Following calls by Seattle University student groups for a “physical space for healing,” the school’s Office of Multicultural Affairs hosted an event aiming to deconstruct “white feminism.”
After a drag show took place at the university, the school’s student newspaper, The Spectator, used a risque photo from the event as the cover photo for a newspaper edition. Then, university President Father Stephen Sundborg reportedly told the paper he was “very, very embarrassed and ashamed” of the photograph.
On the heels of the incident, a coalition of student groups dubbed the “Gender Justice Alliance” then circulated a petition making several demands, including a “physical space for healing” and gender-inclusive housing.
Now, one of the student groups involved in the coalition, the Gender Justice Center, has partnered with Seattle University’s Office of Multicultural Affairs to deconstruct “white feminism.”
On April 26, the two organizations hosted an event titled, “Vanilla Ice Cream Social: Deconstructing White Feminism.” According to the event’s Facebook page, “Vanilla Ice Cream Social is an opportunity for people to deconstruct white feminism and understand an intersectional model of feminism that strives for collective liberation.”
“Please share space with us as we discuss this important topic! This event is open to everyone as white feminism impacts us all, including people of color,” the description continues, and states that the event is a part of an educational series titled, “Questioning Whiteness.” Following the social, the Gender Justice Center posted several pictures of the event on Facebook.
“Thank you to everyone who came to the Vanilla Ice Cream social to talk about deconstructing White feminism. Getting to the root causes is key to sustainable solutions,” one post read, picturing event attendees holding signs reading, “Unlearn Hierarchy: White supremacy Cis-Hetero Normativity,” “#genderjusticesu,” and “Decolonize your mind.”
“The process of learning, unlearning, and relearning is a key part to structural changes and shifting frameworks. Our policies and culture need to be survivor centered instead of upholding the patriarchy!” another post regarding the event proclaims.
This isn’t the first time that Seattle University’s Office of Multicultural Affairs has hosted events on questioning whiteness. In October 2017, the school department hosted an event titled, “Moral Mondays at Seattle U: Questioning Whiteness.”
“We will be making a statement to support our SU community in discussions around what Whiteness is and how our society is set up to promote and value whiteness above all else,” the event’s description states. Students and staff were urged to wear “all white” each Monday.
Likewise, on April 23, the office hosted its third annual “SYMBOLIC Confederate Flag Burning,” by a flagpole on campus, and has even created a Tumblr blog dedicated to “questioning whiteness.”
