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Rebel Girls: Youth Activism and Social Change Across the Americas
From anti war walkouts to anarchist youth newspapers, rallies against educational privatization, and workshops on fair trade, teenage girls are active participants and leaders in a variety of social movements. Rebel Youth Activism and Social Change Across the Americas illuminates the experiences and perspectives of these uniquely positioned agents of social change. Jessica K. Taft introduces readers to a diverse and vibrant transnational community of teenage girl activists in the San Francisco Bay Area, Mexico City, Caracas, Buenos Aires, and Vancouver. Expansive in scope and full of rich details, Taft brings to life the voices of these inspiring activists who are engaged in innovative and effective organizing for global and local social justice, highlighting their important contributions to contemporary social movements and social theory.Rebel Girls explores how teenage girls construct activist identities, rejecting and redefining girlhood and claiming political authority for youth in the process. Taft examines the girl activists' social movement strategies and collective political practices, detailing their shared commitments to process based political education, participatory democracy, and hopeful enthusiasm. Ultimately, Rebel Girls has substantial implications for social movements and youth organizations, arguing that adult social movements could learn a great deal from girl activists and making clear the importance of increased collaboration between young people and adults.
254 pages, Kindle Edition
First published December 1, 2010
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
December 30, 2012
First, because getting grouchiness out of the way early is a good idea, I have two criticisms of this book:
1) Taft mentions that she didn't interview any girl who didn't identify as an activist. That makes sense, except that the word "activist" implies a level of confidence that some activists just don't possess. I know people who are doing some seriously badass activism, but refuse to call themselves activists because they haven't gotten the results that they'd hoped for. I understand the point of keeping one's research inside of certain boundaries, as to not let it get too overwhelming, but I am still really curious to see what others, who shy away from the "activist" label, but still participate in activism, would have to add to this.
2) I'd like to see it expanded to include more thorough descriptions of the work accomplished by these girl activists. Brief mentions are given (e.g. "So-and-so is an environmental activist in Vancouver"), but this book jumps right into an analysis of the work and the way it's perceived without really providing the reader with a good understanding of what the girls were actually accomplishing.
That said, the analysis was awesome. Things I loved (in no particular order):
1) The discussion about horizontal versus vertical organizing (the latter being based on a hierarchical structure). And I also loved that the interviews that went along with this section revealed inconsistencies in the girls' thinking, thus revealing that activists are imperfect people, just like anyone else.
2) Taft was not afraid to criticize the girls' methods, or to point out the ways in which some teenage activists overlooked their privilege. But she also clearly respected them without falling into the trap of "These girls are awesome specifically because they're TEENAGERS and TEENAGERS ARE USUALLY LAZY PIECES OF SHIT WHO DON'T CARE ABOUT ANYTHING, EVER." She actually spent a lot of time denouncing adults who do that kind of thing (she called it "wowing"), which I really, really appreciated.
3) The part about how optimism can be detrimental. We live in this culture that values positive thinking the point where people are basically encouraged to look away from realities and bullshit that goes on in the world. And you just can't do that, especially as an activist, but some do. And this is where the whole "Hey, you have to check your privilege" part came in. Middle class girls in North America can say all this flowery stuff about wanting to just "make the world a better place" because they don't live in a place where they're confronted with really horrific things on a daily basis.
4) "Adultism" is a word, apparently. It's a facet of ageism, and I hate ageism. I have this long-standing habit of befriending people who are at least 10 years older than me, so am always surprised when I meet adults who don't respect me because I'm young. That said, I'm now in my mid-twenties, so on top of befriending people who are older, I'm also somehow befriending people who are significantly younger (hi there, Danielle, Celeste, and Lilie). And I'm always afraid of falling into the "When I was your age..." trap. So hopefully this book will help me not to do that, ever.
5) The part where the girls got pissed off about being referred to as "leaders of tomorrow." Because it completely delegitimizes the work that they're doing NOW, in the present.
Also, rereading everything I've written here, I realize that my only criticism of this book is that I'd like it to be longer. I want MORE, because I'm a greedy capitalist, har har har.
1) Taft mentions that she didn't interview any girl who didn't identify as an activist. That makes sense, except that the word "activist" implies a level of confidence that some activists just don't possess. I know people who are doing some seriously badass activism, but refuse to call themselves activists because they haven't gotten the results that they'd hoped for. I understand the point of keeping one's research inside of certain boundaries, as to not let it get too overwhelming, but I am still really curious to see what others, who shy away from the "activist" label, but still participate in activism, would have to add to this.
2) I'd like to see it expanded to include more thorough descriptions of the work accomplished by these girl activists. Brief mentions are given (e.g. "So-and-so is an environmental activist in Vancouver"), but this book jumps right into an analysis of the work and the way it's perceived without really providing the reader with a good understanding of what the girls were actually accomplishing.
That said, the analysis was awesome. Things I loved (in no particular order):
1) The discussion about horizontal versus vertical organizing (the latter being based on a hierarchical structure). And I also loved that the interviews that went along with this section revealed inconsistencies in the girls' thinking, thus revealing that activists are imperfect people, just like anyone else.
2) Taft was not afraid to criticize the girls' methods, or to point out the ways in which some teenage activists overlooked their privilege. But she also clearly respected them without falling into the trap of "These girls are awesome specifically because they're TEENAGERS and TEENAGERS ARE USUALLY LAZY PIECES OF SHIT WHO DON'T CARE ABOUT ANYTHING, EVER." She actually spent a lot of time denouncing adults who do that kind of thing (she called it "wowing"), which I really, really appreciated.
3) The part about how optimism can be detrimental. We live in this culture that values positive thinking the point where people are basically encouraged to look away from realities and bullshit that goes on in the world. And you just can't do that, especially as an activist, but some do. And this is where the whole "Hey, you have to check your privilege" part came in. Middle class girls in North America can say all this flowery stuff about wanting to just "make the world a better place" because they don't live in a place where they're confronted with really horrific things on a daily basis.
4) "Adultism" is a word, apparently. It's a facet of ageism, and I hate ageism. I have this long-standing habit of befriending people who are at least 10 years older than me, so am always surprised when I meet adults who don't respect me because I'm young. That said, I'm now in my mid-twenties, so on top of befriending people who are older, I'm also somehow befriending people who are significantly younger (hi there, Danielle, Celeste, and Lilie). And I'm always afraid of falling into the "When I was your age..." trap. So hopefully this book will help me not to do that, ever.
5) The part where the girls got pissed off about being referred to as "leaders of tomorrow." Because it completely delegitimizes the work that they're doing NOW, in the present.
Also, rereading everything I've written here, I realize that my only criticism of this book is that I'd like it to be longer. I want MORE, because I'm a greedy capitalist, har har har.
May 18, 2022
An excellent qualitative work. Taft presents her interviews and participant observations with teeange girl activists in the Americas. I loved how she drew a line between girlhood, womenhood and activism. She juxtaposed very similar-looking-but-completely-different concepts together, and explored the reflection on them on a youth population that is yet to discover their true self!
March 24, 2024
I’ve yet to meet an ethnographic conclusion I didn’t cry through!
December 5, 2011
This book was recommended to me as an alternative to Reviving Ophelia: Saving the Selves of Adolescent Girls. While I really appreciated knowing more about young women's activism and organizing across the continent, it actually is not a book about what kinds of shifts to expect when your daughter hits adolescence (and all the social conditions that make it all so much harder). It's also an academic book, so it was pretty much impossible to read it aloud to my daughter and keep her attention for any length of time.
So if you're looking for a book on what to expect when raising a girl child through adolescence, this is not the book. If you're looking for examples of undervalued, underreported activism and organizing among young women, then this is it.
So if you're looking for a book on what to expect when raising a girl child through adolescence, this is not the book. If you're looking for examples of undervalued, underreported activism and organizing among young women, then this is it.
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February 15, 2017FYS choice for Fall 2012. *updated... not for freshman.
May 27, 2013
Excellent research, but very dry writing.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews