This first week I read about the oppression of women of color in academia, where the author Valverde shares her experience in the world of academia through the process of getting her tenure. I feel several conflicting emotions while reading through; infuriation at the various parties trying to get in her way and just the sheer amount of injustice that she faced. I have always been a firm believer in the story of the person that puts their face in the dirt and works to achieve their aspirations and in a way that is the extended version of that. I don't think that losing a child, dying or even suffering betrayal after betrayal should come standard as part of being a minority with ambition, but that can be part of the journey, throughout anyone's lifetime they have the ability to reflect and assess their options, Valverde chose to continue her journey as she thought was best and accepted the consequences. That being said I think her words are valuable in that they serve as a warning but also to empower women of color and ensure that it is possible to excel in the field of their choosing. However, I have very little context as to the tenure process in the case of others, for example, we would see the white male’s experience in order to compare see what the differences are. My question is this true oppression, a trend we see through the women of color in academia, or office politics played wrong? (not to oversimplify the issue of course)
Valverde, K. C. (2013). Fight the Tower: A Call to Action for Women of Color in Academia. Seattle Journal for Social Justice, 12, 367.
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