04-16-2006, 06:47 AM
<b>Public intellectual</b> to visit CHC <!--emo&:roll--><img src='style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/ROTFL.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='ROTFL.gif' /><!--endemo-->
The Clark Honors College is preparing for a visit next week from public intellectual and <b>Trinity College professor Vijay Prashad</b>. <!--emo&:omg--><img src='style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/omg.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='omg.gif' /><!--endemo-->
This term Prof. Fracchia assigned Dr. Prashadâs book âEverybody Was Kung Fu Fighting: Afro-Asian Connections and the Myth of Cultural Purityâ for his colloquium HC 444H: Visions of Freedom III. Iâm in the class and have started reading the book, and one of the first things I noticed was that it seemed to fill in a missing link between things I learned in the CHC introductory history sequence about slavery and trade and things Iâve learned in CHC colloquia about race relations in America today. Prof. Mitchell, who co-organized Dr. Prashadâs visit with Prof. Gajarawala, said Dr. Prashadâs work fits well with the CHCâs current goal of making its curriculum more globally oriented.
Dr. Prashad will speak in Prof. Fracchiaâs class on Monday. On Tuesday from 12 p.m. to 2 p.m., Dr. Prashad will discuss the same book with other CHC students. To get in on that seminar, contact Prof. Mitchell (dnm@uoregon.edu) or Prof. Gajarawala (toral@uoregon.edu).
Dr. Prashad will give a lecture to the general community in the Schnitzer Art Museum at 4 p.m. on Tuesday, analyzing the limitations of ethnic studies programs at universities.
On Wednesday, in the EMU Fir Room from 10 a.m. to 11:30 a.m., <b>Dr. Prashad will give a workshop for students on the âcorporatization and racializationâ of the university system</b>. Once I had this phrase broken down into its components for me, it sounded a lot more exciting. Prof. Mitchell explained that corporatization refers to the idea that universities are becoming more bureaucratic, with the results that students are seen as customers who need to get their moneyâs worth from their purchase of tuition rather than as people seeking to learn, and that the types of research conducted are constrained by the types of research that bring in grant money. The term racialization in the university setting refers to the idea that the establishment of multicultural centers tends to, rather than bring people together, devolve into checkboxes on a form. Again, RSVP to Prof. Mitchell or Prof. Gajarawala if you intend on coming to this event.
Prof. Fracchia described Dr. Prashadâs work as âa critique of multiculturalism from the left,â which is distinctive because in society multiculturalism is generally portrayed as favored by the left and criticized by the right. Multiculturalism is based on the idea of cultural essentialism, which holds that there is one black culture, one white culture, one brown culture and so on. Prof. Fracchia said the idea of polyculturalism, like <b>Dr. Prashadâs work, defines less clear boundaries between specific groups of people, but allows for thinking about issues of race and culture in more nuanced and complex terms.</b>
There is some possibility that the CHC will host more speakers in the future; Prof. Mitchell encourages students with suggestions for speakers to contact her.
The Clark Honors College is preparing for a visit next week from public intellectual and <b>Trinity College professor Vijay Prashad</b>. <!--emo&:omg--><img src='style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/omg.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='omg.gif' /><!--endemo-->
This term Prof. Fracchia assigned Dr. Prashadâs book âEverybody Was Kung Fu Fighting: Afro-Asian Connections and the Myth of Cultural Purityâ for his colloquium HC 444H: Visions of Freedom III. Iâm in the class and have started reading the book, and one of the first things I noticed was that it seemed to fill in a missing link between things I learned in the CHC introductory history sequence about slavery and trade and things Iâve learned in CHC colloquia about race relations in America today. Prof. Mitchell, who co-organized Dr. Prashadâs visit with Prof. Gajarawala, said Dr. Prashadâs work fits well with the CHCâs current goal of making its curriculum more globally oriented.
Dr. Prashad will speak in Prof. Fracchiaâs class on Monday. On Tuesday from 12 p.m. to 2 p.m., Dr. Prashad will discuss the same book with other CHC students. To get in on that seminar, contact Prof. Mitchell (dnm@uoregon.edu) or Prof. Gajarawala (toral@uoregon.edu).
Dr. Prashad will give a lecture to the general community in the Schnitzer Art Museum at 4 p.m. on Tuesday, analyzing the limitations of ethnic studies programs at universities.
On Wednesday, in the EMU Fir Room from 10 a.m. to 11:30 a.m., <b>Dr. Prashad will give a workshop for students on the âcorporatization and racializationâ of the university system</b>. Once I had this phrase broken down into its components for me, it sounded a lot more exciting. Prof. Mitchell explained that corporatization refers to the idea that universities are becoming more bureaucratic, with the results that students are seen as customers who need to get their moneyâs worth from their purchase of tuition rather than as people seeking to learn, and that the types of research conducted are constrained by the types of research that bring in grant money. The term racialization in the university setting refers to the idea that the establishment of multicultural centers tends to, rather than bring people together, devolve into checkboxes on a form. Again, RSVP to Prof. Mitchell or Prof. Gajarawala if you intend on coming to this event.
Prof. Fracchia described Dr. Prashadâs work as âa critique of multiculturalism from the left,â which is distinctive because in society multiculturalism is generally portrayed as favored by the left and criticized by the right. Multiculturalism is based on the idea of cultural essentialism, which holds that there is one black culture, one white culture, one brown culture and so on. Prof. Fracchia said the idea of polyculturalism, like <b>Dr. Prashadâs work, defines less clear boundaries between specific groups of people, but allows for thinking about issues of race and culture in more nuanced and complex terms.</b>
There is some possibility that the CHC will host more speakers in the future; Prof. Mitchell encourages students with suggestions for speakers to contact her.