Call me by my name.
gman:
Great thread... I was once a teaching assistant to undergraduates at a U.S. university and remember telling a couple of students (mostly white american students, younger than me but not by much) to call me my first name instead of "sir", and it was like they couldn't do it - I was "sir". Then again, Americans love that word. On another occasion I was addressed by a U.S. police officer as "sir" in a circumstance and tone of voice that left me in no doubt that he meant "nigger". Words are funny things... I'm trying to remember how we used to address teachers in Guyana in the 70s/80s - I think it was generally "Mr or Mrs such and such" rather than "sir". Or did we call female teachers "miss"? Generally speaking we were encouraged to call everyone "comrade" in those days, which sounds a bit more equalizing, but then our former head of state who named a town after himself was the "comrade leader"...:)
siger:
Where Iniko Ujaama points out the pre-eminece of motherhood to wifehood; and how all the while referring to someone as Mrs. has always been at the apex of respect for me.
Something within has stirred.
In the lingua of all around me (other than this english) the names given to newlyweds deem the moment they become parents.
diyouth:
"It is in this vein that I find it necessary to do away with these gendered power structures..." -T.Spencer
...so we must completely do away with respect as a supposition!
and leave it to be invoked from free intent or will; like a compliment, gesture given regarded genuinely.
Suppositions do not trust "intuitive, inquisitive and creative energies of children" let alone adults.
a good reference of this is on the forum:
http://www.africaspeaks.com/reasoning/index.php?topic=6236.0
In the opening lines of the doc ( also found @: The Century Of The Self 1 of 4 | One: Happiness Machines )
echo's the sentiment in essence that,
like authority, or the 'respect' 'mechanisms', as such are in place to control in order to 'save' us and society from chaos destruction or uncivil behavior.
oh an BIG UP YUSELF GMAN...dun know...
Guidance
diyouth
Iniko Ujaama:
I have had reason to give some more thought on this reasoning about students referring to me as Mr. X or Sir. I have resolved that while I can also opt for them to call me by my first name, I think them calling me by these titles can be proper as well.
The fact is they know me through this structure and not personally. In the same manner that I may relate to my principal and other coworkers within the context of work and not outside of it. I believe what falls upon me is to act in a manner that inspires respect and allows the produced for the students an example of a leader who is not oppressive or advantageous and does not carry the title lightly....more for privilege and not for the responsibility that comes with that privilege. The fact is there is significant responsibility which comes with the title and the position with the structure which the students do not hold. While I relate to them within this structure I feel it is ok to carry the title as well as the responsibility honourably.
While the doing away with these titles is fine, on a more fundamental level the question is whether the relationships remain the same.
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