I’m at the BlogHer conference this weekend. I moderated a panel on Race and Gender, check-out the live blog here. The recorded version should be available on their site soon (that’s where it gets interesting).
I’m experiencing conference burn-out, so I’m taking an early flight home and will try to digest and write about the conference in the next few days. I have mixed feelings about the overall message, the general intent of the conference and especially the sponsors. Although, I want to make sure I give myself a little time to process my own message before I put it out in the world.
Off to the processing lab, where WOC learn to reframe, readjust and regurgitate bland words for mass production!
July 22, 2008 at 10:53 am
hey – it was great to meet you! made the airport wait a lot of fun!
shaz – aka “your WordPress hero!” hahah
July 25, 2008 at 7:45 am
Hi Adele-
At Blogher, we met on Saturday morning and reconnected again at the Women of Color workshop. Thanks so much for taking the time to type up our info and compile it into a list for us. As a newbie, I learned so much at the blogging conference. One thing I decided to do right after the conference was to start another blog in addition to the one I already have. This one’s called cynsation.blogspot.com–it’s going to be more personal, with no specific theme. Since I just started, I actually don’t know what direction it’s headed in yet. But my last couple of posts have been about my plight as a fairly liberal person looking for the right church.
I didn’t go to the panel you moderated on Race and Gender but I read the synopsis. You brought up some good points. Frankly, I didn’t care too much for the way the way The New Yorker satirized Obama and Michelle on the cover-it seemed like it was playing off the kind of right-wing propaganda that seeks to demonize Americans who are against the war. It was disappointing, especially coming from The New Yorker, which I regard as a fairly open-minded publication.
I also agree with your point that sometimes women of color are seen as being angry. It’s not a fair generalization to make. I can’t speak for all women of color nor can I speak for all Asian American women, but I sometimes feel that the ignorant public like to put minorities, especially minority women, into neat little categories. Like if you’re an Asian/Asian American woman, people expect you to be quiet and docile. If I expressed dissatisfaction or discontent with a particular issue, I may be viewed as being a dragon lady, unfeminine, or someone who is “angry.” I think calling someone “angry” is a way to dismiss that person’s cause. That’s why it’s great that we have blogs so we can can continue to keep our voices and causes alive….
Keep writing, Adele, and please stay in touch!
—Cynthia
July 29, 2008 at 9:42 am
I’ve always wanted to go to a BlogHer conference but this is the second one in a row where people are blogging about coming out of the conference with a less than great impression. BlogHer seems to be getting a great name for themselves online and through their site and from the people who write for them, but as far as the conference goes, I just tend to see a lot of disappointment from women who had been looking forward to it.
August 3, 2008 at 8:57 am
i miss you. rest, relax, regain, rejuvenate.