Springe direkt zu Inhalt

Towards Anti-Racist and Anti-Sexist Teaching at the JFKI - Workshop 3

17.06.2022 | 13:00 - 17:00

Workshop Series for the Winter and Summer Terms 2021/2022


The main aim of the workshop series is to combat epistemic injustice and to promote intersectional understanding of anti-racist and anti-sexist teaching in the classroom among faculty and graduate students at the John F. Kennedy Institute for North American Studies (JFKI), Freie Universität Berlin. There will be two topical workshops and one additional session for students to report back on whether workshop measures have been successfully implemented by (tenured) faculty and staff. The training is specifically tailored to an academic setting in which American Studies faculty and doctoral students are already versed in central concepts and terminologies.


Workshop 1: Overcoming Epistemic Violence and Creating Space for Epistemic Disobedience in the Classroom

The first session will address the idea that using racist and sexist language perpetuates racism and sexism in the classroom. With this understanding in mind, the second goal is to interrogate some of the instructors’ teaching material while also raising questions about methodology: How can we teach material that contains racist and sexist language? Which steps need to be taken to make sure that racism and sexism in the classroom will not be perpetuated by the teaching material used?
In addressing such questions, the workshop will enable participants to identify instances of epistemic violence within the material chosen for discussion and readings. Participants will also work towards practicing epistemic care: reflecting knowledge that the 'objects' of study have written about their own subjecthood. This involves acknowledging that people who experience discrimination are experts in their experience and have written copious academic texts on how they wish to address their subject positions.
Date February 18th (Friday)
Time 1-5 p.m. CET (Berlin, Munich)
Venue WebEx
Language English


Workshop 2: Anti-Racist Redaction and Syllabus Construction

The second workshop will focus on questions of praxis, including, but not limited to, redaction and syllabus construction. A praxis of epistemic care calls on instructors to think about the waysin which they can construct their syllabi with an eye to anti-racism and anti-sexism. Likewise, our ethics of publishing should commit to the principles of epistemic care. How does one practice editing, redaction, etc., accordingly? What difference does it make for students to be taught by faculty committed to respecting the significance of positionality?
Date April 22nd (Friday)
Time 1-5 p.m. CET (Berlin, Munich)
Venue JFKI
Language English


Workshop 3: Reflection in Action: Developing Reflective Practice in Academia

The third workshop focuses on addressing what challenges have come up for instructors over
the course of the semester as well as student feedback on their experiences in the classroom,
tackling questions of how to sustainably implement reflective, anti-racist and anti-sexist
practices at JFKI.
Date June 17th (Friday)
Time 1-5 p.m. CET (Berlin, Munich)
Venue JFKI
Language English


Trainers*
orchi lohani (neutral/no pronouns/they) is a queer organizer, writer and artist. they mostly work
with community healing, mental health, disability justice and anti-fascism. they are also a
trainer at zsimt (zentrum für soziale inklusion, migration und teilhabe - bildung und beratung
für diskriminierungsfreiheit und diversity).


Robel Afeworki Abay (he/him) is a Black German activist, Queer-feminist and PhD fellow at
the Humboldt University of Berlin: https://zfib.org/de/beteiligte. His participatory PhD
research project critically examines the intersectional relationship between racism and ableism
as discursive and institutionalized practices of difference, discrimination, and dehumanization.
He also gives trainings on the topics of Intersectionality, Diversity, Participatory Research,
Anti-Bias and Anti-Racism at ZSIMT: http://www.zsimt-berlin.de/.

Registration
We are looking forward to meeting you soon! If you have any questions, please do not hesitate
to contact us: Maxi Albrecht, maxi.albrecht@fu-berlin.de, Felix Fischer, felix.fischer@fu-berlin.de,
de, Helen Anne Gibson, helengibson@zedat.fu-berlin.de, Samira Spatzek,
samira.spatzek@fu-berlin.de

To register please contact Verena Specht (frauenbeauftragte@jfki.fu-berlin.de).


This project is organized by John F. Kennedy Institute for North American Studies (JFKI) at
Freie Universität Berlin and is co-sponsored by the Kennedy Institute and the Gender Equality
Office of the JFKI. The impetus for these workshops was––and continues to be–– JFKI Student
Against Racism’s important activism (https://jfkistudentsagainstracism.wordpress.com/).

.

Zeit & Ort

17.06.2022 | 13:00 - 17:00

Online via webex.