Twinkies, Bananas, and Scrambled Eggs: Thoughts on Somewhere Between

by Jillian Powers December 17, 2012

The documentary, Somewhere Between, created by Linda Goldstein Knowlton profiles four teenage Chinese adoptees as they struggle with identity and belonging. These young women are portrayed as “somewhere between,” not fully American and not fully Chinese therefore unable to feel fully connected to either. Somewhere Between presents some creative strategies adolescent adoptees use to feel [...]

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Photos from Student Exhibit

Thumbnail image for Photos from Student Exhibit by Jillian Powers December 13, 2012

These wonderful photos were taken by PhD Candidate in English and fellow AMCS compatriot Kate Fama. Thank you.

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Student Photo Exhibit Flyers

by Jillian Powers December 4, 2012
Thumbnail image for Student Photo Exhibit Flyers

Check out the flyers students made to promote our event. In this freshman seminar we used critical self reflection and photography to explore intersections of race, class, and gender. In their final photo projects they were asked to focus specifically on their first semester of college and a moment where they felt they followed the [...]

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Is Birthright More Than Freebie Trip?

by Jillian Powers November 28, 2012

I was published in the Jewish Daily Forward. Check it out!

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Course Prep: Ethnic Studies Debate

by Jillian Powers November 13, 2012

I cannot think of a better political moment to discuss Arizona’s ban of K-12 Ethnic Studies classes. The political fallout of ethnic studies appears to be the beginning of this current trend to tighten the borders around the American imagined community. As political pundits declare the “death of White America” and “the end of traditional [...]

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Binders full of the 50 Shades of the War on Women: A Representative of the “Slut Vote” Speaks

by Jillian Powers November 9, 2012

I don’t know what’s in the water, but old battles are becoming new again. We’re rehashing debates over equal pay legislation, reproductive rights, and the definition of rape. I cannot think of a time in recent history when the workings and interests of my heterosexual lady parts garnered such attention. While one media circus confines [...]

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Learning Together: Professor-Student Reflections on Public Ethnography

by Jillian Powers June 7, 2012

Here is the talk Sara and I gave at the “Public Ethnography: Connecting New Genres, New Media, New Audience” conference. The conference was organized by the ethnography.media.arts.culture network and funded by a SSHRC Aid to Scholarly Conferences grant Learning Together: Professor-Student Reflections on Public Ethnography JILLIAN POWERS AND SARA HARRIS   INTRODUCTION Thank you for [...]

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Privileged Narratives: Teaching About Class, Part 3

by Jillian Powers April 12, 2012

Results Wow, I am just so impressed with the candor and emotions shared. What an indicator of the type of environment I like to create in my courses. This assignment wasn’t easy. Examining the self, how we interpret situations, and breaking down our taken-for-granted assumptions is a process that requires a lot of strength and [...]

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Privileged Narratives: Teaching about Social Class Part 2, My Story

by Jillian Powers April 3, 2012

My story: When I was roughly six or seven years old, my mother hired a cleaning lady to help out around the house once a week while she was pregnant with my brother. I don’t remember how we came to hire Rosa, but I do recall how this was a new turn of events for [...]

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Privileged Narratives: Teaching about Social Class in 3 Parts.

by Jillian Powers April 2, 2012

Teaching about social class and stratification: I always like to re-tool classes based upon previous experiences. When I first taught Introduction to Sociology, I found that many of my students had a hard time relating social class and stratification to their own lives and positions of power and privilege. How can I further students’ critical [...]

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