Bridging two histories

When we think of celebrating things like Black History Month and Women's History Month, there's often little or no mention of the overlap of these celebrations for black women. 

Here's where the Institute for Women's Studies and Services comes in. Each year for the past 19 years, the institute, which is affiliated with all three schools on campus, has organized an event to commemorate both months. As a symbolic bridging of Black History Month in February and Women's History Month in March, the event organizers invite a black woman, typically with an academic background, to campus to speak about social justice issues.

According to Joanna Snawder, associate director of the institute, the event has seen progress since it first began. "This tradition was started 19 years ago, and things have changed a bit since then. At that time you wouldn't see a lot of black women being the featured speakers on social justice," she said.

This year's featured speaker is the poet Sapphire, author of the novel Push. Last October when Snawder found out Sapphire would be doing a tour this time of the year, she was determined to get her to be this year's bridge speaker for a number of reasons.

In the past, speakers like Angela Davis and bell hooks have tended to be very academic and high-theory oriented, which Snawder said is beneficial for students who like delving into complex theory. However, she added, "Sometimes that can be a little alienating. Sapphire feels more accessible."

Additionally, Snawder said she really liked the idea of brining Sapphire to campus the same week the Denver-based producers of the film adaptation of her novel are up for an Oscar. "Everybody is going to be reminded of the film and of her," she said.

Most of all, Snawder liked the timeliness of the story in Sapphire's novel. "When you talk about what feminists look at, race, class, gender, when we talk about that intersectionality. This story has it all. But it even goes deeper by talking about body image issues and fat oppression, and ultimately things like access to reproductive health care."

When Push Comes To Precious: The novel, the film, the reality
1 p.m., Tuesday, March 9
Tivoli Turnhalle