BU Research Blog

BU Women’s Academic Network (WAN) launches its Gender Research Seminar Series on Wednesday 28^thNovember 1.30-3.30 (Room: Fusion 112). The inaugural seminar addresses gender, race and ethnicity, and celebrates the excellent work of two BU women academics: Dr Deborah Gabriel and Dr Hyun-Joo Lim.

Dr Gabriel is a senior lecturer in politics, media & communication and co-author of Inside the Ivory Tower: Narratives of Women of Colour Surviving and Thriving in British Academia. Her seminar presentation is entitled:Inside the Ivory Tower: Advancing a Black Feminist Strategy for Race and Gender Equality. The abstract is as follows:

Gender – like other facets of identity have always been approached institutionally from a monocultural standpoint, through essentialised categories that make up ‘protected’ characteristics within Equality and Diversity policy. This has contributed to the exclusion, invisibility and stagnant career progress of women of colour, since their needs are only considered as an afterthought. This has led to tokenistic efforts centred on ‘promoting diversity’ rather than strategic interventions to address barriers to equality, especially in relation to White privilege. In this presentation, Deborah Gabriel discusses Black British Academics’ Ivory Tower project, designed to promote critical consciousness and agency – key themes within a Black Feminist standpoint and important components for developing a critical race strategy to facilitate an intersectional agenda for race equality.

Dr Hyun-Joo Limis a senior lecturer in sociology and author of East Asian Mothers in Britain: An Intersectional Exploration of Motherhood and Employment. Her presentation is entitled: No freedom: the abuse and inhumane experiences of women inside and outside North Korea. The abstract is as follows:

North Korean women are routinely subject to systemic human rights abuse and sexual violation inside and outside North Korea. As a result of the strong influence of Confucian patriarchy, women inside North Korea face a violation of basic rights and inequality on a daily basis. In addition, for the many who successfully escape their country to gain a better life and overcome hunger, the search for freedom is just as tough, as they are frequently abducted, sold and exploited by traffickers. In this presentation I will talk about my research on North Korean female defectors living in the UK and the systemic human rights abuse they experienced both inside and outside their homeland, specifically in China.

The seminar is open to all. If you wish to attend please email the co-conveners of WAN so that we can keep track of numbers.

Jayne Caudwell: jcaudwell@bournemouth.ac.uk

Lorraine Brown: LBrown@bournemouth.ac.uk

Francis Hawkhead: fhawkhead@bournemouth.ac.uk