Of Culture and Context

In July, our community recognized the politics of gender, by recognizing my work alongside the deeply thoughtful art of my dear friend, D’lo. In a moment where culture bears an unfair share of the burden for repression and violence (absolving others from accountability) — we had the unique opportunity to present our notion of culture as fluid — something constantly conforming to new contexts, able to embrace new norms and emerging identities. Our conversation on this inside revealed a new generation of Tamil youth who are, consciously, positioned to both interrogate and defend the culture that defines them.

In her work, Tamil activist, author, translator and scholar Meena Kandasamy continually navigates the minefields of culture, creating new political pathways along the way. My review of her work appears in the inaugural issue of  Antyajaa: Indian Journal of Women and Social Change, and is available here.