responses just become increasingly disgusting as he brings up figures (who knows where he got them from) about black unwed mothers, and refers to an anonymous group of assumed black individuals as "thugs". I believe a black feminist would've given much different reasons as to why what Beyonce' has been doing is both perfectly acceptable and also is behavior worthy of praise. When Patricia Hill Collins talks about black women's resistance, "Partition" is an example, however unorthodox some may view it to be. Beyonce' is resisting the idea that a man should be the one to define a woman's sexual desires and behaviors. There are very few people in the entire world who can command such a huge audience as Beyonce', and I believe that poses a threat to close-minded patriarchal white males such as Bill 'O Reilly.

Intersectionality

"Solidarity is for white women when pink hair, tattoos, and piercings are "quirky" or "art" on a white woman but "ghetto" on a black one.


An interesting topic that I believe was relevant to Audre Lorde’s and the Pearl Cleage piece was intersectionality. Intersectionality to me, is when something is played on both sides, rather it is gender, race and social class. Also, it can be multiple forms of discrimination. As far as this quote being an example of intersectionality is quite evident and still common in today’s society. There are agreements among whites where they are able to do things out of the norm and not stereotyped for these particular actions. Ironically, African American women are belittle or interrogated in this patriarchal male society. It is unfair how intersectionality is a similar, prominent factor in multiple communities, but viewed differently

Aisha Al-Adawiya - The Black Female Muslim Experience in America

                In the video below, Aisha Al-Adawiya speaks about her enlightenment and experience as a woman in Islam. I chose this video specifically because, as she says in her explanation, there are misconceptions about how "Islam treats women" that often come from people other than those women themselves. This video and others like it give Al-Adawiya's experience validation, as talked about in Patricia Hill Collins' article , "The Social Construction of Black Feminist Thought". Collins declares, "..this business of living makes women use their minds in ways that men don't even have to think about." This is true as many men of Black Islam are applauded for finding "enlightenment" and respected for staying and standing firm in those beliefs. I want to validate Aisha's life experience by sharing her testimony with the class, working in the interdependency prompted by Audre Lorde, though I am of Christian faith, I do believe her experience should be held at high esteem and accounted for.

Anita Hill

http://knowledgeequalsblackpower.tumblr.com/post/80019470607/createdfromclay-teesa-3-13-14-anita-hill

I found this Tumblr post that reminded me of "Black Ice". Anita Hill was explaining to John Stewart what is was like to face members of the Senate during her sexual harassment case against Clarence Thomas.

"Black Ice"

The need to assimilate and accommodate for white people to fit in is definitely a double edged sword.  In some regard, one opts to "sell out", and others stand their ground.  When gauging Audre Lorde's quote, "The master's tools will never dismantle the master's house." Is there anyway to break down institutions that have been in place your years?  I say a Booker T. Washington-ish approach is okay because at the end of the day, some progress is still progress.

"Black Ice"

I have experienced situations before in which I would consider myself treading on "black ice". Once as a middle schooler at a predominantly white middle school a white classmate referred to another black student that was not present as a "nigger". He looked at me and I said "I don't care" because I felt like that was more socially acceptable to say. Sometimes as a mixed race individual the pressure to fit in with one group becomes so great that you make decisions that you look back on in disgust.

Black Ice

There are many ways to link Black Women's Ways of Knowing to Pearl Cleage's Black Ice. I noticed a lot of signified knowledge which how I broke it down is pretty much twisting words. The part that stood out to me was on page 388 where she states " A free woman is one who can fully conceive and consciously execute all the moments of her life." In class we were relating Black Ice to Audre Lorde's Theory and I related that statement to a statement in Lorde's passage that reads, "For women, the need and desire to nurture each other is not pathological but redemptive, and within that knowledge our real power is rediscovered." The relation I comprehended was that a women can conceive and execute the fact that she feels that need to nurture and protect as she was once nurtured. This is an example of signified knowledge and Observational knowledge.

Black Ice

In Black Ice, the part that stood out most to me was when Joyce skidded on the black ice. This part stuck out to me because she tells herself to remain calm and collected, and this situation is brought up again, but in a different way. Just when Joyce was presenting her idea, she skidded on another patch of black ice; this time it wasn't a physical patch of ice. Just like black ice, the congressman threw something at her that attacked and she didn't see coming. Unlike skidding on the black ice, she became frustrated.
Something else that stood out to me was Joyce's idea and how she was trying to help women gain KNOWLEDGE about their sexual practices. It's as if the congressman was blocking women from gaining the proper knowledge and material that they needed to protect themselves and to be safe.

Black ice

In Pearl Cleage's Black Ice, the title stands for all of the obstacles a person may face on their journey to success. Black ice is defined as " a thin sheet of ice on a road surface, usually caused by freezing mist and creating hazardous driving conditions." (dictionary.com) The black ice in this story is the man she is having a meeting with waiting to turn down her offer.  This story shows that no matter what may come your way, you can not let it stop you, even if you slip on a patch of black ice.

Interdependency

In Audre Lorde's essay "The Master's Tools Will Never Dismantle The Master's House", she speaks at length about the importance of inter-dependency amongst women. Namingly white feminists and black feminists,

"Interdependency between women is the way to freedom which allows the I to be, not in order to be used, but in order to be creative. This is a difference between the passive be and the active being."

I think that this quote is one that Black women should always have in the back of their minds because we always will and should work together in spite of our differences to for the betterment of our race and the human race in general. I came across the photo below on Twitter and was inspired to no end.



(left to right) Audre Lorde, Lucille Clifton, Alice Walker, and June Jordan all stand together in recitation. =]

Self Exploration

As we talk about  the Black Womens Ways of Knowing it makes me think deeper about myself. Since I have came to A&T all I have done is self explore myself mentally and physically. Growing up I have always lived in the suburbs I have always went to white private schools and I have never had to go without. Coming to A&T has caused me to explore a different side of me. We discussed self exploration through analyzing others. I relate my personal experience to Black Ice. You have this woman who is trying to create this proposal and is presenting it to the Senator and yet they are clashing because of the difference in  their classes. She is trying to help lower class women by teaching them and educating them  on sexual safety and what you should and should not do. And yet the senator does not feel that this is necessary, he sees it as a waste of time. Saying why close the door when the cow has already escaped. This is how I felt coming to this university. I did not feel as if I fit in or could relate to the people who came here but as I have learned more about myself I have learned that I am not the same person I was before attending a HBCU. I am in love with my race and my history and almost feel bad that I missed out on these things growing up.

Brittany Dozier

Black Women's Ways of knowing ...

In "The Master's Tools Will Never Dismantle the Master's House," Audre Lorde states " In our world, divide and conquer must become define and empower." I believe this quote is significant to the title because rather than having hopes of "dominating," Lorde suggest taking a step toward a means of general improvement. When something is "dismantled," it is destroyed or caused to come to an end. In considering the title "The Master's Tools Will Never Dismantle the Master's House," I think Lorde is addressing a bigger issue than "you can't beat the master at his on game." I believe Lorde is suggesting to her audience that it is necessary to access "new tactics, weapons, strategies etc." in order to successfully dismantle the house (foundation) of the master. Rather than declaring it to be impossible, I think Lorde is saying "why fight fire with fire when one can simply throw water on it and put it out?" This is a different scope of viewing Lorde's initial intent, but it is something new that I have gathered after going back and reviewing the text. In my opinion, Lorde is not saying the master's house cannot be dismantled; instead, she is suggesting that the dismantling must be executed with newly accessible equipment that will be effective in the deconstruction of dominating factors that have caused a negative impact within society.

Women's Ways Of Knowing!!

"The test of whether or not you can hold a job should not be in an arrangement of your chromosomes." -Nuria Ano

      This particular quote interests me and shows an example of Pearl Cleage, "Black Ice" because of the male superiority in the work force and the belittlement of women in Corporate America. In "Black Ice" Joyce was prepared for a meeting and had a confident going into the meeting until she was intimidate by Congressman Busbee. He questioned her on several topics that she discussed to challenge and gave her a hard time about her concern about helping young women's lives. Joyce became frustrated because of him undermining her abilities in the workplace. I believe he gave her a hard time because of  her sexuality and did not take into consideration her overall point. Women in today's society are tested, either because of their race, gender, or sexuality and not held accountable for their value of their work. The stereotypes of women and the oppression they may go through in the work force is a prime example of "Black Ice".

Black Womens Ways of Knowing

In Pearl Cage's Black Ice the title stood out to me.  On page 386 Joyce said she had suddenly skidded on a patch of black ice.  She stated that this was not a time to be careless, but it was a time to review the events of the day and figure out what went wrong.  I thought of congressman Busbee as black ice. At the conclusion of her proposal she was ridiculed by Congressman Busbee. She did not see this coming.  I felt as though his interrogation sort of steered her into a different direction ending in the result of her disposing of her last proposal. It somewhat intimidated her .  She answered the questions as confidently as she could, but by the end of the story her final goal was not reached. I felt like this was the time for her to "review the events of the day and figure out what went wrong."

                                             
 "Self - Exploration"

When I was a graduate student I took a dissertation seminar course. We had to read each others research proposals and give feedback during a classroom session. My proposal dealt with my research on enslaved black women. After my session was over, a fellow classmate thanked me for introducing him to "a group of women that he knew nothing about". At first I was a bit surprised; I didn't think that I discussed any unknown women or unfamiliar information. But the more I thought about it, the more I realized that my own way of knowing was unique. I had to ask myself how could he, how would he, WHEN would he have learned about black women? My fellow classmate was a white male who had been educated within America's educational institutions and under America's white, patriarchal-centered curriculum, and so had I. We had all come through the same system and learned through the same lens. Once I was honest with myself, the truth was, I had not known about these women either until I attended an HBU. So, as I think about the importance of my work, I remember  this conversation, I look in the mirror at myself and I understand...I am important, I am visible, I am real, I am here...

Black Women's ways of knowing

As we began to discuss the topic of "black women's ways of know," I suggested that black women have ways of knowing things through observed knowledge. Observed knowledge is knowledge that is learned or obtained through the act of watching/listening to others and one's surroundings. For example, I believe black women during slavery represent this form of knowledge perfectly. Through each generation, slave women watched their daughters, granddaughters etc. grow up under a form of bondage that they were "use to." On the other hand, the generations that were growing up were "privileged" so to speak to watch the sufferings of the older women who lived before them. In the process, they were able to carefully observe their master, mistress, and their children which allowed them to gain knowledge as it relates to how they operated and how they handled their slaves under specific circumstances. Nevertheless, black women have obtained in intensive amount of knowledge through diligent observations.