I lived in the ghetto. The contrast between north of the Midway and 
south of it was incredible. Because of the nepotism rule, I went to 
Northwestern after my MA, and although there were a bunch of faculty 
with activist orientations - such as Howie Becker - it was the 
contractions at Chicago that had such a lasting impact on me. Now I live 
in a rural ghetto and direct a center in a barrio. Life is rich with 
meaning and very chaotic.

To sum this up, I think excavating one's own biography can be useful, 
especially for those of us who embrace human rights.

On 7/10/2011 10:39 PM, Brian Gran wrote:
> For me, it's a fascinating discussion.
>
> I understand and am sympathetic with Professor Cushman's points. In
> turn, I think we can learn a great deal from each other about how our
> work matters. Indeed, on occasion I have found my work used in ways I
> did not anticipate.
>
> As a graduate student (and I think I went to the same grad school
> Judith did), my impression was that activism was frowned upon. It may
> have been my misunderstanding, but I quickly determined not to discuss
> those parts of my life involving activism.
>
> I did a postdoc in health policy; faculty members of this program
> challenged the postdocs to think about how our work would shape
> policy, and how we could change policy. This challenge caught me
> offguard; I greatly valued the experiences and what these folks were
> trying to teach me.
>
> In my first year as an assistant professor, I published an Op-Ed. My
> chair, a good friend who meant well, said he hoped I wouldn't lose my
> job over the Op-Ed. (He thought the Op-Ed was pretty good).
>
> I think this listserve is a lot of fun and I learn a great deal from
> the many excellent contributions made by its members. I hope Professor
> Blau and Cushman and others continue to ask these existential
> questions.
>
> Many thanks!
>
>
> On Sun, Jul 10, 2011 at 9:55 PM, Judith Blau<[log in to unmask]>  wrote:
>> Hello all,
>>
>> There have been concerns that there are activists in the section (me, for
>> one). Thinking about this further I have concluded that advocacy, activism,
>> pedagogy and research in the field of human rights all relate to the same
>> epistemology (regardless of how one views or practices it), and it rests on
>> values, such as resolute and irreproachable human equality and dignity. I
>> also believe that all other fields in sociology rest on values, and that
>> "neutrality" is a myth. I have written several pounds of books to clarify
>> how sociologists and students can adopt this epistemology at no cost to
>> their intellectual integrity. The next book I write will be from the vantage
>> point of being a scholar-activist.
>>
>> I would be very interested in your views.
>>
>> Judith
>> http://www.unc.edu/~jrblau/
>>