by Rachel Williams
Students turned up in droves to the University of West Georgia’s latest Controversies of Culture lecture, “Racing Sex & Sexing Race: the Construction of Race, Gender, and Sexuality.” The lecture, which was sponsored by the Center for Diversity and Inclusion and the Women Studies Program, was held in the Campus Center Ballroom at 7 p.m. on Thursday, September 12. Dr. Rosalind Chou, an assistant professor at Georgia State University, challenged the audience to consider the ways society has influenced their preferences in sexual partners.
“What does the media tell us about who the sexiest and most beautiful people in the world are?” Dr. Chou asked the audience, showing several pictures of celebrities. “Love can seem biological, like there’s something chemical about it. Studies say, ‘Oh, it’s the symmetry of a face, or it is the waist-to-hip ratio.’ As a sociologist, I challenge you to also consider the social factors, that there are things about love and relationships that are extremely political. How is race influencing how we see gender and sexuality in particular groups?”
Throughout the rest of the lecture, Chou used examples from her extensive work interviewing Asian American young adults about the sexual politics of their race. Following the presentation, volunteers passed microphones to audience members with questions. In response to concerns about how students could fight the current media portrayals and stereotypes, Chou encouraged them to question their own assumptions as well as others’. Dr. Chou stayed after the lecture and question-and-answer session to sign copies of her latest book, “Asian American Sexual Politics: The Construction of Race, Gender, and Sexuality.”
