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Looking ahead…Mark you calendar!
Like so many feminist organizations in
Duluth, 2006 marks the 25th anniver-
sary of the UMD Women’s Studies
program. We are hoping to celebrate
during homecoming in the fall. For
those of you who are interested in
being part of the planning or would
want to work on a special edition of the
newsletter, and/or want to send us
your reminiscences, please contact me
or Geraldine Hughes at ws@d.umn.edu
More immediately, thanks to the grant
writing skills and sheer determination
of Cheryl Reitan, member of our
Women’s Studies Advisory Board, we
look very much forward to a weeklong
visit by Bushra Rehman, well-known
poet and author of Colonize This! Young
Women of Color on Today’s Feminism.
She will be teaching and conducting
slam poetry workshops February 20 –
24. See calendar for details.
Cheryl Strayed, award winning author
and daughter of our WS graduate
Barbara (Bobbi) Lambrecht (1991,
posthumously), will read from her novel
Torch (Houghton Mifflin, 2006), Febru-
ary 24, at 2:00, in the Library Rotunda.
See the calendar of events for her
other appearances in town.
Thank you to all the alumnae who have
contacted us over the past year. We
are fortunate that Claire Benton has
agreed to be an alumnae coordinator.
We hope that you will want to play a
role in the upcoming festivities!
Will be continued!
Tineke
Over winter break I spent a week at
the Casa Internationale Delle Donne, i.e.
International Building for Women, right
in the heart of beautiful old Trastevere,
Rome. I had never been to Italy but
Italian feminism certainly had been
constitutive of my feminist develop-
ment since its beginnings. Also because
we, too, have a Building for Women in
Duluth I was eager to visit. Thanks to
the untiring work of the Roman femi-
nists, the collaboration of the Rome
City Council, the Equal Opportunities
Office and the International Women’s
House Consortium, the Casa, a reno-
vated 17th century convent (over 12.000
square feet), opened its doors in 2002.
It is a dream come true for all the
women who have been part of the
Roman women’s movement since the
1970’s! The Casa has been home to
many feminist and human rights activ-
ists.
The casa houses: Orsa Maggiore, an
affordable hostel, with room for 40 in
rooms that have beds for 1, 2, 3 or 4
people, with a view of the century old
magnolia tree in the cloister patio; a
cafeteria, a restaurant offering re-
gional, ethnic and international cuisine;
an organic wine bar for women only; a
fully equipped health center; archives,
information and research center on the
history of the international women’s
movement; a bookstore; women’s radio;
the Casa newspaper; a film crew; a
conference center and exhibition hall,
and five seminar rooms for between 10
and 130 people; internal catering for
work lunches, receptions, openings and
conferences for women; and offices for
over 50 Roman women’s organizations.
Yes, it is always buzzing in this feminist
paradise.
I was invited to speak at a planning
meeting of the Roman feminists who, by
the hundreds, were organizing a con-
tingent to travel to Milan on January
14th for the big national demonstration
for reproductive freedom in response
to some political gestures that
threaten the end to legal abortion in
Italy. Sounds familiar? The meeting
went from 3-7 pm, on a Sunday after-
noon. I listened to at least 15 women,
ages 18-85, representing a broad
political spectrum and from all walks of
life, give passionate speeches and
analyses, all extemporaneously. Some
spoke 10 others 30 minutes, but never
a minute too long. No breaks. I was in
awe, and positive that I was witnessing
the re-birth of the women’s liberation
movement in Italy. I talked about the
struggle for reproductive rights in the
US and Minnesota and how our strug-
gles are so much the same.
For more information about the Casa,
please check out their website, which
has an English version:
And if you are interested in being part
of a women’s delegation that I am
hoping to take to the Casa in the spring
of 2007, you might want to attend the
WRAC Brown Bag, Feb. 15, at Noon, in
KSC 355-57, where I will talk more
about my experiences, or you can
contact me at tritmees@d.umn.edu
Looking back at fall semester, we had
some great speakers visiting our
campus: Margaret Randall, Lois Jensen,
and Starhawk. See Beth Bartlett’s
articles inside on Lois Jensen and
Starhawk. Margaret Randall, feminist/
lesbian/human rights activist and
author of over hundred books, was
invited to our campus under the aus-
pices of National Coming Out Day,
October 11 in collaboration with Angie
Nichols, director of LGBTA student
services. Several hundred people
attended Margaret’s talk. She gave all
of us hope that a different world is
possible. She drew on many historical
and transnational connections that
made me think of a last line to a song
by Ferron: Do not be complacent! If you
are interested, Margaret allowed us to
post her talk on our website:
FROM THE DEPARTMENT HEAD
UMD DEPARTMENT
OF
WOMEN
’S
STUDIES
FEBRUARY 2006
VOLUME 19, ISSUE 2
NORTH
SHORE
VISIONS
INSIDE THIS ISSUE:
ALUMNAE UPDATES
2 & 9
Calendar of
events
5 - 6
STARHAWK’S VISIT
7
LOIS JENSEN’S VISIT
7
PLEDGE FORM
9
I WANT TO LEARN
SOMETHING
4
JOYS OF TEACHING
3
LIBRARY NEWS
7
MOUNTAIN CLIMB-
ING & THE MAFIA
8
BUSHRA REHMAN
10
Editors: Tineke Rit-
meester and Geraldine
Hughes
Contact Information:
Dept. of Women’s Stud-
ies
1201 Ordean Court
475 H
Duluth MN 55812
Tel: 218-726-7953
Fax: 218-726-7651
Office hours: 7:45 a.m.
to 3:45 p.m. Mon-Thurs.
ALUMNAE
UPDATES
If you’d like alumni updates
via email, please your email
address to Geraldine at
ws@d.umn.edu.
Fredrickson5arah@aol.com.”
Claire Benton: School is back
in session and it is very busy
here at the Vassar College Ca-
reer Center. Students have now
officially been badgered by
their parents so many times
with the dreaded "what are you
going to do next year" question
that our office cannot keep up
with all the appointments. And
it is amazing just how many
'09ers come in here on a daily
basis, planning their entire lives
already. Questions such as
"how many internships will I
need?" or "what should I major
in so I can get a good job?"
These questions are coming
from students who have already
done two or three internships in
high school! I can't recall being
like that...actually I know I
wasn't like that. I believe I used
the UMD Career Center once
for the Strong Interest Inven-
tory and I can't even remember
what it told me (not a bus driver
or anything like that).
I remember graduating with
my Women's Studies major and
saying to myself..."what am I to
do now?" That is when I up and
left for Alaska, something I had
always wanted to do. It was
perfect and just what I needed.
I remind my students to take
advantage of transitional times
in their lives and to remember
that every single thing that they
do will help lead them to their
"place in life" (i.e.: their
"career"). Life happens fast!
Upon my return to the lower
forty eight, I finally learned
what a resume was and got it
together to begin job searching.
A Women's Advocate at a Bat-
tered Women's Shelter...what
else would I do with a Women's
Studies major? And a minor in
Outdoor Recreation? I enjoyed
my work at the shelter and be-
gan my career path within the
fields of social services, non-
profits and education. I won't
bore you with the rest of the
story--but the main point to
get across is that my
Women's Studies background
prepared me for every-
thing...all that I do, all that I
am. It has made me the per-
son I am today. One who is
well aware of herself and her
surroundings. One who is
engaged and confident. I
believe a lot of people go
through life and never take
the time or have the opportu-
nity to do what we have all
done...
I am a proud Women's Stud-
ies undergraduate and will
never, ever forget my profes-
sors and friends I met along
the way. I would love to hear
from people I know and those
I haven't yet met. We all
share a common thread and it
would be lovely if we could
form a network of sorts in
order to keep in touch with
one another. Possibly a reun-
ion of some kind? I am will-
ing to assist in the planning
and coordinating of such
events and am looking to all
of you for assistance and to
get the ball rolling!
Please contact me at ccben-
ton@gmail.com if you would
like to provide any advice,
assistance or just to say hi. I
can't wait!
Dawn Stoyanoff: Dawn
Stoyanoff completed her
Bachelor in Psychology with
emphasis in Women Studies
in 1991 from UMD. She
received her Masters Degree
in Theatre Arts from Western
Continued on Page 9
Sarah Fredrickson: “I gradu-
ated with a Women's Studies
Degree and an American
Indian Studies Minor in
1993. I began working for
Planned Parenthood of Mon-
tana as their Volunteer Coor-
dinator this past February. I
love my job! Though I had
formerly worked for Target
as Executive and in other
forms of management during
the last twelve years, I never
felt it was the right fit. Dur-
ing the last few years, I soul
searched to figure out what or
where I needed to be in my
life. One of the conclusions I
made was that I needed to
work with women and with
social issues. I had not used
my degree effectively. I be-
gan as a volunteer, hoping
that I would eventually be
hired by Planned Parenthood.
My degree is a different one,
but it was the right one. Pas-
sion for your life and passion
for your work is a wonderful
deal. I would like to thank
Tineke for fueling my fire
and strengthening my femi-
nism. I have great memories
of my time in the Women's
Studies program and of Ti-
neke.
On a personal note, I have
three beautiful children. Au-
gust Henry is nine, Jack Tho-
mas is seven and so is his
twin sister, Teresa Lynn. I
have lived in Billings, MT
since 2002. If anyone
wishes to contact me, they
may at:
PAGE 2
VOLUME 19, ISSUE 2
PAGE 3
NORTH SHORE VISIONS
Ana Mendieta, Tree of Life
Series, Old Man’s Creek,
Iowa, 1976
Hannah Wilke, Intra-Venus
Series, 1992-1993
A
s many teachers have
discovered, one of the
greatest joys of teaching is
learning from your students.
My own research field is cul-
tural constructions of the
human body, and every year,
I get to share this field with a
diverse group of students who
are drawn to CSt 3080: Cul-
tural Constructions of the
Body. From business majors
to pre-med students, and
many women’s studies majors
and minors, the course seems
to draw a wide range of curi-
ous people – “what’s so cul-
tural about human bodies?”
they want to know! By the
end of the semester these
students have turned the ta-
bles, offering their own se-
mester-long projects in re-
sponse to this question. I
have wanted to share these
projects with a wider com-
munity than our classroom,
so I have posted some of them
to a link called “Student Pro-
jects” on my website:
These exciting projects focus
on cultural bodies through
examinations of both female
and male body image, body
modifications like tattooing
and piercing, video game
bodies, cultural constructions
of hair, the world of geisha,
and many more.
One of the projects from
which I learned the most fo-
cused on women perform-
ance artists who use their
own bodies in their art, an
amazing project, carefully and
passionately researched by
Women’s Studies student,
Katie Witzig. I have enclosed
two images from her project,
because it is not currently
available online, and because
the work of these two artists
is so compelling. As Katie
states in her research paper,
“Ana Mendieta’s earth-body
art encompasses the themes
of woman/nature, goddess
mythology and the cycle of
life, death, and rebirth. Her
intensely personal subject
matter is derived from a trau-
matic childhood in which she
was forced to flee from her
home in Cuba when she was
12 years old. . . .
In [the Tree of Life
Series], Mendieta
covered her
body with mud
and stood or lay
upon trees in
their natural
environment.
She was able to
disguise herself
very convincingly and merge
with the trees. By displaying
her body against a tree, she
became rooted and fused her
female body with the earth.
This definitely relates back to
Mendieta’s search for ‘home’
and also with the intercon-
nectedness of all life.”
Katie’s project goes on to
elaborate on Hannah Wilke’s
deeply moving work docu-
menting the effects of chemo-
therapy on her body, after
creating many controversial
performative and photo-
graphic works that used her
naked body to raise questions
about gender and cultural
constructions of beauty.
I hope to have more of Ka-
tie’s project available online
in the future. For now, I
hope this glimpse into the
provocative work of under-
graduate students in an in-
terdisciplinary class about
cultural bodies is as inspiring
and heartening to you as it
has been to me. Don’t for-
get to check out all the pro-
jects available at
JOYS
OF
TEACHING
BY MITRA EMAD, ASSISTANT PROFESSOR, CULTURAL STUDIES
O
n any given day, how
often do people contem-
plate their race, socioeconomic
class and gender, layered in
context of our society?
After taking Women, Race
and Class at UMD last fall,
Amanda DeVoogdt thinks
about it constantly. Part of the
class is “really kind of analyzing
and thinking about why people
are more successful than oth-
ers, and how they came to be
at that position, and the privileges
that they have had, compared to nega-
tive aspects,” she said.
Women’s Studies Associate Profes-
sor Njoki Kamau, native of Kenya,
has taught Women, Race and Class
ever since she came to UMD. For
her, this course brings teaching to life
because she can watch her students
begin to question the complex struc-
tures of race, class and gender – as
well as the impact it has on their lives.
They begin to wonder why.
In asking these questions, people also
have to deal with their own lives and
emotions, Kamau said. “To me, that’s
very exciting, when people start
asking those questions, even though I
know there is risk involved, because
that is maturation.”
To catalyze this maturation, Kamau
assigned three books, two group
projects, a semester-long journal of
emotions, and a “White Privilege
Paper.” In the privilege paper, stu-
dents were asked to write about their
individual experiences with race, class
and gender.
In between projects and videos, the
class sits in a circle to discuss the
readings, current events, videos and
other issues pertaining to the course.
DeVoogdt feels that students will get
out of this class whatever they are
willing to put into it. She said that the
group projects didn’t even feel like
work, because she was learning so
much.
“You have to go into it with a state
of mind that ‘I want to learn some-
thing,’ and you’re going to learn so
much,” DeVoogdt said. “You have to
be prepared to deal with issues that
are tough, and that you probably
haven’t had to deal with before.”
Lies My Teacher Told Me: Everything
Your American History Text Book Got
Wrong, by James W. Loewen, is one
of the assigned texts for a group
project. Loewen not only examines
the misinformation and heroification
that poisons so many high school text
books, but encourages students to
branch out and question the available
information.
Most people have heard of Helen
Keller – the deaf and blind woman
from Alabama who learned to speak
with the help of Anne Sullivan, and
also graduated from college.
But how many people know that
Keller was a radical socialist? Accord-
ing to Loewen, sixty-four years of
her adult life were ignored in Ameri-
can history text books.
“Keller’s commitment to socialism
stemmed from her experience as a
disabled person and from her sympa-
thy for others with handicaps,”
Loewen wrote. “She began by work-
ing to simplify the alphabet for the
blind, but soon came to realize that
to deal solely with the blindness was
to treat the symptom, not the cause.
Through research she learned that
blindness was not distributed ran-
domly throughout the population but
was concentrated in the lower class.”
Miranda Josephson, a junior at
Hermantown High School, attended
Women, Race and Class through
Post Secondary Educational Oppor-
tunities (PSEO). She felt that a lot of
the issues discussed were very perti-
nent to today’s world.
“I think my place in society is at
a good spot for me, but not nec-
essarily because I earned it,” Jo-
sephson said. “It’s basically be-
cause I was born into the white,
middle class family, so I’m not
going to really have a hard life
because of it. No matter what
happens, I’ll probably be able to
get out of any problems I have.”
Maria Valley, who is attending
UMD to get a Spanish teaching
degree, grew up in El Salvador and
has lived in the United States for eight
years. She does not consider the color
of her skin as a negative issue. “What
about if I find some problem, but it’s
not a big deal for me? It’s not a big
deal I don’t make a big deal out of it
because some people are not going to
like me. Some others are going to like
me. ... So maybe I am kind of positive
about it, and when I see that some
people don’t treat me well, I think
maybe they treat anybody as they are
treating me.”
Tony Klehr recommends Women,
Race and Class to anybody, regardless
of their major, because “everyone
should find out about this stuff,” he
said.
“I like the informalness of it. How
we can all sit around and no one gets
mad at each other,” Klehr said. “A lot
of times we disagree, but we're pretty
good friends I'd say in the class, so we
can say what's on our mind without
getting yelled at.”
Kamau’s wish for her students is that
they become strong individuals, who
will work for justice and humanity.
“I always hope they can take one
thing it is possible to have unity across
difference, that you do not have to be
me to work with me, but we can
work together even acknowledging
our differences,” Kamau said. “I think
what to me is very important is ac-
knowledging that those differences
and they are real and they exist, but
there should not be a barrier that we
can’t work together to make the
world a better place.”
I WANT TO LEARN SOMETHING BY KATHLEEN GRIGG, WOMEN’S STUDIES MAJOR
PAGE 4
NORTH SHORE VISIONS
Women, Race and Class Fall 2005 Class
“YOU HAVE TO BE
PREPARED TO
DEAL WITH ISSUES
THAT ARE
TOUGH
, AND
THAT YOU
PROBABLY
HAVEN
’T HAD TO
DEAL WITH
BEFORE
.”
-AMANDA
DEVOOGDT
ON-CAMPUS
Feb. 11. Soultice "Reuniting
the Souls of a Nation" begins at
6 p.m., in the UMD Kirby
Ballroom. Food & Entertain-
ment - Spoken Word Poetry,
House Squad, Milwaukee
Boopers, Deltas. Ticket
Prices: Adults $9, Students
$7 and Children $5 (5-12
years) .Ticket sales start Jan.
30-Feb. 9.
Feb. 15. "Get on the Bus" and
"Four Little Girls" by Spike Lee
from 12-4:30 p.m., in KSC
273.
Feb. 15. Tineke Rit-
meester speaks about the
International Building on Women
in Rome where she recently
visited at 12 Noon in KSC
355-57.
Feb. 15. GLBT Teach in with
a teacher from
Superior
High School. She will speak
on what it's like to be an
"out" lesbian teacher in K-12
education in KSC 268 at 6
p.m. Sponsored by GLBT
Services.
Feb. 20. Slam poet and guest
speaker Bushra Rehman
speaks in the UMD Ballroom
at 6:30 p.m. Rehman also
presents Slam Poetry at Pizza
Luce on Feb. 23 at 8 p.m.,
and two workshops on Feb.
21 and Feb. 23 at 1 p.m. in
the UMD Kirby Ballroom.
For more information please
contact 726-7953.
Feb. 22. Film: "Brother Out-
sider: The Life of Bayard Rustin"
at 12 Noon in KSC 273B.
Feb. 22. Poet Kurtis Lam-
kin performs in the Weber
Music Hall at 7 p.m. Lamkin
is a poet who plays the kora,
a beautiful West African
string instrument. He has
performed internationally
and has appeared on numer-
ous television and radio
shows, including National
Public Radio and Bill Moyers'
"Fooling with Words."
Feb. 24. Author Cheryl
Strayed reads from her first
book, Torch at 2 p.m. in the
Library Rotunda. Refresh-
ments will be served. Every-
one welcome.
Feb. 28. "Rosa Parks" and
"Daughters of the Dust" by
Julie Dash from 12-4:30
p.m., in KSC 273.
March 1. Women's Resource
and Action Center and
Women's Studies Brown Bag
in KSC 355-57 at 12 Noon.
March 1. GLBT Teach In
with Joan Varney on
Queer Asians in the Bay Area
at 6 p.m. in Kirby 268.
Sponsored by GLBT Ser-
vices.
March 8. International
Women's Day Music, Poetry,
Speakers, Food, Information
booths FREE Women's Re-
source and Action Center
and Women's Studies Brown
Bag at 12 Noon in the Kirby
Lounge.
March 9. Guest speaker
Felicia Washington presents
"The Current Climate of
Race Relations in the
United States." From 5-6
p.m. Location TBA. Spon-
sored by UMD Social Work
Department.
March 11. Drag Show Fund-
raiser for Cruden-Riggs schol-
arship at the Saloon in Min-
neapolis. (See GLBT Website
for update)
For more info, please contact
GLBT Service 726-7300
March 22. Women's Re-
source and Action Center and
Women's Studies Brown Bag
in KSC 333 at 12 Noon.
March 23. GLBT Teach In
with Mags David, library
staff member in KSC 268 at 6
p.m. She will present on
Women's Music Movement
and History.
March 25. QSU Spring Drag
Show! For information, please
email qsu@d.umn.edu or call
Queer Students Union at
218-726-7041.
March 26. "Women Con-
fronting Globalization:
Cultural Resistance, Fair
Trade and Human Rights"
at 7 p.m. in the UMD Ball-
room. Women activists from
Chiapas will speak about Za-
patista women's collective
strategies of resistance while
discussing the impacts of
globalization on women in
Mexico and the leadership
role that women play in the
movement for Fair Trade and
social and economic justice.
March 29. Women's Re-
source and Action Center and
Women's Studies Brown Bag
at 12 Noon in KSC 355-57.
March 29. 2006 Ann Ban-
croft lecture in the Weber
Music Hall at 4 p.m. For
more information please con-
tact University Relations at
CALENDAR OF EVENTS
PAGE 5
NORTH SHORE VISIONS
Apr. 18. Latin American Film
Festival at 12 Noon in KSC
273. Sponsored by Hispanic/
Latino/Chicana LRC.
Apr. 19. Women's Resource
and Action Center and
Women's Studies Brown Bag
at 12 Noon in KSC 355-57.
Apr. 19. GLBTQ "Teach-In"
Topic: "Courage, Creativity,
and Community: Surviving the
80's and more!" by Gary
Anderson in KSC 268 at 6
p.m. Sponsored by GLBT
Services.
Apr. 21-23. Free Democracy
Summit III: "Freedom is Not
Free" Join us for a weekend
of art, education, and inspira-
tion dedicated to using the
tools at the root of our de-
mocracy to unite individuals
and organizations with a vari-
ety of goals, but similar val-
ues, in a cooperative effort to
explore, define, and celebrate
our democracy. For more
details please visit:
org
Apr. 22. 18th Annual Fi-
esta!!! in the Kirby Ballroom
at 6 p.m. For more informa-
tion contact Susana at 726-
8444.
Apr. 25. Latin American Film
Festival at 12 Noon in KSC
273. Sponsored by Hispanic/
Latino/Chicana LRC.
Apr. 25. Fabulous Farewell
honoring GLBT and Ally
graduates, special award re-
cipients and Cruden-Riggs
Scholarship recipient in Kirby
Ballroom B at 5 p.m. Please
contact Angie Nichols if you
are GLBTA and graduating.
Apr. 25. Equal Pay Day. Wear
Red today to mark how far into
the year a woman must work (in
addition to her hours in 2005) to
earn as much as a man earned in
the previous year alone. For
info, go to www.pay-
equity.org/day.html.
Apr. 27. OutFront Minne-
sota's GLBT Lobby Day at the
State Capitol (travel on coach
buses). For information or to
join the contact list, please
contact Jaqueline Ingrouille,
GLBT Services Intern: in-
gro001@d.umn.edu or call
218-726-6744. We are coor-
dinating buses with the Uni-
tarian Church and other open
and affirming faith-based
groups. Fares: Students $5
and Non-students $15. Will
return around 5 p.m.
Apr. 27. Take Back the
Night March and Rally
starts at 5pm with Rally. For
info please go to website for
Program to Aid Victims of
Sexual Assault
www.pavsa.org or call 726-
1442.
For more Information please
call: African American Learn-
ing Resource Center-726-
6187; Asian Pacific Islander
Learning Resource Center-
726-6335; Gay Lesbian Bisex-
ual Transgender Services-
726-7300; Hispanic/Latino/
Chicana Learning Resource
Center-726-8444; Interna-
tional Student Services-726-
8962; MPIRG-726-8157; and
Women’s Studies-726-7953
or on the web at
OFF-CAMPUS
Feb. 24/25. Cheryl Strayed,
author of “Torch” will be in the
Northern Lights Bookstore,
Duluth, at 7 p.m., Feb. 24.
Strayed will host the Booktalk
Lunch in J.W. Beecroft Books &
Coffee, 3631 Tower Ave, Supe-
rior, Feb. 25, beginning at 1
p.m. Reservations and pre-
payment of $10.25 plus tax each
required. Call 715-394-2665 for
more info.
UPCOMING NATIONAL
& INTERNATIONAL
CONFERENCES
Feb. 23-24. Women’s Studies
Program 19th Annual Confer-
ence, “Transnational Femi-
nisms,” in the University of
South Carolina, Columbia. Key-
note lecture and final event will
focus on Irish feminism, in con-
junction with a Irish Studies
Conference on campus. For
info, go to www.cas.sc.edu/
wost/program/events/
confschedule.html.
March-April: The Equality
Ride. In the spirit of the 1960s
Freedom Rides, young women
and men will take a bus across
the country to confront colleges
that ban openly LGBT students
from enrolling. For info, go to
March 3-4. Eighth Annual
Women’s History Month Con-
ference “Dangerous Desires:
Queer Politics in the New
Millenium,” at Sarah Lawrence
College, Bronxville, NY. Fea-
tures Amber Hollibaugh, author
of My Dangerous Desires: A Queer
Girl Dreaming Her Way Home and
senior strategist at the National
Gay and Lesbian Taskforce. For
info, go to www.slc.edu/
index.php?pageID=2506.
March 5. Eighth Annual Sacre-
mento Community Women of
Color Day event, “Moving
Mountains: Women of Color
Health Initiatives,” in Sacre-
mento, CA. Honorees include
108-year-old Mother Ruby Mu-
hammed, known as “the mother
of the Nation of Islam,” and
Congresswoman Doris Matsui
(D-CA), the first Asian Pacific
American woman outside of
Hawaii to serve in Congress. For
info, go to
March 30-Apr. 1. The 29th An-
nual Southeastern Women’s
Studies Association and Valdosta
State University Women’s Stud-
ies Program “Changing Time
(s): Feminism Then and
Now,” multidisciplinary confer-
ence in Valdosta, GA. Explore
how feminism has changed and
how it has catalyzed change,
especially on issues such as
multi-culturalism, racism and
the family. Featuring Jennifer
Baumgardner and Amy Richards.
For info, go to
20SESWSA%
20Conference.htm.
March 31. The 18th Annual
Conference on Women and
Gender, “Sisterhood is Global:
From Theory to Practice,”
University of Connecticut,
Storrs. What are the obligations
of “sisterhood” on a rapidly
changing globe? That’s one ques-
tion keynote speaker Winona
LaDuke and others will discuss at
this UConn Women’s Studies
Program co-sponsored event.
For info, go to
~womstu4/conf2006.html.
Apr. 6-9. Roundtable on
Latina Feminism, John Carroll
University, Cleveland. A forum
to talk about Latina Feminism
from every angle: queer, Mesti-
zaje, Mulataje and more. Femi-
nist philosopher Linda Martin-
Alcoff will give the keynote ad-
dress, “Mestiza Identity Politics.”
For info, email: mor-
CALENDAR OF EVENTS
PAGE 6
NORTH SHORE VISIONS
share strategies on a variety of
social justice topics. For info, go
projects.arrc/.
May 1-June 9. The Centre for
Women’s Studies in Education
Ontario Institute for Studies in
Education of the University of
Toronto presents an Interna-
tional Human Rights Education
Institute on “Women’s Human
Rights: Building a Peaceful
World in an Era of Globaliza-
tion.” For more info and appli-
cation forms, call 1-416-923-
6641, ext. 2204 or e-mail
springinst@oise.utoronto.ca.
Applications due: Feb. 15 for
guaranteed consideration.
June 15-18. NWSA 27th An-
nual Conference, Oakland, CA.
Register online or download a
registration form at
questions or the Call for Papers,
contact the national office at
301-403-0525 or e-mail nwsaof-
fice@nwsa.org.
CALL FOR PAPERS
Apr. 7. The Wisconsin Institute
for Peace & Conflict Studies
conference, “Values in Con-
flict” in UW-Superior. Students
of all disciplines invited to send
submissions for this student con-
ference. For more info, go to
see flyer outside 481 Humani-
ties. Deadline: March 3.
O
n a beautiful fall day in
late October, with the
sun peaking out of the clouds
long enough to warm us, the
students from “Women, Re-
ligion, and Spirituality,” along
with other interested stu-
dents, faculty, and commu-
nity members, joined interna-
tionally known author and
activist, Starhawk, in a ritual
of healing for the earth. We
gathered in a circle on the
grass as Starhawk invoked
each of the four directions
and sacred things – earth, air,
fire, and water. We spent
time observing, listening, and
sharing the lessons of the
trees, the water, the birds,
the wind, and then Starhawk
led us in a spiral dance. As
many of the students com-
mented, the energy there was
amazing.
Before the ritual, Starhawk
and the students engaged in
conversation about Wicca and
goddess spirituality, as well as
about the relation between
spirituality and political activ-
ism. Students were so fortu-
nate to be able to spend time
with Starhawk, one of the
most renowned and respected
voices of modern Goddess
religion and earth-based spiri-
tuality and the author or co-
author of ten books, including
The Spiral Dance, The Fifth
Sacred Thing, and her most
recent, Earth Path: Grounding
Your Spirit in the Rhythms of
Nature.
This was Starhawk’s first
homecoming since leaving
Starhawk visits “Women, Religion, and Spirituality”
by Beth Bartlett, Women’s Studies Professor
This database can be found
at the Databases link via the
library home page (http://
from the Databases by subject
page at http://
subjectdatabases.htm and
click on the link for Women's
Studies
If you have any questions
please contact Jodi Carlson,
Reference & Government
Documents Librarian, UMD
Library L274,
Tel: (218) 726.7880
E-mail: jlcarlso@d.umn.edu
W
omen's Studies Inter-
national Database has
been added to the UMD Li-
brary Databases. It has over
2,000 periodicals represented
this database and covers the
areas of sociology, history,
political science, public pol-
icy, international relations,
economy, business, educa-
tion, arts and humanities.
PAGE 7
NORTH SHORE VISIONS
were honored to have Lois
Jensen and five other female
mine workers from the Iron
Range speak at UMD about
sexual harassment and
women in the mining industry
(under the sponsorship of the
Center for Advocacy and Po-
litical Leadership. While con-
ditions have improved for
women in the mines, each of
the five other mine workers
credited Jensen's willingness
to stand up for the rights of
women as being the catalyst
that brought about change.
Jensen received a warm
M
ost of us know who
Lois Jensen, plaintiff
in Jensen v. Eveleth Mining
Co., is now that Class Action
has become a bestseller
following the release of the
major motion picture, North
Country. However, when
she first filed her lawsuit
against Eveleth Mines in
1988, and during the ten
subsequent years of legal
battles, most of us were un-
aware of her courageous and
often lonely struggle against
sexual harassment.
On November 19, 2005, we
standing ovation in due rec-
ognition for her courage and
undaunted pursuit of justice
and dignity for all women.
Jensen was remarkably gra-
cious in all her remarks, but
most moving was her state-
ment, "It's not my story. It's
the story of every woman who
has ever struggled and every
person who has ever strug-
gled."
LOIS JENSEN SPEAKS
AT UMD BY BETH BARTLETT, WOMEN’S STUDIES PROFESSOR
LIBRARY
NEWS
BY JODI ©ARLSON, WOMEN’S STUDIES LIBRARIAN
Starhawk
Lois Jensen and Erika Frykman, WS graduate
I
t is an impossible task to
describe my last six
months abroad. Everyone
who travels can relate to
this. There is a skin that I
have shed in the land of the
Middle Kingdom that I will
never see again. I have come
back to good old UMD alive
with a whole new view on life.
I went to North East China to
teach English for six months.
What I didn't expect were all
of the adventures that I would
take. I rode around in a limo
my first two weeks in Beijing, I
saw the Great Wall of China
on a day so hot that my sweat
immediately turned to steam,
I swam in a warm mountain
lake on evenings after six
hours of intense Mandarin
studies, I climbed for five and
a half hours up Mountain Tai,
I rode a bike in a city of seven
million people with too much
traffic for my taste, I met peo-
ple from all over the world,
and I taught a total of 1,057
students. Everyday was an
adventure and I have 2,000
pictures to prove it.
One of my favorite things
was traveling on the week-
ends. It was quite a thrill to
hop on a train and go some-
where while barely being able
to converse with my fellow
travelers. My most memora-
ble experience was missing
my train to Beijing, catching
the next one at one in the
morning, begging the taxi
driver to hurry up so I would-
n't miss my plane, then the
plane was broken so I had to
wait for four hours, and finally
arrived in Xi'an only to ride
the bus to the city center
holding my bottle of water for
the girl vomiting next to me.
But hey, the Terracotta warri-
ors were worth it.
Actually, who cares about
the Terracotta warriors! My
hotel room was a dream
come true with an hour long
hot shower. I had forgotten all
about those!
I also loved trying to learn
Chinese. Trying being the key
word. I could pick up words
here and there but it was diffi-
cult to string sentences to-
gether. I loved creating elabo-
rate and mysterious conver-
sations. Usually I could un-
derstand basic verbs and
nouns and then the fun be-
gan. I once convinced myself
that the two college girls rid-
ing next to me on the train
were in deep trouble with the
mafia after one girl's boy-
friend accidentally flew a kite
with a secret symbol on it,
awakening an ancient dragon
who then ate the mob boss's
daughter. Poor girls, I was
only sorry that I couldn't do
something to help them. The
fact that they took endless
pictures of me with their cell
phones seemed to cheer
them up though.
And then we have my culi-
nary adventures. Why go to
China and not try absolutely
everything? Some people
think I was a little extreme in
my dietary experimentations,
but they make for some in-
credible stories. Dog, for one,
is pretty tasty. I tried it a cou-
ple of times and was amazed
at how much I liked it. And
don't worry, I wasn't eating
Lassie or Beethoven. There is
a special breed that is raised
for the dinner table. I was
served live shrimp that I had
to decapitate with my chop-
sticks, sea cucumber, squid,
octopus, goat, donkey, pig
bone marrow that was sucked
up with a straw, and bugs
with crunchy exoskeletons,
meatball like insides, and
crunchy legs with beady black
eyes. I liked those. The cubes
of congealed beef fat (I didn't
know!!!) were an adventure I
definitely could have passed
on. I loved snake, especially
the fact that I got to hold it
before they killed it. It was
thrilling to have it wrapped
around my neck and look it in
the eyes not knowing if it was
poisonous or not. That part of
the translation was beyond
me. The lady who had to
catch it then took out her scis-
sors and cut of the head right
in the middle of the restaurant
floor, squeezed the blood into
a shot glass, and told me
"bottoms up!" It took me a
while to prepare for that one.
Now I could get extremely
graphic when it comes to pub-
lic restroom stories, but I'll
save that for another time. My
favorite part of course was
the challenge that came with
learning how to use a squat
toilet. I became a very quick
learner when I had to wash
my pants after the first two
attempts. Also, many public
restrooms didn't have stall
doors. Lets just say the for-
eign girl was a big attraction
and everyone learned that we
all have the same parts.
My weekend and holiday
adventures may have been a
highlight of my trip, but my
true purpose for my escape
from the daily grind at UMD
was to teach English. My av-
erage classroom consisted of
70 students per room. So to
say I was a little nervous is an
understatement. The standing
ovation I received from every
classroom definitely loosened
me up though. Whenever I
think my schedule is demand-
ing or my work load is too
heavy I will always remember
my incredible students. They
rise at 5:30am, run, have
three study classes, eat
breakfast, have two classes,
run, have two more
Mountain Climbing and the Mafia: My adventures in the Middle Kingdom By Katie Heisel, International
PAGE 8
NORTH SHORE VISIONS
classes, eat lunch, nap
(required) for 45 minutes,
have four afternoon classes,
eat dinner, rest for 30 min-
utes, study for three more
periods, the bell rings at 9:45
and lights out at 10pm. This
is the schedule six days a
week and the students only
get to go home for 24 hours
every 2-3 weeks. They made
teaching oral English an
adventure and quite the
challenge. When starting a
poetry lesson I asked the
students to change the
words from 'Roses are red...'
to something about myself. I
was notorious for losing my
voice due to the class sizes
and so the best one was:
"Roses are red, violets are
blue. Your voice squeaks,
but we love you." I also en-
joyed some much needed
(President) Bush bashing.
They were very enthusiastic
about it. Let's just say I didn't
meet many people who ap-
proved at all of the United
States or our affairs. I was a
little creeped out by the "spy
cameras," as I referred to
them. Teachers could watch
and listen to all lessons so I
had my very own 'big Chi-
nese brother' watching over
me daily.
I could write for hours
about my adventures in
China and who knows, some
d ay I might just do that.
Right now I am simply trying
to make it through the weird
sensations brought on by
reverse culture shock. Not
only that but I am having
chopsticks withdrawal. It is
amazing how we can learn
more about our own culture
by learning about someone
else's. Nothing, in my life or
travels, has been perfect but
looked at in the right light,
everything can be an adven-
ture.
PAGE 9
I'll be keeping a blog
(because why not) about our
MN adventures, which can be
found at http:// justsmall -
towngirl.blogspot.com/. So
to everyone in MN, yeay, we
can't wait to be back and see
all of you! To everyone in
Boston, we'll miss you and
will be back to visit (and now
you'll have a reason to visit
MN). Take care.”
Elisabeth “El” Johnson,
formerly Lepisto (WS
1996): El was accepted into
the Accelarerated Post
Bachelors Nursing Program
at St. Scholastica, Duluth.
Bonny Vosu, formerly Kan-
gas (WS 1998): Bonny
started her graduate studies at
the NEw School and recently
was recently appointed Inter-
national Student Advisor
there.
Marlee Kivens (WS 1994) :
Marlee is still working in
Minneapolis at Bet Shalom
Synagogue full time and for
her dad's company part time.
Kristin Ihlenfeld (WS
1996): Kristin finished up a
Master's program in Integral
Counseling at the California
VOLUME 19, ISSUE 2
Washington University
(WWU), Bellingham, Wash-
ington in 2004. She works as
an actress, director and
teacher in American Sign
Language, Deaf Culture and
Drama. Dawn has completed
some productions related to
women's issues. Women
Studies has benefit in her life
in many ways. She will con-
tinue her journey: to make a
contribution to society. To
learn more about her, check
out her website
Amanda McGregor: “The
big move back to Minnesota
is fast approaching. The mov-
ers take our stuff and we pack
up the puppies to leave Bos-
ton on August 24th, 2005,
and will be back in St. Peter
on the 26th.
As most of you know, we'll
be temporarily living with my
parents while we consider
where we want to buy a
house. I guess I'll be getting a
cell phone, after resisting
them, which is good because
then I can call all my Boston
friends for free! We'll defi-
nitely miss Massachusetts,
but we're ready to go home
and start our life there.
Institute of Integral Studies
(CIIS) and is pursuing a PhD
there in Philosophy, Cosmol-
ogy and Consciousness Studies.
She plans to stay out west and
get her therapy license (and
possibly also teach one day.
ALUMNI
UPDATES
CONTINUED
…
THANK YOU FOR SUPPORTING UMD’S DEPARTMENT OF WOMEN’S STUDIES
I/We would like to make a gift to Women’s Studies: $__________
Gifts to UMD/Women’s Studies are tax
Name: ______________________________________________________
deductible.
Address: ____________________________________________________
City, State, Zip: _______________________________________________
Mail pledge form to:
Phone:_________________ E-mail: ______________________________
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Graduation year if alumna/alumnus: ______________
1201 Ordean Court
__ My/our employer will match this gift. Enclosed is the company’s matching gift form. 475 Humanities
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Coming in March!
PAVSA's
Second Annual Flower Sale
Date, Time & locations to
be announced.
Contact Kelly Kurtz,
PAVSA's Program Assis-
tant, for more informa-
tion or to place an order.
E-mail: kkurtz@pavsa.org,
or call (218) 726-1442,
from 8:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m.,
Mon.-Fri.
*Mark Your Calendar!!!
Slam Poetry
with
Bushra Rehman
8 p.m., Thursday, Feb. 23 in
Pizza Luce,
11 E Superior St, Duluth
Ms. Rehman will also speak
at 6:30 p.m., Mon., Feb. 20
in UMD’s Kirby Ballroom
And present Slam Poetry
workshops on Tues., Feb. 21
and Thurs., Feb. 23 from 1-2
p.m. in UMD’s Garden
Room
*All are welcome!
Return Service Request
Nonprofit Organization
U.S. Postage
PAID
Permit No. 705
Duluth, Minnesota
University of Minnesota Duluth
475 Humanities
1201 Ordean Court
Duluth MN 55812
Phone: 218-726-7953
Fax: 218-726-7651
Email: ws@d.umn.edu
Website: www.d.umn.edu/ws
UMD DEPARTMENT OF
WOMEN
’S STUDIES
2002) and author of the collection
of poetry, Marianna's Beauty Sa-
lon. In her work, Bushra tells
stories of her immigrant upbring-
ing in Queens,the aunties, bo-
degas, stray dogs, street life, and
children, with both humor and
sincerity. She has been featured in
NY Newsday and her work has
appeared in ColorLines, Mizna,
Curve, SAMAR, and Bottomfish.
Bushra performs her poetry regu-
larly around the country and trav-
els with a group of artists bringing
Asian American literature to all
parts of America.
All event are free and open to
the public. The poetry workshops
(Feb. 21 and 23) are limited to 25
people. To register, contact 218-
726-8996. Need more info? Con-
tact 218-726-8996 or 726-7953.
The events are supported by a
UMD Chancellor’s Diversity
Grant.
U
MD is hosting poet, per-
former and activist, Bushra Reh-
man in February for several
open-to-the-public sessions.
Hear Rehman speak at 6:30 pm
on Monday, February 20 in the
UMD Kirby Ballroom. Attend
her Slam Poetry workshops on
Tuesday, February 21 (writing
poetry) and Thursday, February
23 (performing poetry) from 1-2
pm in the Kirby Garden Room.
Finally, join UMD and Bushra
Rehman and a Poetry Slam at 8
pm on Thursday, February 23 at
Pizza Luce, 11 E Superior Street,
Duluth.
Rehman was raised in New
York City, but has also lived in
Pakistan and Saudi Arabia. She is
co-editor of Colonize This!
Young Women of Color on To-
day's Feminism (Seal Press,
Bushra Rehman, New York Pakistani Muslim Slam Poet by Cheryl Reitan
THE UNIVERSITY
OF
MINNESOTA IS
AN
EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EDUCATOR
AND EMPLOYER
.