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Member
Profiles
As is the case
most years, I came away from last November's
ASC meetings with many new friends and renewed
friendships (a continued testament to the value
of DWC). I am privileged to present just a small
sample of these fine scholars here. Rest assured,
however, that many more are sure to come (if
I didn't get you this time, consider this fair
warning).
I hope you will
find the following profiles to be wonderfully
inspirational, courageous, honest, and at times,
a little amusing! Thank you Kim, Jeanne, Deborah,
Ruth, and Venessa for taking the time out of
your always-hectic schedules to answer my questions.
If you haven't
already signed up to contribute to this column,
please just email me and I'll send you the details
for the next issue (angie.moe@wmich.edu).
In Peace,
Angie
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Kimberly J. Cook
Associate Professor of Criminology, University
of Southern Maine
1) What has
been your involvement in the American Society
of Criminology? The Division on Women and Crime?
Other ASC divisions?
I joined the Division
on Women and Crime in 1989, when I attended
my first ASC conference. I felt quite naïve,
actually, because I was taken by surprise at
the degree to which men were expressing 'interest'
in my academic work. Later, I learned mine was
not an isolated event, and became rather suspicious
of this feigned 'interest.' Certainly not all
the men I met at the conference that year had
ulterior motives, but several did and it dampened
my interest in criminology until I discovered
the Division. Since I first began reading in
the area of women's studies and feminist theory,
I've identified myself as a feminist and with
my experiences as a formerly battered woman
and single mother on welfare my feminist commitments
were galvanized. I was surprised that some men
faculty attending the conference would treat
me with such disregard, because in each university
where I had been a student I experienced the
men professors to be respectful and pro-feminist
so I naively assumed that all men professors
were like that. It was empowering to discuss
this experience with others from within the
Division and realize that my experience here
was not unique. As with most experiences of
exploitation, if it remains an "isolated
incident" then the exploited person is
left feeling that she brought this on herself,
or that there's something specific about her
that provoked this, and worst of all, that she's
not worthy of human dignity. When exploited
people come together to discuss and mobilize
around these injustices, then we are all stronger
and better equipped to reject that self-denigrating
assumption. My awareness around these gender
dynamics was also cemented at other professional
conferences such as the American Sociological
Association. Because of this, I and others organized
a day-long conference called Sociologists Against
Sexual Harassment in 1992 at the Society for
the Study of Social Problems conference. With
support from the Division on Women and Crime,
we were able to organize some support-group
sessions for women in the ASC over the years
and that has also been very helpful to so many
of us.
2) Why/how did
you get into this field and why do you stay
in it? (i.e., What drives you?)
I got into criminology
as a graduate student studying violence against
women. It seemed ineffective to me to study
violence against women without incorporating
the political dimension that feminist perspectives
entail. It is important to understand the psychological
impacts of such trauma and the psychological
motives for men who are batterers, yet the psychological
research didn't satisfy my scholar/activist
urges to know "why do men keep getting
away with it?" This seemed to me to be
a broader question of social control, punitive
responses, and male privilege. For decades the
modern women's movement has been trying to engage
with the criminal justice system to address
violence against women as a serious crime. I
applaud much of the awareness-raising that has
been going on with this issue over the year.
On the other hand, I am deeply concerned that
by relying on the criminal justice system as
our "solution" to the problem of violence
against women we're missing the big picture:
heterosexism, racism, classism, etc. Studies
have shown that the policing solution to violence
against women has exacerbated other problems
of racism, and classism. The "law and order"
agenda has coopted crimes against women in order
to further the net-widening and net-tightening
without digging into the crucial questions that
feminist criminology tends to raise: what about
economic marginalization of women? What about
political voicelessness among women? What about
the intersection of race/class/gender and sexual
orientation as contributing factors to the epidemic
of violence in our society? What about the displays
of 'firepower' by the state against our 'enemies'
that result in decimated communities around
the world? What about economic policies that
deny people human dignity? What about geo-political
global practices that put corporate greed ahead
of human need? These are all necessary questions
for feminist criminologists to ask, explore,
and ANSWER in our papers, books, journal articles,
and activism. I guess this is what motivates
me still; I cannot separate the battering of
one woman from the battering ram of the state
to impose its will and inflict its pain on massive
numbers of people. I see them as tandem forces
that reinforce oppressive conditions.
3) How do you
define yourself as a scholar/activist/educator?
I define myself
as an anti-punitive globally oriented, locally
active, feminist scholar. Though most of my
published research has not been explicitly about
violence against women (rather, it has been
examining the connective tissue of abortion
policies and capital punishment practices, and
lately more about restorative justice), I cannot
separate myself from the younger version of
myself who was battered, raped, and left to
raise a child alone within the economic controls
of the welfare system. So, when I speak publicly
to support legislation for single mothers going
to college, or to oppose capital punishment,
or to support reproductive rights, or to promote
humane policies within the criminal justice
system, I do so with the ever-present realities
that my personal experience and academic training
are part of the credibility I have to make these
public statements. It may be trite to recall
C. Wright Mills famous quip "the personal
is political", but I do believe that's
the case. As a feminist professor, my presence
in the classroom is political. My writings are
political, and my life is an expression of political
resistance against oppression. Of course, the
tougher question to ask oneself is "how
does my existence contribute to oppression?"
As a white woman in the United States, I am
a beneficiary of racial privileges that I did
not earn; and now as a professor rather than
welfare recipient, I am a beneficiary of class
privilege. I do my best to be reflective on
these privileges, and remain aware of them as
I use the voice I have to question these structures.
4) What are
your current projects or interests?
I am currently
seeking funding to do research on life histories
of innocent people condemned to death. With
Saundra Westervelt at the University of North
Carolina, Greensboro, I am hoping to begin collecting
data on this project in the next few months.
I am also currently working on further developing
my specialization in restorative justice. Having
spent six months in Australia as a Fulbright
scholar (I am one of three feminist criminologists
who have gone to Australia on a Fulbright Scholarship
- the others are Kathy Daly and Claire Renzetti),
I was able to observe restorative justice programs
there. I intend to continue researching in that
area and writing in that area for many years.
In fact, I expect that my second book will be
on RJ. Other projects I have underway include
content analysis of editorial/political cartoons
on capital punishment in the United States (with
Chris Powell) and on-going writing examining
shelter services for battered women (with Denise
Donnelly).
5) Do you have
any kids, pets, and/or significant partner?
I have a son who
is going to be 22 this year. His name is Greg,
and he's a political radical, he's also a musician
and plays Afro-Caribbean music (especially percussion).
Give him stuff to bang around and he'll make
music! I have two cats (Jericho, who is in the
picture with me, and Boo who is a tortoise shell
cat). We may be getting a puppy in the next
month or so, too. My partner is Chris Powell,
who is a British critical criminologist. Chris
just moved here from Wales last year and we're
enjoying our new home which is remote, rural,
and relaxing.
6) How do you
wind down after a stressful day?
This is going to
sound really cheesy, but I watch two soaps.
One is the American soap, The Bold and the Beautiful
and the other is an Australian soap called Home
and Away. The Australian soap has to be taped
overseas and sent to Maine because it's not
broadcast in the US. I hope that readers who
object to soaps as anti-feminist don't judge
me too harshly on this. I also like to watch
movies and read novels.
7) What is your
most embarrassing moment (if willing to share)?
Having one of my
professors in graduate school come into the
bathroom while I was on the toilet. This professor
didn't know anyone was in there, and the lock
in the bathroom was broken. Talk about a red
face!
8) What is your
favorite word? Least favorite?
My favorite for
the moment is a word I picked up in Australia
"bugger!" when said with the right
tone of voice can mean "oh shit!"
but without being quite so crass. My least favorite
word at the moment is "Bush" as in
President-Select Bush.
9) What is one
of your lifelong goals or dreams?
To abolish the
death penalty.
10) Anything
else you'd like to share?
Yes, I want to
express my deep appreciation for the friends
I have in the Division on Women and Crime. Mona,
Nancy, both Joannes, Helen, Claire, Betsy, Deb,
Susan (all of the Susans), Becky, Nicky, Danielle,
Angie, Marjorie, Jeanne, Meda, and everyone
else who has joined the Division and anyone
else who will join the Division. Thanks! You're
my heroes.
Jeanne Flavin
Associate Professor of Anthropology and Sociology,
Fordham University, Bronx, NY
1) What has
been your involvement in the American Society
of Criminology? The Division on Women and Crime?
Other ASC divisions?
I only became involved
in the DWC a few years ago. I had "lurked"
at business meetings at the suggestion of a
friend, and eventually, in San Diego, I joined
a group of women for dinner. It kind of evolved
from there as I became braver about talking
to people and consequently, enlarged my circle
of acquaintances.
2) Why/how did
you get into this field and why do you stay
in it? (i.e., What drives you?)
How I wound up
studying criminal justice is too complicated
of a story, involving England, a homeless shelter,
the Defense Department, and an AIDS hospice.
I chose to study at American U because it had
a good justice, law and society program. I stayed
there because of people like Mona Danner and
Bette Dickerson. I like my field well enough,
but often regret not pursuing a career in journalism
or public health where it seems more opportunities
exist to influence attitudes, behaviors, and
policies.
3) How do you
define yourself as a scholar/activist/educator?
I'm a feminist.
I love the autonomy and freedom an academic
life affords, though I miss the day-to-day opportunities
for collaboration that one might find at a non-profit
or a research institute. In 2003-04, I hope
to spend part of my sabbatical working outside
of New York City with kindred spirits. At best,
I practice an "everyday activism."
I'm fond of telling my students that getting
out of bed in the morning and committing to
live another day as a decent human being is
a form of activism. Ideally, I would like for
my scholarship to inform policy, at least in
some small way. I teach at Fordham (a Jesuit
university) at the main campus in the Bronx.
There are a lot of middle class students as
well as many who are first-generation college
attendees. I want my students to feel challenged
to "do great things, or to do small things
with great passion." I hope they know I'm
confident in their ability to leave their mark
on the world, how proud I am of their achievements
. . . I can't imagine too many occupations that
are as simultaneously exhilarating and humbling
as teaching. (Unless it's research!)
4) What are
your current projects or interests?
I'm mainly interested
in the ways in which entities of official governmental
control (including, but not limited to the CJS)
impact vulnerable populations. My current projects
examine how our current laws and punishment
practices affect women, especially poor women
and their right to bear and raise children,
and women family members of offenders. I also
have a longstanding concern with our responses
to drug addiction and substance abuse. In particular,
I have enjoyed working with a non-profit which
provides services to paroled drug users and
their families on New York's Lower East Side.
5) Do you have
any kids, pets, and/or significant partner?
No pets. No kids.
Last year I ended a 6.5 year relationship and
have recently started seeing "Pierre,"
who is a pretty amazing person. When it's not
ripping your heart out, love is great.
6) How do you
wind down after a stressful day?
Often I call a
friend and have a cigarette. I might grab a
drink or walk to a bookstore or a coffee shop
and hang out. Sometimes I just take a really
hot shower and go to bed.
7) What is your
most embarrassing moment (if willing to share)?
It's not even close
to being my most embarrassing moment, but it
is one which allows me to retain a shred of
dignity. I served on a jury for a murder trial
here in New York City. One morning, outside
the courthouse I noticed a long-haired man getting
coffee from a kiosk. Was that Ron Kuby? (A prominent
public defender known for taking on unpopular
cases, a left-leaning, right-minded thinker.)
A few minutes later, I'm upstairs outside the
courtroom and who should be striding down the
hall but this same long-haired guy, with an
entourage of legal assistants surrounding him.
It's definitely my hero, Ron Kuby. He sees me,
and recognizes me as the woman who'd been gawking
at him outside. He pauses and says "hello"
whereby, do I say, "Mr. Kuby, I want to
thank you for taking on unpopular causes"?
Or "Mr. Kuby, I respect and admire your
work"? Noooo. I proceed to gush - and I
mean gush - like a schoolgirl, "Ron Kuby!
I'm your BIGGEST fan!" He was sweet, though.
He treated me like a harmless but slightly insane
client, taking my hand and saying gently, "Thank
you, that's nice to hear."
8) What is your
favorite word? Least favorite?
Favorite word?
Hegemony. Least favorite? Seminal.
9) What is one
of your lifelong goals or dreams?
Short-term goals:
To spend at least part of next year's sabbatical
outside of NYC doing socially meaningful work
with good and decent people (all invitations
seriously considered). To publish an op-ed piece
in the New York Times.
Lifelong dreams: To publish a collection of
essays/social commentary. To take one good photograph,
to draw one good sketch, to write one good poem,
to publish one short story.
Deborah Burris-Kitchen,
Ph.D.
Associate Professor of Criminology, Tennessee
State University
1) What has
been your involvement in the American Society
of Criminology? The Division on Women and Crime?
Other ASC divisions?
I have been a member
of the Division of Color and Crime, and the
Critical Criminology Division, as well as a
member of the DWC. I have been a member of the
ASC since 1993. I attend annual meetings, and
have presented papers every year since 1993.
2) Why/how did
you get into this field and why do you stay
in it? (i.e., What drives you?)
I have always been
interested in criminology/sociology. I came
from a lower/middle class family. I have five
brothers and sisters, and my father was raising
us on a Minister's Salary. He later left the
Ministry to work for Holley Carborator in Troy,
MI in an effort to bring home more money to
help relieve the financial burden of raising
so many children. In the ensuing years, my mom
found herself home alone most of the week with
5 teenagers. My father had to travel a lot for
his work. My brothers began to get into trouble
with drugs. My oldest brothers friend was shot
and killed by the police while sleeping in his
car. I think this woke up our whole family,
but mostly it woke up my oldest brother. The
teenager that was killed by the police was kicked
out of his home and was sleeping in his car
with a gun in his lap. The police didn't ask
any questions, they just saw the gun and began
shooting.
Following this
incident, my brother quit using drugs, and I
enrolled in a social problems class as an undergraduate
at Indiana-Purdue, Fort Wayne, and it was at
this point that issues of poverty, racism, crime,
and deviance were introduced to me in a formal
setting. There were actual theories that helped
me understand my brother's involvement in petty
drug use, and one of my brothers best friends
death at a very young age. It also helped explain
gender relations, and female involvement in
deviant activities. I began to realize that
social class and gender had constrained, and
constructed my social choices, as well as my
social position at that time. I was hooked on
sociology.
My current motivation
comes from the love I have for passing on knowledge
to college students. Also, my continued love
of reading and studying issues of racism, classism,
and sexism as it is related to crime. With hopes
of using this knowledge someday to bring about
social change that will lead our society in
the direction of practicing more just political,
economic, and social policies.
3) How do you
define yourself as a scholar/activist/educator?
I am a critical
criminologist.
4) What are
your current projects or interests?
I recently had
a book published titled Short Rage: An autobiographical
look at heightism in America. It is a literary
piece published by Fithian Press. I am in the
process of finishing interviews and an article
titled Policing Black and Blue in Nashville.
I am also working on a book titled Racism, Imperialism,
and Social Injustice: The War on Drugs as a
current example.
5) Do you have
any kids, pets, and/or significant partner?
I have a husband
of 14 years. I have a daughter that is 14. We
adopted her from San Bernardino County (California)
Social Services when she was 9 years old. I
have 2 German Shepards (Samson and Delilah)
and one cat named Max.
6) How do you
wind down after a stressful day?
I really don't.
I usually stay busy until bedtime. I do get
up at 4:30 am every morning and lift weights
and run 4 miles on my treadmill. That is a great
way to start my day. When I do have time I like
to water ski and ride my motorcycle.
7) What is your
most embarrassing moment (if willing to share)?
I was running both
my German Shepards at the same time around the
track at the field where my daughter has soccer
practice. My dogs didn't like another dog that
was all the way across the soccer field from
where we were. They proceeded to drag me across
the field where my daughter's team was practicing
and attacked the other dog. It happened to be
the dog of one of the other mother's on my daughter's
team. Between the two dogs they outweigh me
by about 70 lbs. There was really nothing I
could do but hold on the leash behind them.
The dog they attacked was not hurt.
8) What is your
favorite word? Least favorite?
My favorite word
is Peace. My least favorite word is shut-up.
9) What is one
of your lifelong goals or dreams?
To set up a community
recreation center for youth that also provides
after school reading and tutoring programs.
I would also like to be more politically involved
in movements for social change.
10) Anything
else you'd like to share?
I really appreciate
this opportunity to share with members of the
Division of Women and Crime. I also truly appreciate
the Division for offering friendship and networking
opportunities.
Ruth Fleury-Steiner
Assistant Professor of Individual and Family
Studies, University of Delaware
1) What has been your involvement in the
American Society of Criminology? The Division
on Women and Crime? Other ASC divisions?
I've been going
to ASC since 1996, but I didn't start going
to the DWC meetings until this year.
2) Why/how did
you get into this field and why do you stay
in it? (i.e., What drives you?)
I had a wonderful
mentor in graduate school (Cris Sullivan) who
introduced me to applied research on violence
against women. I think what drives me is the
hope that what I do as a researcher and/or a
teacher will actually make a difference in someone's
life.
3) What are
your current projects or interests?
My major interest
is domestic violence. For the last few years
I've been working with several other DWC members
(Joanne Belknap, Heather Melton, Cris Sullivan,
Amy Leisenring) on a longitudinal study of battered
women's experiences with the criminal legal
system. Currently, I'm also working on a project
about battered women's experiences with child
protection services.
4) Do you have
any kids, pets, and/or significant partner?
My partner is also
an ASC member (Benjamin Fleury-Steiner). We
have three short, furry, adopted "children"
(cats): Daphne, Stanley, and Misty.
5) How do you
wind down after a stressful day?
I always feel better
after spending some quality time with the cats.
They remind me of what is really important in
life - all they want is a snack, a cuddle, and
a nap.
6) What is your
most embarrassing moment (if willing to share)?
Has anyone ever
really answered this? (If so, I admire their
courage.)
7) What is your
favorite word? Least favorite?
I probably should
say something like "love" or "respect"
or "kindness." But the truth is that
one of my favorite words is Oconomowoc (a small
town in Wisconsin). It's just fun to say.
Venessa Garcia,
Ph.D.
Assistant Professor of Public Administration,
Health Services & Criminal Justice, Kean
University
1) What has
been your involvement in the American Society
of Criminology? The Division on Women and Crime?
Other ASC divisions?
I have been a member
of the American Society of Criminology since
1994 when I presented my first conference paper.
At the time, I had just completed my master's
degree in Sociology at the State University
of New York University at Buffalo. I was an
inactive member of the Division of Women and
Crime, I believe in 1995, however, because I
was working full time and taking full time credits
in the doctoral program, I let me membership
expire. I have maintained my research focus
on women in criminal justice and only recently
became reconnected with the Division on Women
and Crime. At the 2002 Annual Meeting of the
American Society of Criminology I was prepared
to discontinue attending the conferences but
then met some of the women in the DWC. I was
beginning a new position at Kean University
in New Jersey, I was tired, overextended and
needing to reevaluate my conference attendance
to keep it to a minimum due to the need to be
with my children. However, the women of the
DWC inspired me to the point that my love for
the field was revived. The inspiration has enabled
me to complete and submit two research articles
and I am in the process of completing a third.
2) Why/how did
you get into this field and why do you stay
in it? (i.e., What drives you?)
I became involved
in the field of criminal justice as an undergraduate
sociology major at SUNY College at Buffalo,
a department that had a deviance focus. While
working on my undergraduate senior thesis I
focused on police response to domestic violence
and was horribly disappointed by the way police
treated the victims and their cases. After completing
my B.A. in sociology, I attended SUNY University
at Buffalo and tried to find another field of
interest but the stigmatization of women and
women's issues plagued me. I believed that by
researching and working with the criminal justice
organizations, I could make a difference.
3) How do you
define yourself as a scholar/activist/educator?
This is a hard
question to answer. I guess I see myself as
an educator first while me as a scholar is very
close behind - if not standing side-by-side.
This is because I do not believe that I can
be my best as an educator if I do not engage
in the research. I have come to believe that
activism is very important (contrary to what
I was "trained" to believe in graduate
school). As an activist, I have worked with
domestic violence groups, a county task force,
and a county commission dealing with inequalities
in society. In each case, I have been able to
bring my roles as educator and scholar into
my activity as an activist. I believe, however,
that I would not be complete without all.
4) What are
your current projects or interests?
I have been invited
by a District Office of the New Jersey State
Parole Board to aid in the implementation and
evaluation of two programs. The first is a parole
batterer's treatment program operated in collaboration
with the Women's Center of Monmouth County.
The program goes beyond anger management, it
also attempts to educate the parolees (males)
on the definitions and constructs of women and
men in society, which influence violence against
women. The second program is a parole court,
not specific to women, but which works to bring
the entire community into the treatment of the
parolee.
I am currently finishing a paper, under a revise
and resubmit, which focuses on the rejection
of community policing based on the idea that
it is not traditional policing and therefore
does not fall under the functions of the masculine
police ideology. I am also working on a small
research project investigating the experiences
of female criminal justice professionals in
New Jersey. Another project I am working on
is linked to females as victims but is more
general to victims as a group. I am investigating
the images of victims in the media and comparing
it to victims in the criminal justice system.
My goal is to provide evidence of the much talked
about "deserving" and "undeserving"
victim and the consequences of these images.
Obviously, this area is very much linked to
women as victims, as well as other minority
groups, such as race and social class.
5) Do you have
any kids, pets, and/or significant partner?
I have been married
to a very wonderful and somewhat modern man
who could not see his life with a woman who
did not stand up for herself. One of the best
things about him is that he loves to cook and
spend as much time as possible with our children.
We have two children, a six year old girl and
a three year old boy.
6) How do you
wind down after a stressful day?
After a stressful
day I like to play with my children or watch
my husband play with them. Watching my laughing
children has always been something that has
made me happy.
7) What is your
most embarrassing moment (if willing to share)?
Fortunately, I
do not see things as "embarrassing."
Tripping, stumbling over my words, having my
children reveal extremely private things about
me in public mostly makes me laugh-it makes
for good story telling.
8) What is your
favorite word? Least favorite?
My least favorite
word is "chick," that is, in reference
to women. I guess I do not have a favorite word.
9) What is one
of your lifelong goals or dreams?
My lifelong goal
is to making a difference with the treatment
of women in society. I have started with my
children.
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