Dr. Julie Shayne publishes a piece about the power of students鈥 voices
Dr. Shayne, Teaching Professor in Gender, Women & Sexuality Studies, and Global Studies has a new piece in Ms. Magazine online. The piece is titled 鈥溾楽haring Our Stories Loosens the Grip they Have on Us鈥: Watching Students Claim Voice to Power鈥 and .In it she discusses her class 鈥淭he Power of Feminist Writing鈥 and how it enabled students to transform trauma and pain into empowerment and Voice. The class is the quintessential flip of the sexist 鈥渁ngry feminist鈥 narrative. Yes, as matter of fact, we are often angry. Frequently because our pain and trauma are both ignored and worse yet, blamed on us. In this class, students were told through one reading and guest after another: I hear you; it is not your fault. In the end, validation softens anger.
The class culminates with beautifully curated feminist writing portfolios that scream Voice and empowerment, some of which while others are too private to share. In most cases the experience was cathartic for the students and Dr. Shayne. Being in a class where no one shamed us for being angry or questioned our pain resulted in a space where we translated formerly self-blamed pain and trauma from brewing frustration into joy-filled-anger.
If you are interested in taking this class, Dr. Shayne teaches it every other year and it will likely be offered again in spring 2026. after the first time she taught it and a story UWB ran about the class just as it was launching.