Independent Travel Report

by Malinda

    I first heard about the SGC from an advertisement in a zine earlier this summer.  Then Sean talked to one of the SGC organizers at the Underground Publishing Conference and she told him a little bit about what the conference would be like.  It was being promoted as an open space and a time for a variety of people (women, men, queer, straight, trans, all ages, cultures, and from any geographic location…) to gather, discuss, share ideas, and all that kinda stuff. 

     Recently, I’ve been thinking a lot about my ideals and how they relate to greater societal views.  Because many of my opinions are not in the majority, direct action seems like a simple and effective way of making my voice heard.  This convention sounded like there would be a diverse group of like-minded individuals, all willing to work to make positive changes in our society. 

     After eventually looking in closer detail at the SGC website, I decided that I definitely wanted to go.  It sounded like it was going to be set up in a similar fashion to the UPC:  with workshops, tables, speakers, and entertainment.  To top it off, the SGC was also serving vegan meals and would provide camping space, all for $15 – what a deal! 

     The conference, now in its third year, was being held in Auburn, Alabama, which is about five hours from Columbia.  I registered in advance and got directions directly to my campsite because I didn’t know what time I’d be able to get into town on Friday night.  Unfortunately, I couldn’t find anyone here in Columbia who was interested in going, and I also emailed a few people from other areas about the possibility of sharing a ride, but none of this worked out.  So, I decided to just go alone (traveling solo is something I rather enjoy). 

    Friday afternoon I was able to get on the road by 3, and wound up missing all the rush hour traffic in Atlanta.  It always amazes me how forward truckers are to girls in skirts who are traveling alone.  I got plenty of honks, and that annoying thing where they try to get you to pass them so they can look at you again.  That was the only excitement of the trip, though, and I got to Auburn at 7 PM, because of the change in time zones.  

    The directions to Claire’s house were easy to follow.  Her roommate was home and was very kind and welcoming by showing me to the newly cleared camping area in their backyard, including the port-o-potty.  I didn’t know how many people they were expecting, but thought it was a nice touch to have gotten the port-o-potty so those of us camping wouldn’t have to go all the way inside (and over about 50 people sleeping on the floor) just to pee.  A big bonus was that I got to use the port-o-potty first, and it was strange to think of a port-o-potty as being clean!

     It was getting dark and looking like rain, so I set up my tent and walked over to campus to the registration area.  Foy Hall was to be the main location for events (except music) for the convention.  There were at least 100 people milling about, talking, snacking, looking at the schedule, and generally making plans for the weekend.  I talked to a few nice people, some from Auburn and other fellow travelers.  Many of the people looked familiar from the publishing conference, but I didn’t see anyone I really knew.  The bands playing that night were not within walking distance, so I just headed back to sleep when the crowds started to thin out.

     My tent stood through the night and the constant drizzle of rain.  I woke up early and went out to explore Auburn.  The university seemed to be pretty large, and the campus was well groomed and spacious in the southern style.  It was located just off the main street, which contained a bunch of newer looking stores, some independent and some national chains, too.

    The breakfast provided at the conference was fruit, breads, and coffee.  Mostly everyone seemed to be in a hurry to get to the first workshop, but also took time to stop by the tables that were staffed by various women’s organizations.  It seemed that a lot more people had arrived overnight - there were easily over 300 people scattered around the building.

     Every hour, seven or eight workshops were being offered.  It was very difficult to choose which ones to attend, but I made out a schedule in the morning and tried to stick to it all day.  Unfortunately, at the first workshop I went to, “Holistic Healing as an Act of Resistance,” the presenter didn’t show up.  So, I wound up going to “Prison Book and Prisoner Art Projects.”  This was really informative and I mostly learned about the Philadelphia-based group Books Through Bars ***, and how to set up a similar organization.  The other workshops I went to before lunch were “Racism and Heterosexism: Making Connections,” “Herbal Health and Healing,” and “Men’s Sexual Health.”  Some of the workshops were drawing large crowds, 75 or more people, and the presenters were all very good at keeping the discussions rolling and on track. 

     Lunch was served outside, which was nice because the air conditioning in Foy Hall was very cold.  They served curried tofu and veggies, with rice.  It was very tasty and everyone seemed happy.  Getting to see everyone sharing a communal meal really showed the atmosphere of openness that the convention was based on.

     After lunch, I went to “Beyond Killing Us Softly: The Strength to Resist,” “Sexism in the Activist Community,” “Screen Printing for the Revolution,” and “Radical Parenting and Educating in Gender, Race, etc.”.  After a whole day of back-to-back workshops I was rather overwhelmed and ready to relax and look over all the handouts I’d gotten.  I went out to the lawn and joined the groups sprawled all over the grass in the (finally) sunny weather.

     The keynote speaker’s address, by Ophira Edut, was slightly delayed while the auditorium was being set up.  Ophira is the author of Adios Barbie and a former editor of Ms. Magazine.  She got her start by publishing a multicultural zine for women while she was in college.  Her presentation was a combination of personal history and a motivational speech.  She encouraged everyone to pool their resources in order to open businesses and produce new products and services that the mainstream market neglects.  The question and answer segment was rather awkward because not many people had questions and I don’t think many people had read her book (I hadn’t).  Someone asked her how she felt about being a representative for third wave feminists.  She said that she didn’t think she was a spokesperson for feminism just because her book is being taught in women’s studies courses.  She also said that she’d never thought of herself as a feminist, but she wouldn’t ever reject the label if people wanted to call her that.  This was interesting to me because I’ve felt the same way.  Basically, I just do what I think is right and I’ve never had any reason to put a label on myself. 

    I think that a lot of people at the convention were college students or related to the academic environment in some way.  So, a lot of the discussion was based on theory, not real life, and when talking all this theory, the academics need to have terms in which to group and classify things.  In my opinion, these terms do not represent all the grey areas that exist in life, and I’d even go so far as to say that these terms are the cause of many problems.  Once people are grouped by these terms, they have a reason to believe that they don’t fit in, or that they are a minority. 

     Once the keynote address was over, everyone headed outside to where dinner was to be served.  Dinner wound up being served pretty late, so everyone was starving by the time it arrived.  The line was huge and I was quite near the end, but by luck I’d saved my plate from lunch, so I got to skip to the front of the line because they either ran out or forgot the plates.  They served southern seasoned tofu, mashed potatoes with gravy, and green beans. 

    It was after seven when I’d finished eating, and time to decide what to do for the evening.  I took a short walk around town and realized that workshops wouldn’t be starting until noon the next day.  Because of the time difference, and that I had to be home early on Sunday, I realized that I’d only be able to attend two workshops.  I wasn’t really in the mood to watch bands either, so I decided to go home then.  I was really looking forward to waking up in my bed in the morning and having a restful Sunday at home.  I went back to camp, picked up my stuff, and headed out of town, arriving home at around 2:30 AM.

    The convention was really well organized and attended.  I was impressed that the people who planned it are all my age or younger.  Though the people attending didn’t seem very culturally diverse, the topics discussed reflected many points of view.  For me, this event really reinforced my understanding that all things are connected and that small actions are a very powerful force.  I was disappointed, though, to see so many people smoking, and eating unhealthy (non-vegan) foods.  I attended a discussion about body image and how we can help others have a more positive body image.  The consensus was that if we, as individuals, stop verbally demeaning ourselves, buying into mainstream media that portray us unrealistically, that it would be a very important step.  I’d like to take that further and make the connection to what we put into our bodies.  Before we can save the world, we’ve got to reclaim ourselves, starting with our health, because too many companies are already profiting off of our weaknesses and illnesses.  From experience, I can say that it’s a lot easier to portray a positive body image if you feel the best that you can both physically and emotionally, no matter what you are wearing, your body shape, or how many tattoos or piercings you may have.

     It really sounds like the SGC has grown in the last three years and that it should be even stronger and bigger next year.  I came home in good spirits and with a long list of books to read.  It’s a good place to go if you don’t feel a sense of community in your daily life, and it provides you with so many ways to become involved in activism.  I’ll definitely try to include it in my summer plans next year!

   

 

Home    Weblog    News    Order    Writings    Booklist    Zines    Links