In the recent article, published in the Journal of Gender Studies, Dr. Rohrer exposes the ways in which the bankrupt Boy Scouts of American “has been broadly bankrupt from the beginning.”

EWU Gender, Women’s & Sexuality Studies presents for spring 2021 Contemporary Issues in Feminist Research, featuring faculty and staff presenting research in their disciplines from a feminist perspective.

From Classroom to Community – Mujeres in Action

Del salón de clases a la comunidad – Mujeres in Action

Domestic and sexual violence have been identified as a major public health problem by the WHO and the UN. In the US, sexual violence, stalking, and intimate partner violence are serious public health problems. Multiple forms of abuse are experienced by diverse individuals and relationships, crossing class lines, gender identities, religious affiliations, age, race and ethnicity, immigrant status, and disability. The Latinx community is not immune to this type of violence and has increased risks of harm due to racism, xenophobia, and systematic marginalization. In Spokane, an EWU alumna, Hanncel Sanchez, combined her academic knowledge and personal dedication into action for the Latinx community. Mujeres in Action (M.i.A.) was founded in 2018 and has evolved from a course research paper into a thriving non-profit organization serving survivors of domestic and sexual violence. M.i.A. is an extraordinary case of putting theory into action for the common good.

Anti-Racist /Anti-Ableist Classroom Practices

May 11

This workshop examines classroom practices and policies pertaining to neurodivergent students (such as those with autism or ADHD) through the lens of anti-racism/anti-ableism and encourages participants to consider how they might adapt their classes to incorporate these concepts. Participants will first learn about anti-racist concepts and how they link to anti-ableism and then generate ideas about how to apply anti-racist/anti-ableist practices to a specific case about a neurodivergent student with ADHD. Participants will also learn about universal design for learning (UDL) concepts.

Despite a year that ended in a virtual environment, the Women’s and Gender Studies Annual Report is filled with videos, images, and stories of our 2019-2020 academic year. Please click the image below to read the report. This is our last annual report from before we got our sexy new name. We are now Gender, Women’s & Sexuality Studies!

As part of Eastern Washington University’s commitment to address ever-changing regional, national and global environments, the university is thrilled to announce a new name and major for a popular interdisciplinary program that fosters activism, leadership and feminist analysis.

The new program name and major – Gender, Women’s & Sexuality Studies (GWSS) – comes after an extensive curriculum assessment that included a field review, surveys of current students and alumni, research of model programs nationally, and an internal curriculum review. The GWSS major offers new courses and personalized degree options to better address student needs in these changing environments.

“I am very pleased that the GWSS faculty are continuing their long practice of evaluating and thoughtfully responding to the latest in model programming,” says EWU interim President David May. “This is the kind of innovation in curriculum that shows how we can be responsive to what our students are asking for – and exactly what Eastern needs right now.”
The Gender, Women’s & Sexuality Studies program was founded by dedicated faculty and students and has a decades-long history of engagement. Following national trends, it was known as Women’s Studies from 1974-2007 and Women’s and Gender Studies from 2007 until now. In addition to a new name, the new major comes with many changes, but one thing that is not changing is its dedication to social justice and community engagement.

“The name of a program is often the first impression with constituents and the broader community,” says Jonathan Anderson, dean of the EWU College of Social Sciences. “Evolution of the curriculum and the new name converge in response to changing societal needs and will catalyze our program to be on the leading edge.”

The new GWSS major follows some of the best models in types of courses offered, expansion of student choice, and scaffolding that helps students successfully achieve their educational goals. It brings our sexuality/queer studies courses into our core curriculum, thus demonstrating EWU’s commitment to the field, following student requests, and in keeping with national trends.

GWSS Program Director, Judy Rohrer, PhD, says, “We put ‘gender’ first in our new name because it is a more capacious category than ‘women.’ We have offered queer/sexuality studies courses for some time. We are excited to now proudly highlight these fields in our sexy new name.”

Whether students hope to learn more about power and privilege, grapple with issues of justice, or cultivate their cultural competency to become more desirable job candidates—GWSS helps them meet personal, professional and educational goals.

Find out more details about our new major or click the image below to read our one-sheet major announcement below.

Judy Rohrer, PhD reminds us in an Inlander commentary, “There are no shortcuts to fundamental structural change, no shortcuts to ending oppressive systems, no shortcuts to holding life as precious.”

Judy Rohrer, PhD reminds us, “Before we act as accomplices, we need to listen. And I mean really listen hard, especially to young leaders of color.”

An article by our director, Judy Rohrer, PhD, titled “COVID-19 Reveals Viral Discrimination, Higher Ed Should Pay Attention” was published by “Diverse Issues in Higher Education” this week.

Rohrer writes, “People are still saying “the virus doesn’t discriminate,” in spite of all the evidence to the contrary. We are not equally “all in this together.” The virus is hitting vulnerable populations the hardest—our elderly, those with underlying health conditions, unhoused people, Natives, Black and Brown communities, and especially those living at any of these intersections. They are the people whose lives are even more at risk as states open up. The White supremacist masculinity on display in the “Reopen America” rallies is not lost on them…

Eres Mi Otro Yo: Storytelling from the Borderlands

by

Judy Rohrer

I want to tell a story about recognition, misrecognition, identification, disidentification. I want to tell a story about “them,” that I am increasingly realizing is a story about me, about us. I want to tell a story about experience, genealogy, memory – a story from both my heart and mind, since their separation is a fiction. I want to tell a story about now, that is also about yesterday, and tomorrow. I want to tell a story to help me consider how I recognize my ancestors and my kin, and how they recognize me. My story traverses four scenes. It begins and ends en la frontera, in the borderlands, Tijuana, Mexico…

The Women’s and Gender Studies Program and the Women’s and Gender Education Center are the lead organizers of the Activist In Residence (AIR) program on the EWU campus.

For a seventh year, AIR will bring an activist to campus to work with EWU students, staff, faculty, and community members during winter quarter of 2020.

Meet the 2020 Activist In Residence

Lili Navarrete immigrated to Spokane with her family from Mexico City in 1988. She graduated from Eastern Washington University with a B.A. in International Affairs and minors in Economics and Business Administration. Advocacy is central to her career. She is the Director of Public Affairs and Raíz at Planned Parenthood of Greater Washington and North Idaho where she fights for reproductive rights, immigrants, and marginalized communities. She is the Vice President of the Hispanic Business/Professional Association and was recently appointed by Governor Inslee as a Commissioner on Hispanic Affairs. As a member of the Spokane Immigrant Rights Coalition and the Washington Immigration Solidarity Network, she helped steer passage of the Reproductive Health Care Access For All Act and fights against racial profiling in Spokane.

• Jan. 29 – Immigration Activism Now! La Bestia Film and Panel Discussion
• Feb. 5 – Immigration Activism is for Everyone: Finding Your Place in the Movement
• Feb. 12 – Coalition Building to Make Lasting Change
• Feb. 19 – Diving Deeper: Using Data to Address Health Disparities Among Our Immigrant Neighbors
• Feb. 26 – Transitioning from Ally to Accomplice en el Movimiento
• Mar. 4 – Lobbying to Shape Public Policy

The EWU Women’s & Gender Studies presents for Winter 2020 Contemporary Issues in Feminist Research, featuring faculty and staff presenting research in their disciplines from a feminist perspective.

Download the Winter 2020 Flyer

Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women: History, Federal Indian Law, and Structural Discrimination

Wednesday, Jan. 29

Noon to 12:50 p.m., 207 Monroe Hall

Thousands of Native women and girls have died and disappeared from tribal lands, rural communities, and cities in the last three decades without official explanation. We need to understand how social structures have worked to devalue the lives of indigenous women and girls.  Tribal people are impacted by structural discrimination and bias in schools and legal systems. Examples of historical trauma include grief and loss of loved ones due to war, boarding schools, foster homes, forced assimilation, and inadequate health care. Native Americans also have unique mobility patterns as they travel from rural tribal territories to urban centers. Safe travel for Native girls and women involves indicators of health and risk factors. These unique mobility patterns, combined with the complicated jurisdictional scheme of Indian Country, make it difficult to protect Native women. Tribal communities range from urban centers to the large land base reservations with rural, isolated, and unincorporated communities with closed areas and limited or non-existent law enforcement resources to address this need for greater protection.

Searching for Identity: When Students of Mexican Ancestry Study Abroad in Mexico

Tuesday, Mar. 3

Noon to 12:50 p.m., 207 Monroe Hall

Students experience learning and classroom environments differently depending on how they are impacted by the social, political, and historical contexts in which they are learning.

For example, Latinx students on university campuses may experience courses in such disciplines as Chicano Studies, History, and Spanish differently than those without Latinx ancestry, in part because there may be personal and family identity issues at stake.

What happens, then, when Latinx students carry out a study abroad in a country they may see as a place of origin?

We share our findings from Oaxaca, Mexico, following and exploring 13 students’ experiences of identity as well as the perspectives of their host parents, teachers, administrators, and tour guides. The findings implore us to take such issues into account in our study abroad programs.

All of our events are wheelchair accessible and fragrance-free. Contact Lisa Logan at 509.359.2898 or llogan83@ewu.edu three business days in advance to make accommodation arrangements.