The Women's Times
A JOINT PUBLICATION OF THE COMMISSION OF THE STATUS OF WOMEN AND
THE WOMEN’S STUDIES PROGRAM   INDIANA, PENNSYLVANIA 15705

Volume 14, Number 6                                                                                 November 1999
An electronic version of the Women's Studies monthly newsletter

Archives 
December 1998
January/February 1999
March 1999
April/May 1999
September 1999 Pre-Issue
October 1999
October 2 1999

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(click on a link to go to the article)

IUP Visit by Jan Beatty

Jan Beatty, author of Mad River and host and producer of WYEP-FM’s Prosody, spent all day at IUP on Friday, November 5^th. During the course of the day, Jan Beatty participated in many events including presenting an Entremesa lunchtime colloquium, "Self-Censorship in Women’s Writing," held a poetry writing workshop in Leonard Hall, and had a poetry reading in the Oak Room West. Everyone really enjoyed her visit, sponsored by the New Growth Arts Review, the English Department, and the Women’s Studies Department.

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I AM THANKFUL FOR...

The mess to clean after a party because it means I have been surrounded by friends. The taxes I pay because it means I'm employed. The clothes that fit a little too snugly because it means I have enough to eat. My shadow who watches me work because it means I am out in the sunshine. The lawn that needs mowing, windows that need cleaning and gutters that need fixing because it means I have a home. The spot I find at the far end of the parking lot because it means I am capable of walking. The complaining I hear about our government because it means we have freedom of speech. The huge heating bill because it means I am warm. The lady behind me in church who sings off key because it means that I can hear. The piles of laundry and ironing because it means my loved ones are nearby. The alarm that goes off in the early morning hours because it means that I'm alive. The weariness and aching muscles at the end of the day because it means I have been productive.

Author unknown

Women’s Studies wishes you a happy Thanksgiving filled with all of life’s little joys!

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Info from the Feminist Majority

The Feminist Majority leads action campaigns to inspire women to take power in all sectors of society. In addition, the Feminist Majority monitors the legislative issues concerning women and speaks out to the government on national and international women’s rights concerns. For more information on the organization in general you can check out their website at http://www.feminist.org.

The Feminist Majority offers internships year round in both their DC and Los Angeles offices. Their internship that is listed in Princeton Review’s America’s Top 100 Internships, focuses on public policy and feminism. For more information visit the website above or email the Internship Coordinators Sarah Boonin at sboonin@feminist.org or Silvia Henriquez at silvia@feminist.org.

The Feminist Majority is collaborating with hundreds of other feminist groups to bring us Feminist Expo 2000 for Women’s Empowerment. The Expo will be held at the Baltimore Convention Center, Baltimore, MD., March 31-April 2, 2000.

Feminist Expo 2000 will usher in the new millenium by bringing together women’s groups from every sector of society to show the strength and depth of the women’s movement in the US and in the world. The Expo will showcase our vision for the 21^st century, as well as our work and accomplishments to date. Timed to take place at the heart of election season, the Expo will address women’s empowerment in politics, but also in science, in the academy, in labor movements, and everywhere else. The participation of leaders in Women’s Studies, feminist faculty and students is crucial to the success of Feminist Expo 2000.

If you plan to attend, let the WS office know since we can register as a delegation and we can travel and house together. To find out more about Feminist Expo 2000: www.feminist.org or email femmaj@feminist.org. or call the Feminist Majority at 703-522-2214. I hope to meet you there.

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by Angie Galik

"La Maja Desnuda," she read from the little plaque on the wall. "By Goya. Still more Goya."

"I don't understand why she's supposed to be so beautiful, or sexy, or whatever," her companion commented. I, eavesdropping, winced – I knew what was coming.

"I know," the first agreed. "She's so fat. But they liked that back then, I guess."

Art tourists!

There I was in Madrid's Museo del Prado, listening to a pair of Americans talk about how much these neo-classical images of beauty disgusted them (though not in so many words). You should have expected this, I told myself. Spain is a country full of skin and bone and Spandex - a country where the majority of people seem to be toothpick-thin, even despite the Spanish custom of deep-frying everything from veal patties to white bread. By comparison, Francisco de Goya's portrait of his wealthy lover, soft, pale, naked, reclining on her velvet chaise lounge, stood out dramatically. La Maja had a bit of flesh on her body, a bit of color in her cheeks – a round face, soft breasts, even "love handles" at her hips.

Perhaps that was why I liked her?

But this idea of beauty has long since passed out of fashion, in Spain as in the United States, and our models are no longer quite so touchably, appealingly soft. So, rather than seek out more famous portraits, only to be confronted on one hand with the ghostly host of breakable-looking painted women or on the other with the grim army of guidebook-educated art critics, I fled to the lower levels of this vast and labyrinthine museum.

Now, if anyone knows me, they know that my vacations revolve around a relentless quest for the tacky, the silly, and the downright cheesy. This means that if a tour book tells me that EVERY tourist visits X wax museum, tries the codfish soup in Y restaurant or skinny-dips in Z lake, I must have that experience too. Well, my guide book to Madrid had informed me that there, somewhere in that very Prado, was a bronze statue of a certain nude displayed in the center of a certain room, where the buttocks could be "patted appreciatively by generations of schoolboys." The extra twist: she was a hermaphrodite. I, of course, had to touch this renowned bottom.

When my friend and I stumbled upon The Statue in our flight from the tourons upstairs (touron = tourist + moron), I was swept up in delight. There she was, sleeping on her bronze pedestal, complete with the best of both worlds; and there, in full view, shone those well-polished cheeks. I was about to receive the Holy Grail of tourism cheese. I sidled up to the sculpture and looked furtively around the room. Not seeing any guards, I leaned over the red cord and quickly gave her bum three smart pats. Then, grinning like an idiot, I hurried away - trying, and failing, to be inconspicuous.

A guard meandered up to me. Damn! I though. Hadn't seen this one; maybe he'd been lurking in the doorway. Smiling, he said something to me in Spanish that I didn't quite catch. I figured I could reasonably guess at something along the lines of "Please don't touch the art, miss," or "Hands off, jerk," or some such, so I blushed and apologized. He just smirked and meandered off again, murmuring, "Vale, vale," (okay, okay). A bit confused, I turned to my bilingual companion for an exact translation. Seems a closer guess would have been, "You know, all the gay men who come here like to touch that statue's butt, since it's got, well, the best of both worlds."

Time for another getaway!

It had been quite an interesting museum trip, and at times a bit disturbing, but I lingered for a while on the grounds of the ol' Prado. A number of local artists had spread out samples of their work on the damp sidewalk, and Spaniards and tourists alike were buying and selling paintings from the depths of huge stiff cardboard folders. Although many of the pieces on display were extravagant reproductions of the art in the museum, or even bright collages covered in glitter, my attention was drawn almost immediately to the wares of a thin, mellow-looking woman with frizzy brown hair. In a soft voice, but one that shone with pride, Virginia told me about the paintings in careful Spanish. This one was oil, this, watercolor; this was her sister's cat, this was her garden, this was a friend. I was amazed, delighted, enchanted: her favorite subject was the female body, and her stylized women were nude, dancing, some praising the sun, some dreaming in blues and greens. And all of them, all of them, were well-rounded - comfortably-shaped - plump - fat! And beautiful! Each woman that Virginia had painted glowed with spirit and warmth and love. Each woman was a real woman. I wondered who this tiny creature had loved, or who had loved her, that enabled her to paint our human essences that way, capturing not the physical body at all, but the fire and soul of the Woman.

And so we rotate in and out of style like planets in their astrological houses, and sometimes the world wants thin, and sometimes the world wants fat, and sometimes we just can't decide. So, given that physical beauty is relative in this way, we should spend our energy - as Virginia did - turning the body inside out, showing the flesh and bone to be just a canvas on which we paint our personalities, our spirits, in brilliant colors. That way, we can always be sure of getting the best of both worlds.

- Angela Galik is a Spanish major at IUP, currently studying in Sevilla, Spain.

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The National Organization for Women is NOW at IUP!

By Mary Beth King

We are the future. The time is NOW! A chapter of the National Organization for Women is being formed right now on this campus. NOW was founded in 1966 and has struggled to end the injustice done to women ever since. Today with over 500,000 members nationally, we too will join the masses. NOW has taken many actions to create social change using both traditional and untraditional means. Most times the position NOW takes is unorthodox, uncompromising, and ahead of their times.

This semester is an incredible beginning. Men and women are coming together to take a stand. At our past two meetings we have been brainstorming the issues facing women on college campuses. The list is endless. From rape, to sexual harassment, to the equal treatment of women by the professors, and more, all issues are very relevant. No matter what issue we decide to start with, serious action will take place. We want to make people aware and more educated. We want men and women to come together and make efforts to change the conditions on this campus.

It doesn't matter your age, color, or gender. Taking a step to equality starts with you. Please contact IUPNOW@aol.com! Information on the next meeting will be provided.

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Consortium Plans Statewide Celebration of Women

In March 2000, Women’s History Month will be celebrated on all the State System campuses by the Women’s Consortium. The statewide celebration featuring Images of Women was planned at the Spring Board meeting of the Consortium. The plan was implemented this summer when Consortium facilitators at the Undergraduate Women’s Summer Leadership Institute invited student leaders from the various campuses to "take charge" of campus projects. Traditionally the Leadership Institute participants do a campus project of their own design the year following their enrollment. This year we encouraged them to design projects around a central theme, Images of Women, and to plan an exhibit or event for March 2000. Their projects will be highlighted at our Fall Conference, 2000.

The common theme, Images of Women, revolves around projects or exhibits that involve some form of visual images of women. The images may be photographs, paintings, three dimensional images, or other representations. The women depicted may be community women, faculty, students, staff, athletes, etc. Some campuses have planned an exhibit of women who were important in local, state or national history. Another campus is considering a display of photographs of international women to increase global understanding. Several students are contemplating recognition of women athletes on campus.

At Shippensburg, 12 local women will selected for recognition from the nominations by campus and community. Planned by Holly Hosford, Melanie Host, and Leshia Roberts, the Images of Women 2000 exhibit will be displayed in March. At California, Carol Lippencott’s project is currently underway. Pictures of battered women will be displayed in connection with the campus visit of Tanya Brown, sister of Nicole brown Simpson. Also presenting will be a local woman whose daughter was killed in a domestic violence incident.

We are planning an Images project for IUP for March. If you would alike to assist us, please contact me (357-2448) or Brenda (357-4753). Also if you are interested in joining the Consortium, or in receiving more information about the Undergraduate Women’s Leadership Institute, please call me.

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IUP Recycling Committee Updates Policy

The IUP recycling committee, Jim Froelicher and Doug Miller, have recently revised and expanded the universities recycling policies. Participation is encouraged and the custodial staff is prepared to work with the new policy. The following are some of the highlights of the new policy.

Offices can now recycle not only the white copy or typing paper but also colored paper (including letterhead), computer paper (white or greenbar), envelopes (plain, with cellophane windows, or mailing labels), wrappers from reams of paper, adding machine tapes, pamphlets, brochures and advertisements made from copy type paper, NCR invoices, scratch and message pads, post-it notes, yellow tablet paper, accounting ledgers, tabulating and time cards, posters, manila and colored file folder, and glossy office paper by placing it in the collection hanger on your garbage can. Magazines and newspapers can also be recycled. Offices are urged to make available a clearly labeled box for collection of newspapers and magazines. Aluminum cans are collected all over campus but within offices glass and plastic can be collected, again in clearly marked containers.

IUP’s recycling goals are based on PA Act 101 that states that by the year 2003 35% of the IUP waste stream must be recycled. According to that goal, IUP must triple its recycling effort by the year 2003. For information concerning the campus recycling program, call 357-4758.

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"The Biology of Women’s Intuition"

On Tuesday December 7^th Dr. Karen Schmidt from the Anthropology department will be presenting "The Biology of Women’s Intuition" for the lunchtime Entremesa. Dr. Schmidt graduated with a Ph.D. from the University of California, Berkley in 1997 with a focus on biological anthropology. Her undergraduate degree in Biology was from Cornell. Before coming to IUP in August of 1998, Dr. Schmidt taught at Berkley, a community college in California, and at the University of Pacific, a dental school in California.

Though Dr. Schmidt has never worked directly with a women’s studies department, women’s issues are always popping up in her work. Her dissertation, "A Biocultural Perspective on Schizophrenic Communication in New Zealand and Papua New Guinea," is the study of the relationship of facial expressions and mental disorders. This study is a part of the bigger question of "What is successful human interaction?". Because of the vast multitude of expressions and ways of interacting successfully, Dr. Schmidt decided to look at the question from another direction. She asked "What makes the expressions of mentally ill persons appear strange?" She attacks this question from a social psychological perspective. One of the questions she is asked in presenting her data is "Aren’t women better at interpreting facial expression?" Dr. Schmidt asks if this is just a stereotype or is there evidence to back it all up. The question is, "Is women’s intuition better than men’s?" Dr. Schmidt will attempt to answer that question in her Entremesa presentation. She will talk about the question from biological, psychological, and anthropological perspectives. This promises to be a great Entremesa. Join us on Tuesday December 7^th in the Oak Room West at 11:30. To register to attend, please call 357-4753.

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By Brenda Mitchell

This Thanksgiving issue of the Women’s Times gives me the opportunity to express appreciation for all of the support of and participation in the Women’s Studies Program this fall. We especially want to thank the following people for their contributions:

Dorry Altman, Natalie Basil, Jeremy Beeler, Lynn Botelho, Wendy Carse, Chris Catalfamo, Miriam Chaiken, Bernadette Cole-Slaughter, Susan Comfort, Karen Dandurand, Marie Elder, Rena Fowler, Rosemary Gido, Jackie Gorman, Harvey Holz, Lea Masiello, Marcia McCarty, Theresa McDevitt, Maureen McHugh, Patrick Murphy, Kristen Rees, Darlene Richardson, Rosaly Roffman, Karen Schmidt, Tom Slater, Helen Soltis, Sharon Sowa, Theresa Smith, Kay Snyder, Mark Staszkiewicz, Connie Sutton, Carolyn Thompson, Dorothy Vogel, Veronica Watson, Susan Wheatley, Lorraine Wilson, Nanci Wilson, Dawn Woodland, Caroll Young.

We are looking forward to an exciting schedule of programs for Spring loosely organized around the theme of "Women and Work/Working Women." The "Entremesa" lunchtime colloquium series will include panels and discussions on topics such as "What Women’s Studies Offers Men," "Women and Work in Indiana County," "Chilly Climate for Women on Campus," "Breaking the Glass Ceiling," and more. WS is co- sponsoring a 6 O’Clock Series Speaker, Margot Mifflin, author of Bodies of Subversion: A Secret History of Women and Tattoo. Her visit is co-sponsored by the Office for Social Equity and the Liberal Studies Program. Mifflin’s book "clearly positions female tattoo artists and collectors as ‘renegades of the flesh,’ women who push the boundaries of convention by manipulating the meaning of their bodies." She will speak on March 20.

Thanks again and best wishes for a safe and happy holiday.

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Sue Coe makes her living as an illustrator, and her works are routinely displayed in The New York Times, The Village Voice, The New Yorker, Time, Newsweek, and Rolling Stone Magazine. She does not refer to herself as an artist, however, but as a "cultural worker". Employing the techniques of fine art, she documents the violence inherent in a wide array of political topics, ranging from sexism, racism and homophobia to animal rights and the degradation of the environment.

Coe's involvement with political art began in the early seventies, when she started work with the volunteer association, "Workshop for People's Art," which produced posters and pamphlets for community groups. Since then, she has produced a multitude of artworks and authored and illustrated 5 books, How to Commit Suicide in South Africa, X (the Life and Times of Malcolm X), Police State, Porkopolis, and Dead Meat, in which social activism, in its various manifestations, have been central.

Raised next to a Liverpool abattoir, Sue Coe has the courage to confront the butchery of the slaughterhouse in her work. In Dead Meat, published in 1996, Coe documents the graphic violence she witnessed during her visits to slaughterhouses over a ten-year period. Expressive illustrations of the reality of meat processing are accompanied by text detailing her experience. In Hydroclipper, Coe visually records slaughterhouse machinery, while describing in text the horrifying result of its use. In Downed Cow, Coe records the death of an individual animal:

"The knocking pen is not empty, in the space at the bottom I can see the breathing of an animal. I move cautiously to peer over the top of the steel box... Inside is a cow. She has not been stunned and has slipped and fallen in the blood. The men have gone to lunch and left her... Once she raises her head enough to look outside the box, but seeing the hanging corpses, she falls back again... When I look again, I see the weight of her body has forced milk from her udders, and it starts to flow in a small stream, mingling with the blood. Blood and milk go down the drain."

When asked if her work is negative, Coe replies, "To me, it's not negative to reveal reality." In Newsweek, she paraphrases a Polish poem about the Warsaw ghetto to emphasize our nescience concerning our contemporary brutality: AIDS, war, violence towards women, and killing animals for food: "When he was a young man, he'd go up in a Ferris wheel with his girlfriend. At the top he's see the Warsaw ghetto and the horror of it. But by the time he got to the bottom, he'd forgotten all about it." The work of Sue Coe reminds of that which we would like to forget.

Sue Coe's works are included in the collections of The Whitney Museum of American Art, The Hirshhorn Museum, The Library of Congress, The National Museum of Women in the Arts, The Smithsonian National Museum of American Art, and The Museum of Modern Art. She will be presenting a slide lecture on her work November 30 at 8:00 in McVitty Auditorium, Sprowls Hall. She will be on campus acting as Juror for the Graduate Art Association's Annual Juried Exhibition, which will be showing January 20 - February 20, 2000 at the University Museum in Sutton Hall.

HYDROCLIPPER

"My sister and I waited with the hogs outside the slaughterhouse. Some hogs were having heart attacks... At the side of the slaughterhouse, I look up to the roof and see something so unbelievable I think I'm hallucinating. Gushing out of a large pipe -- about five feet across -- is a thick porridge of blood and intestines."

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