It is a strange and wondrous thing to be stepping down as the Coalition President without our annual meeting at CCCC to mark the occasion. I would like to thank all of you for your support as I moved into position as the President—I certainly had no idea when I agreed to the task that we would be moving through such politically turbulent times.
In October, the Advisory Board met and voted to cancel the Coalition’s annual Wednesday SIG. We chose not to call colleagues to meet at 4C18 both in protest of the convention location and to signal our solidarity with colleagues of color under threat in Missouri due to the circumstances that led the NAACP to issue their travel advisory. Simultaneously, we began discussions with and among various ad-hoc committees, the CCCC Task Force on Social Justice and Activism at the Convention, the KC Local Arrangements Committee, and the Coalition membership at large. Throughout, we sought concrete strategies for supporting one another, including ways of mobilizing both on- and off-site in Missouri for the annual convention.
In response to the NAACP Travel Advisory in effect for the state of Missouri, in response to the Coalition’s decision to cancel its appearance at the 4C18 SIG, and subsidized in part by a generous gift from an anonymous donor, the Coalition would like to announce that there are funds available for a small scholarship program this year.
Specifically, these funds are available to support undergraduate and graduate students currently enrolled in an English/Composition or Women’s Studies undergraduate or graduate program in the state of Missouri with demonstrated financial need to travel to other conferences in 2018. Conferences may include (but are not limited to) RSA, WPA, Computers and Writing, Watson, Conference on Community Writing, or Cultural Rhetorics. The Coalition is pleased to offer three (3) travel awards at $300 apiece.
Nominations for scholarships are due by May 1, 2018 to Lisa Mastrangelo (lmastrangelo919@gmail.com).
1) A brief cover letter and cv
2) A brief statement of eligibility/support from a current professor or advisor.
Twenty-five years ago, in “Mapping the Margins,” Kimberlé Crenshaw provided feminist academics and activists with the critical vocabulary they needed to define identity politics at various intersections of sexism and racism, in turn equipping us with structural, political, and representational “frameworks” for thinking about the fraught or hybrid spaces we occupy. Emphasizing frameworks over “totalizing theor[ies] of identity” (Crenshaw 1244), the Coalition’s 2019 Wednesday evening session dedicates itself to an interrogation and exploration of how those intersections look today, and of where intersectionality has led us as a Coalition, and as a field.
We invite proposals for brief critical talks to form the basis of a roundtable discussion on any of the following questions: Read more
As our coalition expands, we are delighted that the number of our awards have also expanded to celebrate the outstanding work of our members at all stages of their careers. Join us as we celebrate the winners recognized the 2017 Feminisms and Rhetorics Conference. Additionally, we hope that you will consider nominating yourself or someone you know for our upcoming awards: the Winifred Bryan Horner Outstanding Book Award and the Feminist Research Grant. Read more
As most of you know, the Executive Committee of CCCC has made the decision to keep the annual conference in Kansas City, Missouri. As you also know, the Coalition hosts their annual SIG on Wednesday night of the Cs. The Coalition has been and remains committed to feminist principles and practices of social justice, and we work to ensure the safety, dignity, and equity of our membership. We realize that it seems as if we have been quiet in response to the Cs Executive Committee decision of September 11. In reality, we have been organizing spaces to hear your voices on the issue.
Coalition and Community Members,
The Coalition of Feminist Scholars in the History of Rhetoric and Composition bases its teaching, scholarship, and activism on feminist commitments to equality, education, and social justice.
In light of recent events, including (but unfortunately not limited to) the incidents leading up to the NAACP travel ban for Missouri and the white supremacist march in Virginia, the Coalition reaffirms its support for non-violent efforts (whether academic, pedagogical, or community-based) to confront systemic racism and the violence it engenders. We stand in solidarity with those engaged in the difficult work of principled action and with the members of our community who are actively seeking opportunities to speak up and out, to march, to write, to call, to teach. Right now is the time to put our rhetorical training to use. We urge everyone, in whatever way they can: Be safe. Be feminist. Be heard.
Please also consider joining us the 2017 Feminisms and Rhetorics: Rhetorics, Rights, and Revolutions, in Dayton, Ohio (where the Dayton Peace Accord was signed). The conference will feature multiple sessions regarding activism in its various forms. Many of the special sessions can be located here: http://femrhet2017.cwshrc.org/
From your CFSHRC Executive Board
How many of us lament our busy lives, and wonder how we can possibly balance the demands of family, work, and even maybe self? This year’s Coalition session arose from conversations and frustrations that Coalition members have expressed over the years—how do we do all that we do and still (maybe) even stay sane?
The Coalition is hosting its annual Wednesday night meeting: 6:30 pm, on Wednesday, March 15 in The Portland Ballroom 252. Read more
When the Coalition was first formed in 1989, our organization was one of the few places that women in the field, especially those doing historical work, could gather to mentor and be mentored, to create and join in community. When the group created the initial bylaws, these bylaws represented this initial formation—women gathering to do historical work.
In the 26 years since the Coalition’s founding, however, as they say, times have changed. We now recognize gender as more fluid, historical work as more than just recovery of white men and women, and mentorship as taking increasing diverse and even technological directions. When we gather, we want to include diverse voices, views, and types of work.
As a result, then-President Jenn Fishman gathered a Mission Task Force to examine the work of the Coalition and the ways in which it was viewed. As a part of this work, Task Force members Wendy Sharer, Kate Navickas, Jess Enoch, Barbara L’Eplattenier, and Risa Applegarth worked to revise the Coalition’s by-laws. The by-laws reflect any organization’s views of both its membership and its relationship to that membership. We are pleased to present a new, up-to-date version of our by-laws, with more inclusive language and an updated view of who we are and what we do. Please view them on our bylaws page.
by Lisa Mastrangelo, CFSHRC President
Greetings all! As the spring semester comes to a close for many of us, the Coalition is entering a new era!
Our biggest announcement:
The Coalition is changing its name! We are very excited to announce that officially starting May 15, 2016, we will be the Coalition of Feminist Scholars in the History of Composition and Rhetoric.
In addition, if you are missing us and thinking that there is no FemRhet this year, don’t despair! Coalition folks will be meeting up at RSA this year. Join us on May 28th from 4-7pm at the Pulse Bar in the lobby of the Marriott.
Last (but of course, not least) we welcome several other women who are joining this leg of the run—new Advisory Board members Pamela VanHaitsma, Suzanne Bordelon, Charlotte Hogg, Mariana Grohowski, Staci Perryman Clark, and Lisa Shaver.
In addition, we have several new members joining us in positions both new and established:
We are so fortunate to have so many people who continue to give their time and energy to the Coalition. Please know that we will be reaching out for volunteers throughout the year—stay tuned for ways that you can contribute.
Jenn Fishman has handed me the torch to carry for the next two years of the Coalition’s leadership—her energy and commitment to the Coalition have been unwavering and she cannot be thanked enough for all of her hard work. I look forward to my new place in a long line of distinguished women who have served as Coalition Presidents.
I hope that you will join me for this next leg of the journey!
Lisa Mastrangelo
CFSHRC President
