what is activism?

Being part of a Gender Department, there are some questions that come up every new academic year. One constant puzzle for gender students/professors is activism and what does it mean for us. The trend at our department is to move away from any activist connotations (activism as in connection to Marxist politics, feminist or queer movement). I have to mention that even if there are some notable exceptions of public intellectuals, active feminists and queer activists at all levels of the academic strict hierarchy, this move away from activism comes from the faculty (which in my particular case  stands for one of the last bastions of postfeminism, commodification of queer/feminist research with no political agenda and neoliberal backlash. This type of approach adds to the fact that being situated in Eastern Europe offers a great opportunity for our white masters/professors and colleagues to other the "uncivilized" students and construct their own neo-colonial subjectivities).

The question of activism came recently in the  LGBT club at our university, where some members asked if they can take part in actions even if they are not activists. Some emails followed debating the issue.

I have to mention that I questioned myself about activism and what does it mean for me. I still don't have an answer for that but I was reading a very interesting position by  Matt Kailey, a transman who blogs at Tranifesto.

He was answering a burning question in the feminist/queer blogosphere: "Is blogging activism?” but went further than that by offering a large definition for activism.

"Sometimes the word “activist” can be more than a little scary and overwhelming. Sometimes we come to a conference and we see people up at the podium speaking, or we see people giving workshops and we read their bios and see all the things they've done, and we look at all the various leaders in each of our communities, and we think, “I can't possibly do what they're doing. I wouldn't even know where or how to start. I don't have the time, the energy, the resources, the skills, or even the desire.” 

Or we think, “I can't be out where I live or where I work. There's no way I can speak out or be visible like that.” Or, as an ally, we think, “I'm not a member of that community. Will they resent me or see me as an outsider? And how can I represent a community that I really don't belong to?” 

And then we just give up. 

But we don't have to give up. We all have a part to play, and it doesn't have to involve traveling around the globe giving speeches, or writing books, or being on TV, or holding a political office, or sitting on boards of directors, or running organizations. Those are all very worthy and much-needed activities, and the people who do those things are absolutely essential for our community. But the truth is that we are all absolutely essential for our community. And we are all activists - every single one of you here today is an activist. 

If you are GLBTIQ or go by a different label but identify as a member of that community, you are an activist every morning when you get out of bed, whether you want to be or not, just by living your life. Every time you come out to someone, you are an activist. 

If you're trans or have a “non-standard body,” every time you use a public restroom labeled “Male” or “Female,” you are an activist. If you're gay or lesbian or bi or queer, every time you go on a date or kiss your partner, you are an activist. 

If you're an ally, every time you use the correct pronoun when referring to a trans person, you are an activist. Every time you correct someone who uses the wrong pronoun or who makes an inappropriate comment about a member of the GLBTIQ community, you are an activist. 

Activism doesn't have to be big and bold and visible to everyone. Activism takes many forms and can be as simple as treating someone else with the respect that they are due. It can be as simple as welcoming a same-sex couple into your neighborhood or treating a transsexual store clerk like you would treat any other store clerk that you were dealing with - no better and no worse. When you make the decision, every day of your life, to treat everyone who you encounter in your life as a “normal” person, a deserving person, and an equal person - you are an activist. 

It's that simple. Anyone can be an activist. 

When asked how to create a legacy, Ethel Percy Andrus, the founder of AARP, the American Association of Retired Persons, said, “Do what you can, with what you have, where you are today.” 

And that's how each one of us can create a legacy of activism that absolutely shakes the foundations of our two-dimensional, either/or, binary society. 

You start where you are. And you measure your success in increments, by small victories. I've considered myself a trans activist for the last nine years, and I measure my own success by increments, by small victories, by the little inroads that I'm able to make and by the minds here and there that I'm able to change. 

Start giving yourself credit for all the small things that you do - and keep doing them. Pat yourself on the back for all the “small victories” that you have - and keep having them. Acknowledge all the incremental changes that you are making in the world every day - and keep making them. 

What you're doing now may be as far as you'll ever go, and that's fine. You're already making a difference. 

Yes. Blogging is activism. The world is watching, reading, and listening. And if you can change people's minds, or even make them think about another possibility, or realize that another point of view exists, then as a blogger activist, you have done your job."

 From this point of view, to escape activism takes quite a big effort when you are already involved in queer/feminst/gender work. I almost admire those that are trying so hard to keep their academic purity untouched by the abjection of activism.It must be an exhausting struggle that is perceived as necessary to prove yourself academically worthy and masterful based on the assumption that academic work is not political (even if being nonpolitical directly supports the status quo and the hegemonic conservative discourse).