In Memoriam
Remembering Jackie Anderson
We are saddened by this loss. Jackie participated in Midwest SWIP for many, many years. Her words resonate with us.
The Windy City Times:
Chicago lesbian pioneer and civil-rights activist Jackie Anderson died after a short illness on Jan. 7, surrounded by family and friends. She was 75.
Anderson is survived by her daughter Tracey Anderson and her grandson Torrence “Doc” Gardner. . .
Born in Chicago, Anderson graduated from Roosevelt University and retired from a long career as assistant professor of humanities and philosophy at Olive-Harvey College, where she started work in 1975. She twice served as department chairperson.
Her brilliant academic mind was among things her friends remembered most about Anderson. A steadfast feminist, she especially supported African American lesbian projects on Chicago’s South Side. read more . . .
Sarah Hoagland writes of Jackie’s work at Midwest SWIP:
Bringing complex and provocative questions/thoughts to the Midwest Society for Women in Philosophy, energizing both the Women of Color Caucus and the Lesbian Caucus.
Remembering María Lugones
María Lugones (January 26, 1944-July 14, 2020) was a long-time member of Midwest SWIP and a founding member of the Women of Color Caucus, a space organized and maintained by Women of Color to work together. In the words of Marilyn Frye, “María co-invented and recruited its Women of Color Caucus, to which white women were not invited. María always worked in and built such contexts: inclusive-with-strategic-separations–creating and supporting multiplicitous identity and community.” (“A Remembrance of María Lugones,” Sinister Wisdom, Spring 2021)
Women of Color Caucus CFP (circa 2002):
Women of Color thinking, discussing, doing video, performance art, poetry in a space that is by us and for us without the mediation of white/Anglo women or men. This is to our knowledge the only space of its kind initiated by Women of Color philosophers. But we know it is a rare space for us, one that we value enormously and one we want to see grow and flourish. We, the women of the Women of Color Caucus of the Midwest Society for Women in Philosophy, invite you to participate in making this space lively, to bring the problems that concern you and what makes your heart sing. We have talked about sexuality, language and cultural resistance, colonization, identity, coalition, and many other topics in many different modes of expression: video, poetry, short essays, and discussion around a previously agreed upon topic. We have no set expectations. The space is informal, friendly, committed to social change that centers on the well-being of Women of Color. We meet in conjunction with the Society for Women in Philosophy (SWIP), Midwest Division. The Society has a history of friendly engagement at the intersection of race, class, gender, and sexuality. Participating in the Women of Color Caucus does not commit you to participating in the rest of the SWIP conference.