That little blue house on University Avenue: the one with the string lights draped over the porch, glitter everywhere and condoms and dental dams in the front foyer? Do you know the one? Oh yeah, the Dub, the WRC, sometimes referred to as the house of white feminists.
We acknowledge it. Perspectives from the campus community are valid and critical to how the Dub grows and becomes the best and most appropriate ally that it can be. We are here to serve St.Lawrence University, and we can be better.
St. Lawrence students live in an enclosed, semi-permeable bubble on campus. For many students, it is believed that their campus is safe and secure from the spears of racism, classism, sexism, etc. But, those who come from a place of privilege rarely bother to notice the torrents of microaggressions that permeate our classrooms, dining halls, and even our residence halls that which are felt by those who are not in privileged positions. Many privileged people don’t bother to take a step back and think about the certain immunity that their select few are granted on the mere basis of their positionality.
Some of the prime missions of the DUB community are to foster a safe space on campus, promote gender equality, safe sex practices, and provide resources for those who need them. Another is to promote intersectionality within feminism. We want to make sure that everyone gets to contribute to our discussions, events, and workshops, regardless of one’s given experience, race, ethnicity, creed, gender, sexual orientation, etc. In essence, the woman of color’s voice should matter as much as the white man’s. Feminism is also about the equality for all people. It is not about being partial to one specific group.
We know that the DUB is currently labeled as a super exclusive, white feminist group on campus that serves a certain type of SLU student. As members of the DUB, we admit that, in the past, we did not actively practice intersectionality. Self-admittedly, we knew the term’s basic, textbook definition but didn’t fully grasp why it was a problem, and why certain clubs on our campus were struggling to address it. But now, we are focusing to comprehend and actively practice intersectionality. We still may not have it nailed down entirely, but that does not mean that we will stop trying.
St.Lawrence boasts about its students having critical thinking skills. Let’s test that. Be critical of our theme house. Be critical of our campus. Be critical of your professors. Be critical of how and what you project onto this shared campus. Back at 3 University Avenue, we will be critical and consistently hold ourselves accountable to the mission of intersectional feminism.
As Amandla Stenberg, the black activist and actress, said on the topic of intersectionality, “Bigger than you or me. Discussions are healthy. Ignorance is not.” St. Lawrence, it’s time for a wake-up call.