We’ve begun implementing the idea of the centre as just that, a centre, for the job search process. I have a board with positions stapled to it, dated, just waiting for people to come and select them based off of their own personal perceived ability and desire for that particular job. That’s where I come in, offering a certain amount of assistance in emailing the CVs and faxing and cover letters, etc. Tuesday was the first day of the process, and I think it may have gone well. I sent out a variety of CVs and there were people in and out of the room the entire day. This is the positivity that I hope to spread through the office, and hopefully these steps will keep the learners engaged in the job-seeking process.
I just finished proctoring a baseline assessment of the current group of learners. (I’m not sure that you can actually proctor a survey, but I feel pretty official saying it, so I’m going to stick with it.) It’s a coded ordeal that involves passing out secret identity numbers to the learners – they’re not actually secret, but the whole idea is that they sort of get to stay anonymous- and then sitting and watching for tentatively raised hands until the forty-five minutes they’re allotted have elapsed.
I wasn’t prepared for the hand in the back row that went up. I walked over and leaned over. The girl pointed to her page, and made a circular motion around the word “anal” and asked me what it meant. Since the word directly after it was sex, I paused for a moment and then, lacking any better-formulated answer, said, “butt.” “What?” she asked. “Butt sex,” I whispered. She didn’t hear me. “Butt sex,” I whispered again. “Ohhh.” I tried to hide my smile as I walked back to the front. It’s not that I was laughing at the question (that’s a half truth) but I was also laughing at my inability to answer.
The questionnaire needs to be re-written, there’s hardly any doubt about that. It’s full of outdated questions about sexual practices with a small space left at the end for life skills questions. They circle numbers one through five, depending on how they feel about a given statement. Some of the statements don’t even make sense to me, such as: “Safe sex means having sex with someone you love.” How do agree or disagree with a statement like that? I’m confused. What do they mean by safe sex? Do they mean that the love will protect you from STIs? Or is love inherently monogamous and that will keep you STI-free?
Some questions are entirely valid. “If a woman is participating in ‘foreplay’ with a man, she still has the right to say ‘no’ to sexual intercourse with him.”
The implications here are a little disheartening though. The questions come from a very traditional heterosexual standpoint, with the man taking the dominant role and the woman taking the submissive role. While this isn’t a problem sexually speaking, it maintains the power structure for relationships and reaffirms the subordination of the woman while simultaneously reaffirming the male’s right to oppression. There is no subtlety to this hegemonic dynamic, the reinforcement is quite clear.
I’ve asked to be the guest speaker for the unit on Human Sexuality and permission has been granted. I’m excited. I’m not sure what I’m going to talk about. Obviously the role of gender in sexuality; gender roles themselves; the socialization process that keeps people in those roles; STIs – not a “wear a condom” lecture, but a deeper discussion about stigma and the importance of maintaining an active role in one’s own personal healthcare; new health issues – particularly those for women; homosexuality – I’ve read that Cape Town has a large gay population, I’ll be interested to engage the group in discussion about perceptions of homosexuality in their community; the role of religion within sexual practices – this will be done from a Christian standpoint, so as to avoid stepping on any toes. Hmm....more on this as I figure out what I’ll be saying. I have to submit a lecture plan to Brenda, the facilitator, as soon as I can pull it together, but I have some time yet.
I’m thrilled, though. I love the exploration of sexuality (from an academic standpoint, of course) and I can’t wait to lead a discussion about gender – thus putting my education to work. I’m not going to get into feminist theory, simply because I don’t think it would be well-received and also because I’m not sure that it would find its place here, but I’m going to frame my lecture and the subsequent discussion from the feminist standpoint just to see if I have any takers.
Long weekend ahead. I'm headed out of work early today, not for any particular reason other than that the weather is nasty and I absolutely have to do laundry or I won't have anything remotely presentable to wear this weekend.
Tomorrow is Heritage Day. I'll update as soon as I know exactly what it is.
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