WS100 Lecture Notes - Lecture 15: Jackson Katz, Sexology, Heterosexuality
Jackson Katz - Violence Against Women - It’s a Men’s Issue (video)
● Dominant group is rarely challenged to think about its dominance (eg when talking about
race, usually assume african american rather than white, and gender assumes women)
● Once we ask important questions like what institutions influence men to beat women, we
can get to transformative movement
● Need more men who will speak up - eg in social situations
● Bystander: anyone who is not a perpetrator or victim → bystander approach
● Silence is a form of consent
Class Lecture
● A woman who has been abused is often silenced, community around her ignores it,
support disappears
● We use binaries (oppositional force)
● Stereotypes ensure that those who have privilege get to determine identity and value of
others
● Politics of heterosexuality - others do not get same opportunities/support
● White heterosexuality has determined status of many people
● Late 1900s field of sexology had purpose to prove only way to live was to be
heterosexual - masculinity and femininity have certain ways they should look
● Sexology was about clarifying that heterosexuality has very narrow meaning, and that
anything that stands outside of that is not normal (producing/reproducing something that
is deviant)
● 19th century, men and women fought for girls to move on to university - experience real
relationships because women are having real conversations → romantic friendships
● Women started to delay marriage… drop in birth rate, men were worried… used tactics
of shame and closing off universities
● Sexology said women were the problem
● Every binary is to ensure dominant power stays dominant power
● WWI another opportunity for women to gather together
● Early 1920s ideas of sexual orientation are played with differently
● 1929 doors closed - any progress that had been made evaporated
● Rail travel was important for those who were not heterosexual
● WWII gives another opportunity for women to build relationships → baseball important in
this time (women can wear pants, have community)
● War ends and everything is supposed to go back to how it was before
● Homosexual soldiers sent back on a ship - didn’t care that they fought for the country,
told them to go and hide
● Subculture has to develop for safety and security
● Universities in 50s and 60s, homosexual students had to take lie detector test, if failed
they were publicly outed
● Internal oppression: getting message over and over again that you are lesser
● Only purpose of women’s body is as vessel for pleasure of men
find more resources at oneclass.com
find more resources at oneclass.com
Document Summary
Jackson katz - violence against women - it"s a men"s issue (video) Dominant group is rarely challenged to think about its dominance (eg when talking about race, usually assume african american rather than white, and gender assumes women) Once we ask important questions like what institutions influence men to beat women, we can get to transformative movement. Need more men who will speak up - eg in social situations. Bystander: anyone who is not a perpetrator or victim bystander approach. A woman who has been abused is often silenced, community around her ignores it, support disappears. Stereotypes ensure that those who have privilege get to determine identity and value of others. Politics of heterosexuality - others do not get same opportunities/support. White heterosexuality has determined status of many people. Late 1900s field of sexology had purpose to prove only way to live was to be heterosexual - masculinity and femininity have certain ways they should look.
