University of Idaho students shared their perspectives on feminism at the “F-Word” LIVE Poetry Slam in early November.
The event, hosted by the Women”s Center, featured spoken word performances that explored the topic of feminism. Bekah MillerMacPhee, assistant director and programming coordinator at the Women”s Center, said other topics come up as well, including experiences women have had with cat calling and sexual and domestic violence.
“We believe at the base of feminism is advocacy for gender equity and that can mean a lot of different things for a lot of different people,” MillerMacPhee said.
Traci Craig, associate dean of the College of Arts Letters and Social Sciences, hosted this year”s poetry slam and gave a performance of her own.
“We need more people to become more involved with feminist issues,” Craig said.
MillerMacPhee said Craig is a phenomenal speaker and she was excited to see her perform.
UI student Clair Rogers gave the first performance of the night. Her poem that focused on her experience being criticized due to societal norms and fighting oppression.
“I describe feminism (as) an effort to obtain gender and freedom from gender roles,” MillerMacPhee said.
MillerMcPhee said if they got a good turnout this year the Women”s Center will look into making it into a competition. She said last year”s show resonated so much with some of the attendees that they had to be involved this year.
“F-Word is about sharing experiences, it also about inviting people who are curious about feminism to learn first-hand from other people about what it is.
“Our mission is to invite everybody to take part in feminism and to find a way in which feminism is relevant in their lives,” MillerMacPhee said.
Megan Gospe can be reached at [email protected] or on Twitter @megan_gospe