tag:theconversation.com,2011:/us/topics/marginalized-63543/articlesmarginalized – The Conversation2023-06-14T12:28:41Ztag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2071402023-06-14T12:28:41Z2023-06-14T12:28:41ZTrans and gender-diverse people in Saskatchewan need better access to primary care<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/531890/original/file-20230614-17-ritl1a.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=1116%2C41%2C5030%2C3016&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Trans and gender-diverse people in Saskatchewan face challenges accessing primary care.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Shutterstock)</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Research has demonstrated time and again that the social marginalization and exclusion experienced by many people who are trans and gender diverse are <a href="https://doi.org/10.1001%2Fjamanetworkopen.2020.15036">closely tied to having poorer health, including higher rates of chronic illness</a>. </p>
<p>This may be because many trans and gender-diverse people have had negative experiences with health-care providers, or feel that the health-care system is ill-equipped to handle their needs, or are on long waiting lists for care.</p>
<p>In a <a href="https://www.schoolofpublicpolicy.sk.ca/research-ideas/publications-and-policy-insight/policy-brief/access-to-quality-healthcare-for-people-who-are-trans-and-gender-diverse-in-saskatchewan.php">new policy brief</a>, we outline our concerns about access to health care for people who are trans and gender diverse in Saskatchewan. </p>
<p>This work is part of a broader initiative — <a href="https://research-groups.usask.ca/transnavigator/the-project.php">the Trans Research and Navigation Saskatchewan</a> (TRANS) project — that explores the effectiveness of peer navigation for improving the health-care experiences of trans and gender-diverse people in the province. </p>
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<img alt="A person in a purple T-shirt outdoors, looking at the camera," src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/531891/original/file-20230614-22-aaakle.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/531891/original/file-20230614-22-aaakle.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/531891/original/file-20230614-22-aaakle.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/531891/original/file-20230614-22-aaakle.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/531891/original/file-20230614-22-aaakle.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/531891/original/file-20230614-22-aaakle.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/531891/original/file-20230614-22-aaakle.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">The challenges facing people who are trans and gender-diverse begin from the moment they enter their doctor’s office.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Shutterstock)</span></span>
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<p>Peer navigators are members of a community — in this case, trans and gender-diverse people — who draw on their own experiences with the medical system to help others overcome barriers to care. </p>
<p>The brief draws on the preliminary research from the project as well as existing research on the experiences of people who are trans and gender diverse in Saskatchewan and elsewhere. It focuses on barriers to primary care, barriers to specialist care and other socio-legal concerns. </p>
<h2>Challenges for trans, gender-diverse patients</h2>
<p>The challenges facing people who are trans and gender diverse begin from the moment they enter their doctor’s office. </p>
<p>In addition to concerns about the use of the right name and pronouns, some people who participated in the focus groups and interviews held by the TRANS project shared accounts of physicians refusing to provide any type of care to trans and gender-diverse people and/or refusing to refer them to another physician. </p>
<p>Given the <a href="https://globalnews.ca/news/9175996/saskatoon-clinics-close-patients/">lack of family physicians with openings for new patients in Saskatchewan</a>, this leaves some trans and gender-diverse people without a doctor. Furthermore, people whose doctors aren’t willing to provide hormone therapy may feel that the same doctor is unlikely to provide supportive knowledgeable care in other areas.</p>
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<img alt="stock photo of a transgender person looking at camera with blurred light background" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/531892/original/file-20230614-20-bb9fjr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/531892/original/file-20230614-20-bb9fjr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=401&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/531892/original/file-20230614-20-bb9fjr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=401&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/531892/original/file-20230614-20-bb9fjr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=401&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/531892/original/file-20230614-20-bb9fjr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/531892/original/file-20230614-20-bb9fjr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/531892/original/file-20230614-20-bb9fjr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">People who are trans and gender diverse may face long wait lists for appointments with doctors who are comfortable providing gender-affirming care.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Shutterstock)</span></span>
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<p>In other instances, people who are trans and gender diverse reported that their family doctors are generally supportive, but not comfortable — at least not yet — with providing gender-affirming care including prescribing hormone therapy. </p>
<p>Yet hormone therapies are relatively straightforward prescriptions, <a href="https://theconversation.com/gender-affirming-care-has-a-long-history-in-the-us-and-not-just-for-transgender-people-201752">and similar medications</a> are often prescribed for cis-gender men with low testosterone or cis-gender women experiencing menopause. But many family doctors do not feel comfortable providing them to people who are trans and gender diverse, though the reasons for this are unclear.</p>
<p>This leaves people who are trans and gender diverse hoping that their family doctor will refer them to someone else who is comfortable providing hormone therapy. For people in rural areas — <a href="https://saisia.ca/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/Final-version-EN-Benefits-of-living-in-Rural-SK-with-crop-marks.pdf">35 per cent of the people in Saskatchewan</a> — these challenges can be compounded by the need to travel for care. </p>
<p>Given that there are very <a href="https://doi.org/10.1089/trgh.2020.0181">few family doctors who report that they <em>are</em> comfortable providing hormone therapy in Saskatchewan</a>, there are long wait lists for appointments, and people who are trans and gender diverse are left in the lurch. </p>
<h2>Solutions for improving care</h2>
<p>The solution to this problem is relatively simple: ensuring that more and more family doctors in Saskatchewan are comfortable providing gender-affirming care, including hormone therapy. </p>
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<img alt="A person with a beard and glasses wearing a striped shirt smiling and a second person out of focus" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/531893/original/file-20230614-31-dbn8gn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/531893/original/file-20230614-31-dbn8gn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/531893/original/file-20230614-31-dbn8gn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/531893/original/file-20230614-31-dbn8gn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/531893/original/file-20230614-31-dbn8gn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/531893/original/file-20230614-31-dbn8gn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/531893/original/file-20230614-31-dbn8gn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">Reducing bottlenecks in primary care is a critical part of improving the health of people who are trans and gender-diverse.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Shutterstock)</span></span>
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<p>There are many ways to make this happen. The simplest and most cost-effective approach is for willing family doctors to educate themselves <a href="https://www.rainbowhealthontario.ca/TransHealthGuide/">using relevant guidelines</a> carefully developed in other provinces (or <a href="https://bmc1.utm.utoronto.ca/%7Ekelly/transprimarycare/resources.html">other training resources</a>). </p>
<p>Other options, as we outline in the policy brief, could involve family doctors connecting with others who are more experienced in providing gender-affirming care, or receiving support from the peer navigation program initially established by the TRANS research team. </p>
<p>Those involved in medical education — at the University of Saskatchewan and elsewhere — could continue to support <a href="https://www.sma.sk.ca/?tribe_events=trans-inclusive-healthcare-series">medical education opportunities</a> for family doctors and other primary-care providers to become more comfortable in providing gender-affirming care. </p>
<p>There are other straightforward and important interventions that could improve access to care. These include, among others: </p>
<ul>
<li>Continued support for the peer navigation program, </li>
<li>Changing requirements for access to surgical care, </li>
<li>Increasing the availability of mental health supports, </li>
<li>Making it easier to make changes to legal documents and identification, and </li>
<li>Establishing a multidisciplinary network or health centre dedicated to care for people who are trans and gender diverse. </li>
</ul>
<p>Improving access to family doctors who are <a href="https://doi.org/10.3390/healthcare9080967">supportive, competent and confident</a> in providing access to hormone therapy — reducing bottlenecks in primary care — is a critical part of improving the health of people who are trans and gender diverse.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/207140/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Alana Cattapan receives funding from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada and the Canadian Institutes of Health Research.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Gwen Rose does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Improving the health of people who are trans and gender diverse means improving access to family doctors who are supportive, competent and confident in providing access to gender-affirming care.Alana Cattapan, Assistant Professor, Department of Political Science, University of WaterlooGwen Rose, PhD candidate in English and research assistant with the Trans Research and Navigation Saskatchewan (TRANS) project, University of SaskatchewanLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1591812021-04-29T14:59:05Z2021-04-29T14:59:05ZRobots are coming and the fallout will largely harm marginalized communities<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/396382/original/file-20210421-17-19z49sb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C0%2C4992%2C3323&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Those who are most affected in the labour market by robots are those who tend to already be marginalized.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">(AP Photo/Vincent Yu)</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>COVID-19 has brought about numerous, devastating changes to people’s lives globally. With the number of cases <a href="https://www.cbc.ca/news/health/canada-us-covid19-cases-per-million-1.5983507">rising across Canada</a> and <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2020/world/coronavirus-maps.html">globally</a>, we are also witnessing the development and use of <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-52340651">robots to perform jobs</a> in some workplaces that are deemed unsafe for humans. </p>
<p>There are cases of robots being used to <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/business-51914722">disinfect health-care facilities, deliver drugs to patients and perform temperature checks</a>. In April 2020, doctors at a Boston hospital used Boston Dynamics’ quadruped robot called Spot <a href="https://www.theverge.com/2020/4/23/21231855/boston-dynamics-spot-robot-covid-19-coronavirus-telemedicine">to reduce health-care workers exposure to SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19</a>. By equipping Spot with an iPad and a two-way radio, doctors and patients could communicate in real-time. </p>
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<img alt="Robot 'Spot' walks across floor" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/396367/original/file-20210421-17-1wz3w1z.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/396367/original/file-20210421-17-1wz3w1z.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/396367/original/file-20210421-17-1wz3w1z.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/396367/original/file-20210421-17-1wz3w1z.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/396367/original/file-20210421-17-1wz3w1z.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/396367/original/file-20210421-17-1wz3w1z.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/396367/original/file-20210421-17-1wz3w1z.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">Marc Raibert, founder and chair of Boston Dynamics watches one of the company’s Spot robots during a demonstration.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">(AP Photo/Josh Reynolds)</span></span>
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<p>In these instances, the use of robots is certainly justified because they can directly aid in lowering COVID-19 transmission rates and reducing the unnecessary exposure of health-care workers to the virus. But, as we know, robots are also performing these tasks outside of health-care settings, including at <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/business-51914722">airports, offices</a>, <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-52340651">retail spaces and restaurants</a>. </p>
<p>This is precisely where the issue of robot use gets complicated. </p>
<h2>Robots in the workplace</h2>
<p>The type of labour that these and other robots perform or, in some cases, replace, is labour that is generally considered low-paying, ranging from <a href="https://time.com/5876604/machines-jobs-coronavirus/">cleaners and fast food workers to security guards and factory employees</a>. Not only do many of these workers in Canada earn minimum wage, the <a href="https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/pub/75-004-m/75-004-m2019003-eng.htm">majority are racialized women and youth between the ages of 15 to 24</a>. </p>
<p>The use of robots also affects immigrant populations. The gap between immigrant workers earning minimum wage and Canadian-born workers has <a href="https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/pub/75-004-m/75-004-m2019003-eng.htm">more than doubled</a>. In 2008, 5.3 per cent of both immigrant and Canadian-born workers earned minimum wage, compared to 2018 where 12 per cent of immigrant workers earned minimum wage and only 9.8 per cent of Canadian-born workers earned minimum wage. Canada’s reliance on migrant workers as a source of <a href="https://ccrweb.ca/en/migrant-workers-issues">cheap and disposable labour</a>, has intensified the exploitation of workers.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/how-we-treat-migrant-workers-who-put-food-on-our-tables-dont-call-me-resilient-ep-4-transcript-154630">How we treat migrant workers who put food on our tables: Don't Call Me Resilient EP 4 transcript</a>
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<p>McDonald’s has <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/edrensi/2018/07/11/mcdonalds-says-goodbye-cashiers-hello-kiosks/?sh=778051076f14">replaced cashiers with self-service kiosks</a>. It has also begun <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-52340651">testing robots</a> to replace both cooks and servers. Walmart has begun using <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-52340651">robots to clean</a> store floors, while also increasing their usage in <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-52340651">warehouses</a>. </p>
<p>Nowhere is the implementation of robots more apparent than Amazon’s use of them in its fulfilment centres. As information scholars applying marxist theory Nick Dyer-Witheford, Atle Mikkola Kjøsen and James Steinhoff explain, Amazon’s use of <a href="https://www.plutobooks.com/9781786803962/inhuman-power/">robots have reduced order times and increased warehouse space, allowing for 50 per cent more inventory in areas where robots are used, and have saved Amazon’s power costs by working in the dark and without air conditioning</a>.</p>
<p>Already marginalized labourers are most affected by robots. In other words, human labour that can be mechanized, routinized or automated to some extent, is work that is deemed to be expendable because it is seen to be replaceable. It is work that is stripped of any humanity in the name of efficiency and cost-effectiveness for massive corporations. However, the influence of corporations on robot development goes beyond cost-saving measures. </p>
<h2>Robot violence</h2>
<p>The emergence of <a href="https://www.bostondynamics.com/spot">Boston Dynamics’ Spot</a> gives us some insight into how robots have crossed from the battlefield into urban spaces. Boston Dynamics’ robot development program at one time received funding from the <a href="https://www.darpa.mil/">American Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA)</a>.</p>
<p>In 2005, Boston Dynamics received funding from DARPA to develop one of its first quadruped robots known as BigDog, <a href="https://www.newscientist.com/article/dn8802-robotic-pack-mule-displays-stunning-reflexes/">a robotic pack mule that was used to assist soldiers across rough terrain</a>. In 2012, Boston Dynamics and DARPA revealed another quadruped robot known as AlphaDog, designed to primarily <a href="https://www.cnet.com/news/darpa-takes-bigger-bigdog-out-for-walkies/">carry military gear for soldiers</a>. </p>
<p>The development of Spot would have been be impossible without these previous, DARPA-funded initiatives. While the founder of Boston Dynamics, Marc Raibert, has claimed that <a href="https://techxplore.com/news/2019-11-robots-evil-boston-dynamics-humanoids.html">Spot will not be turned into a weapon</a>, the company <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2019/11/26/boston-dynamics-terrifying-robotic-dogs-have-been-put-work-by-least-one-police-agency/">leased Spot to the Massachusetts State Police</a> bomb squad in 2019 for a 90-day period. </p>
<p>In February 2021, <a href="https://www.theverge.com/2021/2/24/22299140/nypd-boston-dynamics-spot-robot-dog">the New York Police Department used Spot</a> to investigate the scene of a home invasion. And, in April 2021, <a href="https://www.theverge.com/2021/4/7/22371590/boston-dynamics-spot-robot-military-exercises-french-army">Spot was deployed by a French military school</a> in a series of exercises to evaluate its usefulness on the future battlefield.</p>
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<figcaption><span class="caption">Massachusetts State Police lease Boston Dynamics’ Spot in 2019.</span></figcaption>
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<h2>Targeting the most vulnerable</h2>
<p>These examples are not intended to altogether dismiss the importance of some robots. This is particularly the case in health care, where <a href="https://globalnews.ca/news/4758562/robot-medicine/">robots continue to help doctors</a> improve patient outcomes. Instead, these examples should serve as a call for governments to intervene in order to prevent a proliferation of robot use across different spaces.</p>
<p>More importantly, this is a call to prevent the multiple forms of exploitation that already affect marginalized groups. Since <a href="https://techcrunch.com/2019/11/25/the-aclu-wants-details-about-videos-of-boston-dynamics-robot-in-police-exercises/">technological innovation has a tendency to outpace legislation</a> and regulatory controls, it is imperative that lawmakers step in before it is too late. </p>
<p><em>This is a corrected version of a story originally published April 29, 2021. The earlier story wrongly stated the French army had deployed the Spot robot in a series of exercises, rather than a French military school. As well, the corrected version clarifies that Boston Dynamics no longer receives funding from the American Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency.</em></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/159181/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Constantine Gidaris has received funding from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada.</span></em></p>Robots are taking jobs, but they’re also saving lives … should we fear them and their capabilities?Constantine Gidaris, Sessional Instructor, Cultural Studies and Critical Theory, McMaster UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1577432021-04-15T14:06:15Z2021-04-15T14:06:15ZAs Asian Canadian scholars, we must #StopAsianHate by fighting all forms of racism<iframe style="width: 100%; height: 250px; border: none; position: relative; z-index: 1;" src="https://narrations.ad-auris.com/widget/the-conversation-canada/as-asian-canadian-scholars-we-must-hashtag-stop-asian-hate" width="100%" height="400"></iframe>
<p>Anti-Asian racism has been <a href="https://theconversation.com/works-written-130-years-ago-show-were-dealing-with-the-same-anti-asian-racism-158281">present in Canada for centuries</a>. It is deeply rooted in the historical formation of Canada through the <a href="https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/chinese-head-tax-in-canada">Chinese head tax</a>, <a href="https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/japanese-internment-banished-and-beyond-tears-feature">Japanese internment camps</a>, the <em>Electoral Franchise Act</em>, which <a href="https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/franchise">explicitly denied Chinese Canadians the right to vote</a>, and <a href="https://www.toronto.com/news-story/10349793-timeline-this-is-canada-s-history-of-anti-asian-racism-that-covid-19-has-amplified/">more</a>. It is embedded within the minds of Canadians. </p>
<p>In a recent interview, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau attributed the rise of anti-Asian racism during COVID-19 partly to “<a href="https://nationalpost.com/news/politics/pandemic-and-more-aggressive-china-contributing-to-rise-in-anti-asian-racism-trudeau-says">a more assertive and aggressive China on the world stage, combined with a global pandemic that had its origins in China</a>.” By citing the pandemic and China’s foreign policy as causes of anti-Asian attacks, Trudeau is reinforcing this racist bias rather than fighting against it.</p>
<p>Contemporary anti-Asian racism stems from a history of systemic racism and racial profiling. It can be traced back to the “yellow peril” discourse that depicts Asians as a threat.</p>
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<p>The pandemic serves as an opportunity for established, underlying currents of anti-Asian, and other forms of racism, to surface.</p>
<p>Anti-Asian racism affects us as Asian Canadians in our daily lives and in our careers. It is for this reason that we, a group of Asian Canadian scholars, have recently come together to discuss the structural roots of anti-Asian racism and the road ahead. </p>
<h2>Settler colonialism</h2>
<p>Canada is a <a href="https://globalsocialtheory.org/concepts/settler-colonialism/">settler colonial state</a>. This means the country was built on and still operates under colonial rule — settler colonialism is a process of foreign intrusion and domination where <a href="https://www.historians.org/publications-and-directories/perspectives-on-history/october-2015/a-typology-of-colonialism">large numbers of settlers claimed the land and power over it and its residents</a>. </p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/not-in-the-past-colonialism-is-rooted-in-the-present-157395">Not in the past: Colonialism is rooted in the present</a>
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<p>This process involves <a href="https://www.jstor.org/stable/j.ctv111jhvq">the decimation of Indigenous populations</a> by the state to make Canada “white.” It also involves immigrant exploitation and racial exclusion to keep Canada “white.”</p>
<p>Despite Asians (for example, early Chinese immigrants) <a href="https://www.bac-lac.gc.ca/eng/discover/immigration/history-ethnic-cultural/early-chinese-canadians/Pages/history.aspx">arriving in Canada before</a> it became a nation, Asian people have never been fully accepted as Canadians.</p>
<p>Instead, from as early as the era of <a href="https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/railway-history">transcontinental railroad building</a>, which relied on the cheap labour of Chinese workers, Asians have been a vulnerable labour force whose existence was purposefully controlled at the border.</p>
<h2>A look at history</h2>
<p>Limiting Asian immigration began in 1885 with the imposition of <a href="https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/chinese-head-tax-in-canada">a head tax on Chinese migrants</a>. The Komagata Maru incident, that <a href="https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/komagata-maru">excluded immigrants from India</a>, illustrates the agenda to build Canada as “a white man’s country.”</p>
<p>Between 1895 and 1950, there were more than <a href="https://www.theglobeandmail.com/canada/british-columbia/article-weekend-rallies-planned-to-condemn-rise-in-anti-asian-racism/">175 anti-Asian laws</a> in Canada. They were created to assure white domination.</p>
<p>Today, Canada’s immigration policies continue to exploit Asian Canadians and immigrants all under the interests of white (re)settlement by forcing migrants to settle in particular parts of the country. Years ago, special <a href="https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/quebec-immigrant-investor-program-civil-servants-1.4830231">immigration incentives</a> were enacted to attract selected, privileged groups such as wealthy migrants and those with foreign capital investment.</p>
<p>The racialized temporary migrant labour programs such as migrant <a href="https://www.canada.ca/en/immigration-refugees-citizenship/services/work-canada/hire-permanent-foreign/caregiver-program.html">live-in caregiver program</a> (predominantly Filipina women), admit migrant workers into the country to perform labour deemed unattractive, yet necessary, for the well-being of Canadians. These migrant workers <a href="https://www.tungohan.com/publications/from-migrant-to-citizen-the-labour-market-integration-of-former-live-in-caregivers-in-canada/">often remain within a few, lower-skilled occupations</a> when they switch jobs, even after receiving legal permanent resident status. </p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/coronavirus-canada-stigmatizes-jeopardizes-essential-migrant-workers-138879">Coronavirus: Canada stigmatizes, jeopardizes essential migrant workers</a>
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<h2>The limits of multiculturalism</h2>
<p>The policy and practice of <a href="https://lop.parl.ca/sites/PublicWebsite/default/en_CA/ResearchPublications/200920E">multiculturalism</a> has largely failed to address widespread racial and ethnic disparities in Canada. Thus far, it has only served to maintain the status quo, <a href="https://doi.org/10.3138/9781442678972">preserving the cultural hegemony</a> of the dominant group. </p>
<p>After half a century of this policy being in place, racialized people are still invisible in many of Canada’s institutions. As education scholar Carl E. James has noted <a href="https://doi.org/10.3138/9781442678385-005">English Canadians, and to a lesser extent, French Canadians have continued to play a central role in defining Canadian society and culture</a>. </p>
<p>Canada’s “management” of ethno-cultural diversity through multiculturalism has <a href="https://doi.org/10.22230/cjc.2002v27n2a1297">also failed to control racism</a> against these communities. Instead, despite its pretence, Canadian multiculturalism provides a tacit basis for discrimination and racial violence.</p>
<p>Promoting multiculturalism as Canada’s national identity has <a href="https://www.yorku.ca/fhenry/colourofdemocracy.htm">allowed Canadians to ignore</a> the harsh lived reality of many minorities, and <a href="https://www.yorku.ca/fhenry/colourofdemocracy.htm">to refute the claim </a>that racism is alive and well in Canada. Denying <a href="https://psycnet.apa.org/buy/2020-45459-001">its existence allows racism</a> to fester and persist. </p>
<p>This contributes not only to the rise of anti-Asian racism during COVID-19, but also to the fact that racism against Asians isn’t part of the discussion. Canada’s recent <a href="https://www.canada.ca/en/canadian-heritage/campaigns/anti-racism-engagement/anti-racism-strategy.html">Anti-Racism Strategy</a> failed to mention long standing racial violence against Asians at all.</p>
<p><a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/13639080.2011.630657">In accepting but not embracing</a> cultural difference, multiculturalism serves as an institutional mechanism that protects whites from social interaction with visible minorities. It has contributed to the <a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/10714413.2011.597637">creation of segregated racial</a> and ethno-cultural enclaves.
Anti-Asian racism is integrally tied to the fact that Asian Canadians continue to be <a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/10714413.2011.597637">segregated socially, economically and politically</a> in Canada.</p>
<p>By portraying Asians <a href="https://www.thestar.com/news/gta/2008/03/07/ford_refuses_to_apologize_for_asian_comments.html">as hard-working</a>, independent, intelligent and economically prosperous, the model minority stereotype was created to support the view that systemic racism against Asians does not exist since they have “succeeded” in Canada. </p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/the-model-minority-myth-hides-the-racist-and-sexist-violence-experienced-by-asian-women-157667">The model minority myth hides the racist and sexist violence experienced by Asian women</a>
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<p>This myth denies the socio-economic, political and educational challenges faced by many working-class Asian Canadians. It also ignores the <a href="https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/pub/45-28-0001/2020001/article/00042-eng.htm">tremendous heterogeneity and diversity within the broader Asian</a> Canadian population – which in reality, is made up of a multitude of ethnicities, cultures, languages, class and immigration experiences.</p>
<h2>Road ahead</h2>
<p>Anti-Asian racism is more widespread than we think. Solutions cannot be limited to educating people about Asian history in Canada and globally, or to the harms of anti-Asian racism. We need greater visibility of Asians and members of all racialized groups across sectors, as decision-makers and we must recognize their contributions throughout history and to contemporary society.</p>
<p>To fight anti-Asian racism means to <a href="https://www.insidehighered.com/advice/2021/04/02/recommendations-stopping-anti-asian-racism-campuses-opinion">fight against any form of racism</a>. We must come together to do so and not forget what got us here.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/157743/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Cary Wu receives funding from Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR). </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Carol Liao receives funding from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC), JW McConnell Foundation, Ivey Foundation, Trottier Foundation, Jarislowsky Foundation, and North Family Foundation. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span> Guida Man receives funding from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC).</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Min Zhou receives funding from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC).</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>S. Harris Ali receives funding from CIHR. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Weiguo Zhang receives funding from Canadian Institutes
of Health Research. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Abidin Kusno, Ann H. Kim, Dennis Kao, Hae Yeon Choo, Jing Zhao, Muyang Li, Sibo Chen, Sida Liu, and Zhifan Luo do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Fifteen Asian academics discuss the roots of anti-Asian racism and limits of multiculturalism in Canada while charting a path forward.Cary Wu, Assistant Professor, Department of Sociology, York University, CanadaAbidin Kusno, Professor, Faculty of Environmental Studies, York University, CanadaAnn H. Kim, Associate Professor, Sociology, York University, CanadaCarol Liao, Associate Professor, Allard School of Law, University of British ColumbiaDennis Kao, Associate Professor of Social Work, Carleton UniversityGuida Man, Associate Professor, Sociology, York University, CanadaHae Yeon Choo, Associate Professor of Sociology, University of TorontoJing Zhao, Research Associate, York Centre for Asian Research, University of British ColumbiaMin Zhou, Associate Professor, Sociology, University of VictoriaMuyang Li, Assistant Professor, Sociology, York University, CanadaS. Harris Ali, Professor, Sociology, York University, CanadaSibo Chen, Assistant Professor, School of Professional Communication, Toronto Metropolitan UniversitySida Liu, Associate Professor, Sociology, University of TorontoWeiguo Zhang, Associate Professor, Sociology, University of TorontoZhifan Luo, Research Associate at York Centre for Asian Research, University at Albany, State University of New YorkLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1568122021-03-22T18:10:30Z2021-03-22T18:10:30ZMake way! Creating space for change in Canadian politics<p>There are many ways politicians and bureaucrats can show leadership in response to calls to democratize Canadian politics. Specifically, there are a lot of things men can do, particularly heterosexual white men.</p>
<p>As the <a href="https://ipolitics.ca/2019/10/24/gender-minorities-parenthood-heres-how-the-next-parliament-compares-to-canada-today/">largest demographic in Parliament</a>, they can lead the way by stepping back or stepping aside, in order to create meaningful opportunities to engage more women, Indigenous, Black and marginalized peoples. </p>
<p>Let’s face it, if we are to transform the culture of Canadian political institutions, we must take immediate, deliberate and intentional action.</p>
<p>As co-authors, one of us is the only Black woman MP who served in the 42nd Parliament (2015-19) and is a champion of diversity, equity and inclusivity. The other has interviewed more than 100 Canadian politicians and political staff for a <a href="https://www.ubcpress.ca/whipped">book about party discipline</a>. We met as part of that research, and share a deep concern about the need for the political elite to make room for diverse voices in the House of Commons.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/the-canadian-senate-briefly-reached-gender-parity-heres-why-it-matters-153525">The Canadian Senate briefly reached gender parity — here's why it matters</a>
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<h2>Representation matters</h2>
<p>When interacting with politicians, it becomes clear that at different points in their careers they approach politics with <a href="https://www.ubcpress.ca/representation-in-action">distinct philosophies about representation</a>. </p>
<p>Some elected officials take a principled stand on big picture issues. Some believe that voters trust them to figure things out, while others feel a duty to follow the wishes of constituents. Far too many Canadian politicians are guided by loyalty to their <a href="https://policyoptions.irpp.org/magazines/september-2016/why-do-mps-vote-together/">political party</a> and leader, whereas some are motivated to champion the concerns of people who share similar identities or similar experiences.</p>
<p>Prioritizing the composition of legislatures and looking at public policy through the lens of gender, Indigeneity, race or other identity characteristic is sometimes known as “descriptive representation,” a term coined by American political scientist Hanna Pitkin in her landmark book <a href="https://www.ucpress.edu/book/9780520021563/the-concept-of-representation"><em>The Concept of Representation</em></a>. In it, Pitkin dissects what the contested concept of representation means. She makes a compelling argument that a democratic legislature must be a forum to hear from a diversity of people’s voices. This is important because otherwise these voices are excluded from political debate and from public policy decision-making.</p>
<p>But in what tangible ways can diversity improve democracy?</p>
<h2>Identity and intersectionality</h2>
<p>Diversity is necessary for citizens to see themselves represented. <a href="https://www.elections.ca/content.aspx?section=res&dir=his/chap1&document=index&lang=e">Since 1867, and before</a>, generations of white, land-owning men were the beacon of political leadership. Since the Second World War, they have <a href="https://utorontopress.com/ca/lost-on-division-4">increasingly</a> toed the party line, as have others, recruited into a political system that values conformity over diversity. In today’s world, it is important to remember that we are each the product of a variety of different identities that intersect to make us who we are. For some, their different identities add layers of oppression in politics.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/what-is-intersectionality-all-of-who-i-am-105639">What is intersectionality? All of who I am</a>
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<p>Studies have argued that descriptive representation <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/0010414017720702">can fundamentally support</a> the principles of democracy. This extends beyond reshaping the composition of legislatures: listening and receiving input from diverse voices can result in better governance and better policy. A good example is <a href="https://hbr.org/2020/12/research-women-are-better-leaders-during-a-crisis">research showing that women leaders have been rated significantly more positively</a> than men during the COVID-19 pandemic. In particular, women are thought to have exhibited better interpersonal skills in managing the crisis. </p>
<p>Listening to marginalized voices is needed to help shape Parliamentary decisions. Deliberations around medical assistance in dying legislation (Bill C-7) would have benefited from improved <a href="https://www.hilltimes.com/2021/02/19/canadas-assisted-dying-movement-has-a-diversity-problem/284685">listening</a> to disability groups and racialized communities.</p>
<h2>Diversify legislatures</h2>
<p>More diverse legislatures can transform Canadian politics in a profound way: challenging the dogma of <a href="https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/canadian-journal-of-political-science-revue-canadienne-de-science-politique/article/abs/party-unity-and-discipline-in-canadian-politics/E8ED86402328FC0069E6374D49A73CFB">party discipline</a> that keeps politics organized but corrodes representation. In Ottawa and the provinces, political parties have an iron grip over politicians, and group conformity is expected. </p>
<p>Why is it normal in Canada that a politician jeopardizes their parliamentary career by taking a public stand different from the party leader? Don’t we want politicians who feel that they can speak truth to power? Homogeneity in party politics might work for partisans, but does it work for constituents? Even <a href="https://www.samaracanada.com/docs/default-source/mp-exit-interviews/samara_report_its_my_party2.pdf">MPs become frustrated</a> with democratic institutions when they are reduced to robots, encouraged to vote along party lines and repeat talking points.</p>
<p>Electing a broader array of Canadians can help break down party silos and soften polarization. In workplaces, more <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.hrmr.2009.09.002">heterogeneity can stir internal conflict</a> and rattle group norms. But injecting different perspectives also enriches the ability of a group to come up with creative and innovative solutions. The same is true in politics. </p>
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<p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/corporate-diversity-targets-could-help-dismantle-systemic-racism-143665">Corporate diversity targets could help dismantle systemic racism</a>
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<p>The more diverse the voices that occupy seats in legislatures, the more political parties can benefit from better policy which, in turn, benefits the public. Sadly, there is little <a href="https://www.ubcpress.ca/whipped">evidence</a> that partisans are open to listening to people willing to rebuff the “team player” mentality that dominates Canadian Parliament. A good way to help change that is to change who is being elected.</p>
<p>This can include white men not seeking re-election in order to create space for others, encouraging people to run for political office, and also helping the newest members thrive when they get there. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Illustration: crowd of protesters holding banners and placards" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/390668/original/file-20210319-17-1e3wvhi.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=380%2C0%2C24718%2C8290&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/390668/original/file-20210319-17-1e3wvhi.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=197&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/390668/original/file-20210319-17-1e3wvhi.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=197&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/390668/original/file-20210319-17-1e3wvhi.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=197&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/390668/original/file-20210319-17-1e3wvhi.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=247&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/390668/original/file-20210319-17-1e3wvhi.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=247&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/390668/original/file-20210319-17-1e3wvhi.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=247&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">Injecting different perspectives also enriches the ability of a group to come up with creative and innovative solutions.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Shutterstock)</span></span>
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<p>Taking proactive steps toward fewer white men in politics in order to create an opening for others has worked in British Columbia. In 2011, the B.C. NDP introduced a <a href="https://policyoptions.irpp.org/magazines/february-2021/diversity-and-inclusion-are-tools-for-a-political-partys-success/">radical policy</a> that when a male legislator vacates a seat, the party must nominate a woman, racialized person or someone from other underrepresented groups in Canadian politics. </p>
<p>In the 2020 provincial election, the B.C. NDP won a majority of seats, and for the first time in Canadian history a governing party’s caucus has <a href="https://vancouverisland.ctvnews.ca/historic-ndp-caucus-sworn-in-ahead-of-fall-b-c-legislature-session-1.5204033">more women than men</a>, as well as more people of colour serving than any B.C. caucus <a href="https://www.bcndp.ca/latest/diverse-resilient-and-ready-meet-your-new-bc-ndp-mlas">ever elected before</a>. Diversity in Premier John Horgan’s caucus meant that he had more choices to assemble a diverse cabinet. The party’s policy of affirmative action has translated into meaningful, profound change in both the legislative and executive branches of government. Bold action like this is needed to achieve the ideals of descriptive representation.</p>
<h2>Ensuring democracy thrives</h2>
<p>The principles of diversity, equity and inclusivity are important, and taking action so that Canadian politics are not dominated by one segment of society is necessary to democratize our institutions. Regardless of party affiliation, or political ideology, the urgency of now demands that those with power choose to challenge the status quo. </p>
<p>To ensure democracy thrives in Canada, politicians need to listen to the voices of those who are often on the margins of our political ecosystem and act accordingly. Gaining knowledge is a necessary first step, and men in positions of authority can help create a thriving democratic landscape by opening opportunities to people who are different than them. </p>
<p>A good place to start is for men to listen.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/156812/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Alex Marland is the primary investigator of an ongoing research project about Canadian parliamentarians who switch political parties, funded by an SSHRC Insight Grant. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Celina Caesar-Chavannes does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>If we are to transform the culture of Canadian political institutions, we must take immediate, deliberate and intentional action by engaging more women, BIPOC and marginalized people.Celina Caesar-Chavannes, Adjunct Lecturer, Faculty of Health Sciences, Queen's University, OntarioAlex Marland, Professor, Political Science, Memorial University of NewfoundlandLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1336702020-03-23T12:01:53Z2020-03-23T12:01:53ZAncient Greeks purged city-states of disease as they would a human body – and it was the most vulnerable that suffered<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/322028/original/file-20200320-22610-96s2wl.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C28%2C2052%2C1398&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">The Plague of Athens.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plague_of_Athens#/media/File:Plague_in_an_Ancient_City_LACMA_AC1997.10.1_(1_of_2).jpg">Michiel Sweerts/ Los Angeles County Museum of Art/Wikipedia</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>With the <a href="https://www.cnn.com/interactive/2020/health/coronavirus-maps-and-cases/">spread</a> of the coronavirus, the world is becoming pointedly aware of the extent to which human beings are <a href="https://www.globalhealthnow.org/2020-01/coronavirus-can-spread-human-contact">interconnected</a>. The rapid spread of the virus has highlighted how much we are dependent upon one another, not just for basic biological needs, but also for our sense of <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/mar/18/coronavirus-isolation-social-recession-physical-mental-health">belonging</a> and even <a href="https://www.uschamber.com/series/above-the-fold/quick-take-coronavirus-economic-impact">commerce</a>. </p>
<p>There’s nothing novel about this level of interdependence.</p>
<p>As <a href="https://www.birmingham.ac.uk/staff/profiles/tr/moss-candida.aspx">historians</a> of <a href="https://udayton.edu/directory/artssciences/religiousstudies/henning_meghan.php">early Christianity</a>, we know that from the sixth century B.C., people in the ancient Greek city-state, or polis, were acutely conscious of this dependence. They dealt with <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1201971207002123">disease spread</a> as a result of living in <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19787658">close quarters</a>.</p>
<p>The intimacy of human interaction meant that the city was seen not just as a community of co-dwellers, but as a kind of body. <a href="https://www.nationalgeographic.org/encyclopedia/greek-city-states/">The Greek city-state</a>, just like the human body, was protected by an outer layer.</p>
<p>The socially marginalized were most at threat when that body came under attack from disease – something that’s <a href="https://theconversation.com/coronavirus-could-hit-homeless-hard-and-that-could-hit-everyone-hard-133214">shared</a> in the situation today. </p>
<h2>The city as a body</h2>
<p>For the city-states, the boundary was the city walls. Patrolling who entered the body was important for cities as well as its people. </p>
<p>The way people thought about protecting the city-states was much the same as they envisioned defending the body from diseases. </p>
<p>If a city had suffered a disaster, such as a famine or a plague, like the body, it needed to be purged or cleansed with <a href="https://books.google.com/books?id=gLInnSVUELYC&pg=PA136&lpg=PA136&dq=Scholia+on+Aristophanes+Plutus+454&source=bl&ots=utclh8bmhN&sig=ACfU3U131CsYsJtXdowkWle3QzV9C-GAYg&hl=en&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjV-vquqKfoAhUFWs0KHfc9AUIQ6AEwAHoECAgQAQ#v=onepage&q=Scholia%20on%20Aristophanes%20Plutus%20454&f=false">blood or fire</a>. </p>
<p>The way to purify the polis was a ritual known as the “pharmakos.”</p>
<h2>Purifying the city</h2>
<p>The most detailed example of this ritual is found in fragments of a work by sixth-century Greek poet <a href="https://oxfordre.com/classics/view/10.1093/acrefore/9780199381135.001.0001/acrefore-9780199381135-e-3125">Hipponax</a>, who lived in Colophon, a city in Asia Minor – modern-day Turkey. </p>
<p>Often two people were selected, one male and one female, to serve as representatives of each gender. Later myths describe how those selected were usually society’s <a href="https://books.google.com/books?id=cFuADAAAQBAJ&pg=PA81&dq=kings+pharmakos&hl=en&newbks=1&newbks_redir=0&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwii5--c0KfoAhU-l3IEHcFCBeoQ6AEwAHoECAUQAg#v=onepage&q=kings%20pharmakos&f=false">elite</a> – kings, princes or virgins – who were to be sacrificed. </p>
<p>But the reality was very different. Modern-day <a href="https://chs.harvard.edu/CHS/article/display/4923.part-i-greece-12-aeschylus-little-ugly-one">surveys</a> of the phenomenon have concluded that the person selected was usually a prisoner, perhaps a criminal or perhaps a prisoner of war, a slave, a person with a disability or a social outcast. They were often described, for example by the 12th-century Byzantine poet, <a href="https://www.theoi.com/Text/TzetzesChiliades5.html">John Tzetzes</a>, as deformed or excessively ugly. </p>
<p>The playwright Aristophanes <a href="https://www.loebclassics.com/view/aristophanes-knights/1998/pb_LCL178.223.xml">writes</a> in “Knights” that they were “exceedingly low-born, penniless, and useless.” Anonymous ancient <a href="https://books.google.com/books?id=Gf-SDQAAQBAJ&pg=PT270&lpg=PT270&dq=pharmakos+mis-treated+by+nature&source=bl&ots=MFVquVtHWs&sig=ACfU3U23j6uXpmmio3DDiqICvfxu38cP6A&hl=en&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwiU_JOKxqfoAhVrmXIEHTwnBTcQ6AEwAnoECAcQAQ#v=onepage&q=pharmakos%20mis-treated%20by%20nature&f=false">commentary</a> on this passage suggests that it was those “mistreated by nature” that were targets for the rituals.</p>
<figure class="align-left zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/321998/original/file-20200320-22632-qks3km.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/321998/original/file-20200320-22632-qks3km.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/321998/original/file-20200320-22632-qks3km.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=875&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/321998/original/file-20200320-22632-qks3km.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=875&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/321998/original/file-20200320-22632-qks3km.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=875&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/321998/original/file-20200320-22632-qks3km.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1099&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/321998/original/file-20200320-22632-qks3km.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1099&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/321998/original/file-20200320-22632-qks3km.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1099&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Aristophanes.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/alun/38029348">Alun Salt</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/">CC BY-NC-SA</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>This person would be fed with the poor-quality food of slaves. He or she would then be beaten with twigs from a wild fig tree and driven out of the city. </p>
<p>In some cases, the pharmakos victims were not only beaten and exiled, they were also killed. The second-century A.D. author Philostratus tells us that in one outbreak of plague in Ephesus, <a href="https://www.loebclassics.com/view/LCL016/2005/volume.xml">a beggar was stoned to death</a>. </p>
<p>It was believed that this ritual expulsion of the pharmakos <a href="https://www.theoi.com/Text/TzetzesChiliades5.html">served to cleanse</a> the city from the famines or plagues that afflicted it. </p>
<p>According to the classicist <a href="https://rug.academia.edu/JanBremmer">Jan Bremmer</a>, rituals like this <a href="https://books.google.com/books?id=0tPjVJF8roYC&pg=PA57&dq=jan+bremmer+scapegoat+rituals&hl=en&newbks=1&newbks_redir=0&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwimiPXrxqfoAhUXhXIEHRDKBJsQ6AEwAXoECAEQAg#v=onepage&q=jan%20bremmer%20scapegoat%20rituals&f=false">took place throughout</a> the Greco-Roman world. </p>
<h2>Medical language</h2>
<p>What is noteworthy is that at its root, the meaning of the Greek word “pharmakos” is “drug,” either a healing remedy or a poison. It is unclear to <a href="https://books.google.com/books?id=gLInnSVUELYC&pg=PA136&lpg=PA136&dq=Scholia+on+Aristophanes+Plutus+454&source=bl&ots=utclh8bmhN&sig=ACfU3U131CsYsJtXdowkWle3QzV9C-GAYg&hl=en&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjV-vquqKfoAhUFWs0KHfc9AUIQ6AEwAHoECAgQAQ#v=onepage&q=Scholia%20on%20Aristophanes%20Plutus%20454&f=false">modern scholars</a> whether the person designated as a pharmakos was viewed as a poison and the root of the city’s problems or if they were seen as the city’s cure. </p>
<p>In either case, the word pharmakos describes the ritual in explicitly medical language. </p>
<p>This dual nature of the pharmakos is in keeping with ancient medical understandings of drugs as being extremely powerful and having the ability to both <a href="https://brill.com/view/title/14981">kill and cure</a>. </p>
<h2>Parallels with today</h2>
<p>This account of the Greek polis shows us that the protection of the body of the city-state depended on the sacrifice of the socially downtrodden, which has parallels with the situation today. </p>
<p>The most effective way of remaining relatively safe from the coronavirus is practicing social distancing. But that can be done only by those who have jobs that provide them with paid sick leave or the flexibility to work remotely.</p>
<p>For the homeless, hourly wage earners and some others, this is not an option. In China, rural migrant workers, who already faced financial pressures, are now unable to find work in major urban areas because of fear that they might be carrying <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/02/23/business/economy/coronavirus-china-migrant-workers.html?auth=login-google">the virus</a>. </p>
<p>In the United States, the poor are <a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2019/03/typhus-tuberculosis-medieval-diseases-spreading-homeless/584380/">most susceptible</a> to the most negative consequences of a <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/26400564">public health crisis</a>. They are also the ones most likely to face increased inequalities as a result of the <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/03/15/world/europe/coronavirus-inequality.html?searchResultPosition=1">pandemic</a>. </p>
<p>Today’s escalating public health emergency invites us to think critically about social values that many of us might think we had left in the past – although they exist very much in the present. </p>
<p>[<em>You’re too busy to read everything. We get it. That’s why we’ve got a weekly newsletter.</em> <a href="https://theconversation.com/us/newsletters/weekly-highlights-61?utm_source=TCUS&utm_medium=inline-link&utm_campaign=newsletter-text&utm_content=weeklybusy">Sign up for good Sunday reading.</a> ]</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/133670/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>The authors do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>The Greeks treated their city-states like bodies. To protect them from disasters, it was the poor that were often sacrificed.Meghan Henning, Assistant Professor of Christian Origins, University of DaytonCandida Moss, Cadbury Professor of Theology, University of BirminghamLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1209642019-12-11T13:18:02Z2019-12-11T13:18:02Z5 new ways for schools to work with families<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/304474/original/file-20191129-95264-1e5lwmf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">A new way is needed for schools to engage with parents.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/home">Shutterstock</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Text messages, email alerts, open houses, fundraising appeals, robocalls – parents know the drill. They are inundated with requests from children’s schools.</p>
<p>These missives aren’t really asking for engagement. Rather they can be viewed as ways for educators to tell parents what they should do to support their students or the school. These experiences can <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.3102/0091732x12459718">inadvertently communicate that schools alone know what’s best for children</a> – and parents should listen and follow directions, a dynamic especially present in schools serving working-class communities of color.</p>
<p>As <a href="https://ais.washington.edu/people/megan-bang">scholars</a> and <a href="https://www.colorado.edu/education/michelle-renee-valladares">parents</a>, my colleagues and <a href="https://education.uw.edu/people/faculty/aishi">I</a> research the intersection of families, schools and racial inequities. We have learned new ways for schools and families to work together to help realize children’s potential. And the answer isn’t fundraising, checking the latest school app or listening to robo-calls.</p>
<p>Research tells us that families play a <a href="https://www.nap.edu/catalog/21868/parenting-matters-supporting-parents-of-children-ages-0-8">critically important role</a> in the educational success of their children. We also know from <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Bicultural-Parent-Engagement-Advocacy-Empowerment/dp/0807752649">research that schools</a> typically expect parents and families of color to conform to the values and behaviors of white, middle-class parents.</p>
<p>The hitch is that families of color don’t always participate in the ways schools expect. <a href="https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1548-1492.2011.01148.x">Histories of distrust and conflict</a> often exist between families of color and schools.</p>
<p>We know, for example, that there are <a href="https://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ocr/docs/crdc-2015-16.html">well-documented racial disparities in discipline referrals</a>, in <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.3102/0013189X07308253?casa_token=QBNbqzfriG8AAAAA%3AaBBtEm42hm90DyubnZz-jDGxFr6-_qfAC4utlSiTIK9MT_wqkpETLbSo7lFsHIASs4EYRiqmD9zK">access to high-quality</a> teachers and instruction, and in resources and <a href="https://www.apa.org/monitor/2016/11/cover-inequality-school">robust learning opportunities</a>. But when parents raise questions about racial bias and inequities, their questioning, our research <a href="https://faculty.washington.edu/rsoder/EDUC310/310lareauhorvatmomentssocialinclusion.pdf">and other work</a> has shown, it is rarely well received by educators and school leaders.</p>
<p>Rather than acknowledging these well-documented tensions and revising expectations, educators can interpret behaviors that deviate from their expectations as evidence that there’s something wrong or lacking in families of color. <a href="https://www.jstor.org/stable/3651334?read-now=1&seq=1#page_scan_tab_contents">A study</a> by Dr. John Diamond and his colleagues found that when teachers decide parents don’t care or are interfering with their professional authority, they tend to feel less responsible for those students’ learning. These assumptions rely on age-old narratives that <a href="https://www.edweek.org/ew/articles/2018/06/29/blaming-parents-of-color-for-their-own.html?cmp=RSS-FEED">implicitly blame families of color</a> – and have negative consequences, especially for Native American, black, Latinx, Pacific Islander and some Asian students.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/305685/original/file-20191206-90609-250e4j.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/305685/original/file-20191206-90609-250e4j.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/305685/original/file-20191206-90609-250e4j.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/305685/original/file-20191206-90609-250e4j.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/305685/original/file-20191206-90609-250e4j.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=502&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/305685/original/file-20191206-90609-250e4j.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=502&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/305685/original/file-20191206-90609-250e4j.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=502&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A parent-teacher conference.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://flickr.com/photos/innovationschool/8048216332/">flickr.com</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/">CC BY-NC</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Catalyzed by a charge from the 2014 White House Symposium on Transformative Family Engagement, we have been working on a different set of approaches to co-design more “<a href="https://www.tcpress.com/just-schools-9780807763193">just schools</a>” with families. Based on the research of <a href="http://familydesigncollab.org/">our national network of scholars and family leaders, Family Leadership Design Collaborative</a>, schools and policymakers can approach families differently. They can:</p>
<p><strong>1. Start with families’ and communities’ priorities, not the school’s agenda.</strong></p>
<p>Families and communities need to be the architects of their own futures. That means starting with family stories, experiences, knowledge and cultural practices. That might mean recognizing negative histories with schools before jumping to solutions. For example, in Chicago’s urban Indigenous community, families discussed the trauma of boarding schools and the erasure of Indigenous communities. They also shared their ancestral knowledge and stories of raising children to envision what education would be required to raise “good elders.” Parents in another district shared experiences of positive relationships with teachers but also their frustrations dealing with bullying and racism at the school. </p>
<p>After sharing these experiences, they developed <a href="https://education.uw.edu/sites/default/files/programs/epsc/ParentCurriculum-FINAL-Print.pdf">a curriculum for other parents</a> to help them build relationships with each other to address issues of bullying and to support positive racial and cultural identities for their children. </p>
<p><strong>2. Recognize and treat families of color as experts on their own children.</strong></p>
<p>When schools help families build relationships with each other and recognize their expertise, they can become powerful leaders in school change. In Los Angeles, black and Latinx parent leaders with the organizing group <a href="http://cadre-la.org/">CADRE</a> changed the discipline policies in the district. And yet, based on our research, parents of color still felt blamed and judged in everyday conversations with teachers and principals about discipline – and there had been little change in the pipeline from school to prison, especially for black boys. Now those parent leaders are collaborating with faculty at UCLA to help new teachers reshape everyday conversations to be less about blame and more about enabling parents to share their expertise on their own children. </p>
<p><strong>3. Give families and communities the resources, time and space to envision solutions, not just share their pain.</strong></p>
<p>Listening sessions can be powerful but limiting. Families share their traumas with educators, but school leaders ultimately decide what to do with what they heard. <a href="https://nepc.colorado.edu/sites/default/files/publications/PM%20Family%20Leadership_0.pdf">Our research shows</a> how families can be part of designing solutions if they are provided the time, space and resources to do so. For example, in Salt Lake City, a school decision-making body supposedly included parents, but families of color experienced meetings as alienating and exclusionary. We found rather than airing those negative experiences and expecting policymakers to do something, parents, teachers, principals, researchers and district leaders imagined what a productive council would be like and started to enact those changes. They got the legislature to let them use funds for outreach to more diverse families. They created a comic to share with parents whose first language wasn’t English. They are developing a training for educators on the councils to learn how to engage differently. And they envisioned spaces prior to formal council meetings for parents to come together to discuss what their schools need most.</p>
<p><strong>4. Help families and educators learn to facilitate meetings across racial, cultural and other differences.</strong></p>
<p>According to the <a href="https://www2.ed.gov/rschstat/eval/highered/racial-diversity/state-racial-diversity-workforce.pdf">U.S. Department of Education</a>, most teachers and leaders in the U.S. are white, and a growing majority of students and their families are from communities of color. Collaborating across lines of race, culture and roles requires skillful facilitation. Real tensions emerge between people and ideas in equity work. School and parent leaders need to be able to intervene in tense interactions. That might be as simple as asking educators to slow down, listen more and use fewer acronyms. But imbalances of power often require skilled facilitation, like what to do when one loud voice dominates the conversation or when white parents inadvertently disregard parents of color. </p>
<p>Even parents of color can reinforce these narratives. For instance, one group of immigrant parents in a diversifying suburban district voiced a belief that other immigrant families are focused on meeting their immediate needs and don’t care about their children’s education. The facilitator at this session could have gone with this simplistic explanation that blamed parents for disparate opportunities – a stereotype that empirical research has proven wrong. Instead, the facilitator leaned into the tension and shared her own challenges as a working parent who was often away from her child. Her vulnerability challenged the discourse of blame, and parents began to strategize about how they could better support each other collectively. Such facilitation skills must be learned, and schools and systems need to invest in developing those capacities. </p>
<p><strong>5. Ensure families have real influence on important educational decisions</strong></p>
<p>School and district leaders in our study came to see the routine decisions they made in their jobs as critical opportunities for family and community influence. Educational leaders redesigned key decisions that impacted students and families, especially those marginalized by typical processes. </p>
<p>For instance, one principal supervisor in an urban district redesigned the hiring process for a new principal with students, families and teachers in the school. He enlisted a colleague who helped families discuss the broken trust they felt with the district due to prior decisions, then they collectively designed their own questions for principal candidates. They held separate student, family and teacher interview panels, then proposed their top choice (which was unanimous, in this case). The district hired that principal, and several families wrote letters to the school board about how the process helped repair their broken trust with the district. </p>
<p>These and other actions laid out in our <a href="https://nepc.colorado.edu/sites/default/files/publications/PM%20Family%20Leadership_0.pdf">full policy memo</a> can recast families and communities as essential collaborators in fostering equitable schools and educational systems. </p>
<p>[ <em>Deep knowledge, daily.</em> <a href="https://theconversation.com/us/newsletters?utm_source=TCUS&utm_medium=inline-link&utm_campaign=newsletter-text&utm_content=deepknowledge">Sign up for The Conversation’s newsletter</a>. ]</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/120964/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Ann M. Ishimaru receives funding from W.K. Kellogg Foundation for the research on which this is based</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Megan Bang receives funding from the W.K. Kellogg Foundation for research on family engagement.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Michelle Valladares receives funding from the W.K. Kellogg Foundation for the research on which this is based.</span></em></p>School officials can do a better job engaging families of color. Here are five ways for them to start.Ann M. Ishimaru, Associate Professor, University of WashingtonMegan Bang, Professor of Learning Sciences and Psychology, Northwestern UniversityMichelle Valladares, Associate Director of the National Education Policy Center, University of Colorado BoulderLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1082152018-12-06T22:35:06Z2018-12-06T22:35:06ZWhy Tumblr’s ban on adult content is bad for LGBTQ youth<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/249095/original/file-20181205-186064-znm157.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Tumblr's new rules will likely shut much of the LGBTQ youth activity. Here a chaptered LGBTQ youth themed comic on Tumblr. </span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://scroll.in/magazine/820758/tamil-muslim-queer-a-new-webcomic-is-making-waves-on-tumblr">Akshay Varaham</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>As of Dec. 17, Tumblr will no longer allow “<a href="https://tumblr.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/231885248-Sensitive-content">adult content</a>,” defined as that which shows “real-life human genitals or female-presenting nipples, and any content — including photos, videos, GIFs and illustrations — that depicts sex acts.” </p>
<p>Before this, the platform’s lenient policies contrasted significantly with those of Facebook and Instagram, which have stricter content moderation guidelines.</p>
<p>This update follows <a href="https://www.theverge.com/2018/11/20/18104366/tumblr-ios-app-child-pornography-removed-from-app-store">the removal of Tumblr’s app from Apple’s app store</a> after child pornography was found on the platform. However, it also reflects broader changes following <a href="https://techcrunch.com/2017/06/13/verizon-closes-4-5b-acquisition-of-yahoo-marissa-mayer-resigns-memo/">Verizon’s acquisition of Yahoo, Tumblr’s parent company</a>. </p>
<p>Katrin Tiidenberg, a researcher who has studied self-expression on Tumblr, conjectures that this change may have <a href="https://qz.com/1482821/tumblr-is-banning-porn-and-other-adult-content/?fbclid=IwAR3jp5ey6pBjeHkS7zuK2En4AgOLnBPSDvMY1wJDtovZiqH0f6XFCDv7MyA">more to do with advertising sales than protecting users</a>. Regardless of Tumblr’s motives, this update will seriously affect LGBTQ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer) youth who rely on Tumblr and its communities for self-discovery and support.</p>
<h2>‘Safer’ online spaces</h2>
<p>Since LGBTQ identities have often been stigmatized, the internet has been pivotal in helping those with diverse gender and sexual identities learn about themselves and find each other. Tumblr has provided a safe space for this through <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/1461444814530095?journalCode=nmsa">many of its key features</a> (e.g. pseudonymous accounts, reblogging) and the communities it attracts. </p>
<p>Given this, it’s not surprising that a large Australian survey found <a href="https://theconversation.com/theres-something-queer-about-tumblr-73520">LGBTQ youth use Tumblr much more frequently</a> than the rest of the population. Many respondents indicated content on Tumblr broadened their understanding of sexuality and gender and facilitated self-acceptance.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/249094/original/file-20181205-186076-jhdl73.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/249094/original/file-20181205-186076-jhdl73.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/249094/original/file-20181205-186076-jhdl73.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/249094/original/file-20181205-186076-jhdl73.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/249094/original/file-20181205-186076-jhdl73.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/249094/original/file-20181205-186076-jhdl73.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/249094/original/file-20181205-186076-jhdl73.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The Tumblr logo is displayed at Nasdaq in New York in July 2013.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">(AP Photo/Mark Lennihan)</span></span>
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<p>Tumblr has served as an essential outlet for LGBTQ youth <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/1461444817744784">in relation to other popular platforms</a>. Alexander Cho, a postdoctoral fellow at UC Irvine, has written about Tumblr’s “<a href="https://books.google.ca/books?hl=en&lr=&id=fwhgBwAAQBAJ&oi=fnd&pg=PA43&dq=info:iDBYz-2X89cJ:scholar.google.com&ots=R0eH_nlm8L&sig=UYbWnpPprhl2FuSkM8D5YW4viSY&redir_esc=y#v=onepage&q&f=false">queer ecosystem</a>” where “users circulate porn, flirt, provide support to deal with homophobia as well as advice on coming out…” Cho has found that queer youth of colour experience Facebook as a space of “<a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/1461444817744784">default publicness</a>” and prefer Tumblr for sharing intimate and personal content.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/porn-not-to-blame-for-public-health-issues-82116">Porn not to blame for public health issues</a>
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<p>LGBTQ people have also found Tumblr to be powerful for self-representation. Through sophisticated <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/15295036.2015.1130846">hashtagging practices</a>, transgender people share art, stories and <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/1527476413505002">engage in dialogue</a> that challenges cisgender norms. </p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/explainer-what-does-it-mean-to-be-cisgender-103159">Explainer: what does it mean to be 'cisgender'?</a>
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<p>Researcher Tim Highfield and I have explored how <a href="https://spir.aoir.org/index.php/spir/article/view/1092">sharing queer GIFs</a> – short, looping media — not only allows LGBTQ youth to engage in Tumblr’s fan communities but also playfully displays queer culture <em>en masse</em>. This broad representation of LGBTQ identities may dissuade homophobic harassment, as some of the <a href="https://eprints.qut.edu.au/111892/">queer women I’ve interviewed</a> perceive less discrimination on Tumblr.</p>
<h2>What’s porn got to do with it?</h2>
<p>Porn is a portion of the multiple forms of media resonating among LGBTQ users. This media allows them to knit together non-mainstream identities and survive in a world where heterosexuality is ubiquitously portrayed across social media and broadcast outlets.</p>
<p>Not all LGBTQ content contains genitals, “female-presenting nipples” or sex acts, but not all content with these elements constitutes what we would generally think of as pornography. Much of the sexualized content circulated among LGBTQ Tumblr users make available depictions of sexuality that are frequently rendered invisible or marginalized. </p>
<p>These can take the form of fan art, remixed film clips of sensual embraces and selfies. This media allows LGBTQ people to see themselves as sexual beings — something that is particularly important for young people developing a sense of sexual and gender identity.</p>
<p>Even if you disagree with teenagers accessing this type of content, Tumblr’s new policy bans it for everyone regardless of age. Formerly, users could voluntarily mark their blogs as “NSFW” (Not Safe for Work) if they posted occasional nudity and “adult” if posting substantial nudity. This provided <a href="http://culturedigitally.org/2013/07/tumblr-nsfw-porn-blogging-and-the-challenge-of-checkpoints/">a sort of checkpoint</a> to hinder younger users in accessing this content. </p>
<p>Now even adults won’t be able to access “adult content.” This means that young people over 18, who may be facing formative life changes, like starting post-secondary education or moving away from home, won’t have access to media that may help them learn about their identity and feel supported while doing so.</p>
<h2>Commercial platforms shape culture</h2>
<p>Strict content moderation policies tend to have negative outcomes for already marginalized users. In my research with Jean Burgess and Nicolas Suzor, we found that <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/1354856518781530">some queer women experienced Instagram’s content moderation as overly stringent.</a></p>
<p>Instagram asks users to report content and responds through automated mechanisms. Therefore, queer women’s content was subject to removal based on other users’ whims and the banning of certain hashtags like #lesbian. Tumblr’s new updates promise a similar mixture of user reporting and automated content detection tools.</p>
<p>Several scholars have begun to critically examine how <a href="https://yalebooks.yale.edu/book/9780300173130/custodians-internet">platforms’ decisions shape our social and cultural norms</a>. </p>
<p>In Canada, <a href="https://www.ppforum.ca/publications/poisoning-democracy-what-can-be-done-about-harmful-speech-online/">Chris Tenove, Heidi Tworek and Fenwick McKelvey</a> have pointed out that content moderation is not standardized and lacks federal oversight. Platforms often apply content moderation categories, such as “adult content,” without transparency or accountability. </p>
<p>Tumblr’s <a href="https://staff.tumblr.com/post/180758987165/a-better-more-positive-tumblr">CEO, Jeff D’Onofrio, said</a>: “There are no shortage of sites on the internet that feature adult content. We will leave it to them and focus our efforts on creating the most welcoming environment possible for our community.” </p>
<p>It seems that with this new change, youth who want to encounter sexual content will need to relocate. While some young people may turn to pornography sites, many of these sites are not designed with diverse sexual and gender identities in mind. </p>
<p>Youth entering these sites may be more likely to encounter stigmatized, stereotypical and demeaning representations of women and transgender people. Even LGBTQ-friendly pornography sites don’t have the elaborate community networks unique to Tumblr. </p>
<p>Such communities help youth to make sense of sexual content in relation to who they are becoming as they grow up. Tumblr’s decision means LGBTQ youth will have one less outlet where they can learn about sexual identity and gain support from peers who are like them and sharing content for them.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/108215/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Stefanie Duguay does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>LGBTQ youth use Tumblr more frequently than others. The platform has provided a safe space for youth to explore sexual identities and find crucial support. A new regulating policy may change all that.Stefanie Duguay, Assistant Professor, Concordia UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.