Supplemental Reading: NYT Opinionator interview with bell hooks

[Katelyn, Our Shared Shelf Moderator]

First, I was inspired by all of you to find supplemental materials for us to read. Especially because so many have had trouble finding the book or have a long wait before they can begin reading (I've not received my book yet, either!), I hope that this might provide an opportunity for everyone to get involved in conversation whether or not they've started this month's read! I encourage all of you to create topics with any other supplemental reading material or videos you can find, as it may provide more avenues for involvement :) (For example, someone might start a thread for the New School lectures that have been brought up in a few different conversations)

I want to share this link with all of you to an interview that bell hooks gave with George Yancey for The New York Times Opinionator column. It deals mostly with race, but is still of course relevant to OSS's focus on feminism, plus it may be informative for all of us when we do eventually get to read All About Love; New Visions.

Here is the link: http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/...

I'd love to hear all of your thoughts! I enjoyed reading it and will share my thoughts later on.

[MeerderWörter]

So, it appears that I'm the first to share my thoughts:

It's full of spoilers for those who haven't read the interview, so be careful.

(view spoiler)[
First, I really like this expression: imperialist white supremacist capitalist patriarchy

It shows all the things which oppress human beings if they share not one of these expressions. What we fight is condensed in this listing, as exact as necessary.
It shows furthermore that this is an interlocked system - while not everybody of us is fighting one of the terms as their number one oppressor, it shows, that everyone of us is fighting against all of the expressions, but not in the same order: Some of us fight capitalism the most, while others fight patriarchy the most, but we fight against both, because they are linked in some ways and oppress us, but not equally high.


I have nothing against humour, as long as nobody is dumped because of it. That's why I talk to a lot of people, so that I can discover which form of humour is insulting to different people, and omit this humour in the future.


I think it is very important to be as inclusive and thoughtful as possible as feminists and bell hooks has helped white women to see over the edge of the plate, as we in Austria like to say. She has helped them to make race an issue of feminism, and thus feminism became more inclusive. Sometimes, we need the view of somebody not involved, in order to improve. That's what bell hooks did, and I'm grateful for that.


I also think it is very good to remember the picture of a pebble, that is tossed in the water. It may not do much in the beginning, but the waves reach far farther than the stone itself. So, even if we can achieve little, it inspires other people to further work on our achievements, to make them bigger in the long term. And it is a good question to ask yourself:" What would xy do?", when you want to achieve something and work on that in daily life. bell hooks thinks of Martin Luther King Jr, I think of Emma, other people have other idols...


Bell Hooks says she reads a book a day - how she does it, I don't know, but with this privilege comes great insight. As Emma said in the inaugural speech of the HeforShe Arts Week: You can't unread a good book. It will shape you and therefore stay with you forever. Consequently, if one reads a lot of different books about different topics from different perspectives, one can really gain insight and knowlegde in these topics. And knowledge is might. I think, every feminist should come in touch with many different topics from many different perspectives, in order to not have to rely on others and have their own opinion.
So books are just perfect for that to achieve.


I completely agree with Bell Hooks that thinking critical is a way of healing. Asking questions and answering them for oneself is a very good way to heal, especially when it comes to different ways of living or living with a secret. It can prove that one is not mad, that one is not responsible for the circumstances...


Well, I cannot say what will keep me grounded in my life, 'cause I'm still in my teens, but logic, knowledge and a sharp mind have kept me so far, so maybe these are the tools on which I can relate to not overheat in the future as well.


I fancy that she writes so that other people can work with her work. When they mark and really use the book, that it is visible. She wants to help people, I think, and that is perfect way as a writer. She calls it "working with the work." Perfect phrase. My mum does it all the time. With different colours and links to other books.


For me, teaching is more to gain knowledge in people, so that they are capable of freeing themselves. For me,t teaching is only related to loving, when you love somebody and you want them to give the power to free themselves, so you teach them. So, for me, the understanding of love and the connection to teaching is different from Bell Hooks' belief, but I do believe that love can heal. It is the greatest power we have.


For me, love and curousness is antidotal to estrangement. I think it's sad that bell hooks is so against mental health, people suffering from it sail on a misty and stormy sea, it's not easy for them. She makes them looking weird, and that's sad. People with mental health issues are people in great need, and she just pushes them in the corner for the insane.


I share her opinion that anger is, as she says: compost for your garden. Feelings are energy and if you think in this terms, you can use your anger and direct it at the topic you want to change - to change, not to destroy. In fact, I believe we can use our emotions as compost for our garden, so that we change the topic and can feel the emotions again if they are pleasing, or that we do not have to feel them again if they are not pleasing.

I must say that, as a feminist, I think everybody should have the same possibilites; so, of course, black people should have the same possibilites for treatment as white people. But they do not, and that is a problem.

I am alarmed and shocked by the statement that black people want to live in black-only spaces because they do not feel safe. That could give right-wing extremists a cause to reinduce segregation, with the explanation "that even black people want it."
I think it's horrible to not feel safe in front of the police, if you didn't do anything against the law.


I further believe that resistance can only work if you consider your home to be a safe place. Only if you feel safe in your own home, you can try to rebel against nuisances in the outer world.

I like that buddhism and feminism is still challenging her. I assume she wants to say that she still thinks critical about it, and that is something I admire. She finds aspects of it for the daily life, and still it didn't become a routine to use it unreflected. At least, that's what I read in her statement.
(hide spoiler)]

I have to say that I am not a native speaker, and if anything is not in plain language, feel free to ask me. I don't want you to have a false impression of me, due to linguistic errors. I am really looking forward to reading All About Love: New Visions since it seems to me that I can broaden my mind a lot due to it, which I love.