3 Women 3 Ways

GENDER STUDIES, WOMEN’S STUDIES—DO WE REALLY STILL NEED THEM? You remember women’s studies – started around the time young women were supposedly burning their bras. If you’re a supporter of the programs, they are a place to learn the history of feminism, equality, and women’s accomplishments in the world. If you aren’t a supporter, those programs are for women with short hair and Birkenstocks to learn how to resent men. Fortunately, both those stereotypes are off the mark. So – what is women’s studies and how are such programs relevant today? We’ll get those answers and more as Yi-Chun Tricia Lin, Director and Professor of the Women’s Studies Program at Southern Connecticut State University, joins us for Saturday’s show. Growing up in Taiwan, Tricia was expected to follow a life as previous generations of women had- obedient and submissive to patriarchy. That didn’t work for her, and instead she went to graduate school and became a teacher focusing on social justice issues, including gender, racial, and socio-economic issues. She also is very active in leadership of a number of academic and political organizations, including Veteran Feminists of America, New Haven League of Women Voters, and the National Women’s Studies Association. Tricia also contributed to several publications including a special issue on transnational Indigenous feminism with Lectora (University of Barcelona), forthcoming in 2016. If anyone knows the current status of women’s studies, it is Tricia.