January Blog Post

Taylor Reeves

February 2, 2017

Comm 160

January Blog Post

A sentence from Ann Russo’s “Between Speech and Silence: Reflections on Accountability” that really resonated with me is “Stepping back from speaking and stepping up to active listening is one method of undermining the presumed to be at the center of the conversation, to speak in universals, and to determine the direction of the conversation and agenda.” Like Russo said earlier in the paper, being in college she felt that she had the power to ‘speak out in whatever context she chose’ based on her experience and knowledge (pg. 34). But, she realized that it’s equally important to be an active listener as well as someone who speaks out against social injustices.

“Active listening implies an openness to a more collective process, one in which the most privileged are not at the center, and one in which our ideas and ourselves are open to modification, change, and transformation” (pg. 36). It’s vital that white feminists listen to what women of color have to say about their struggles and give them room to speak up and speak out. For a long time feminist spaces were dominated by white females and women of color felt like they couldn’t speak up or that what they had to say wasn’t being heard or validated. “I am tired of feeling that my words were given space, but they might as well have not been said because they didn’t get built upon or incorporated into the conversation” (Lynet Uttal 1990). 

Further on in the paper, Russo talks about a conference she went to "Women of Color Against Violence" that she had volunteered to be a part of, she struggled because her (being a white female) and other male allies were deliberately not part of certain aspects of the conference because it was mainly geared to women of color. She talked about how she felt left out and felt like an 'outsider', but then realized that this is what women of color have been feeling like this entire time. I think the best lesson or message to take out of Russo's writing is that being an active listener and having an open mind is just as powerful as being someone who is loud and speaks out at all the rallies, protests, conferences, etc.