The Politics of Identity for a Black Lesbian Academic: Invisibility, Sense-Making, Authenticity, and Responsibility

• In Event: 21.014 - Beyond Invisibility: The Experiences and Strategies of Black Female Faculty in the United Kingdom and United States

Abstract

This paper draws on autobiography to speak to issues of insider-outsider identity within the academy. I am one who stands outside of the circle of allegedly ‘acceptable’ women because I hold these identities: Black, Lesbian, Reverend. Yet I can sometimes stand inside of the circle because of other parts of my identity which may position me as privileged or advantaged: upper middle class, degreed, full professor, author, sorority girl, and former debutante. “These ‘axes of identity,’ public and private, create the intersections of my selfhood and give me a particular set of truths that are not checked at any door, particularly the door of academia in my leadership position and as a professor in the courses that I teach” (Alston, 2011, p. 35).

It is the way that I walk, the way that I dress, the way that I talk, and the way that carry myself that serve as moments of recognition and misrecognition. It is my authenticity that in theory should be make me acceptable but which really puts me on the outside looking in, even while I am inside (hooks, 1991). However, I refuse to not be authentic. Brown (2010) noted that “authenticity is a collection of choices that we have to make every day. It's about the choice to show up and be real. The choice to be honest. The choice to let our true selves be seen” (p. 49). I consciously choose to be authentic both inside and outside of the academy. I consciously choose to show up in the world just as I am.

I use this symposium to reflect on these aspects of my belonging and not belonging and to explore the question: are the politics of identity and identity politics the same thing? Identity politics by definition refers to political positions based on the interests and perspectives of social groups with which people identify. For me, my politics of identity are not aligned with any political position, party or social group. For me, it is about the principles by which I choose to live my life in spite of and because of the various identities to which I embrace and live. To conclude, I consider how it might be possible to exist and thrive within the academy given my ideals of authenticity and given the constant imperative to align neatly with fixed notions of identity.

Author

• Judy A. Alston, Ashland University