Brainstorm #4 II Week 3 - Pavithra Prabhu

My name is Pavithra Prabhu.

As a scholar was quoted in Martinez’s article about neoliberalism, “Neoliberalism means the neo-colonization of Latin America.” Sandoval relates this statement to current times by stating that “postmodern globalization is a neocolonizing force”. According to Sandoval, dissident globalization is the key to reduce the effects of “the afterlife of colonialism”.

In Martinez’s article, a key point of Neoliberalism is “Eliminating the concept of ‘The public good’ or ‘community’.” Sandoval claims that the dissident globalization involves crossing national, racial and cultural borders and finding common ground under the single idea that they are all “bonded” under an oppressive society. Combining both Martinez’s and Sandoval’s claims, we can see that dissident globalization is the remedy to neoliberalism as it emphasizes the importance of having a globalized ‘community’ and the need for ‘public good’.

Sandoval’s ‘differential consciousness’ is a term used to refer to being aware of different identities whether racial, national or sexual orientation. Women Who Rock embodies this concept as it provides a platform for people from all of these backgrounds to come and share their activism work or experiences through music; simultaneously, this platform plays a large part in women rights activism by creating an innovative, engaging way to bring attention to these issues.

The use of the phrase ‘affinities inside differences’ refers to the foundation of the conference itself; people from various backgrounds coming together in order to achieve something bigger. However, it is important to note that these ‘affinities inside differences’ is not possible without ‘differential consciousness’; only when we are aware of the struggles faced by other communities and what they stand for, we can proceed forward to form a coalition. Overall, the Women Who Rock Archive and Unconference embodies the need for developing ‘differential consciousness’.