>I'm never sure who people are describing when they refer to
>self-identified leftists who would say that gender and race are surface
>issues. Maybe the Sparts, but they're hardly representative of a leftist
>position. I hear this argument quite frequently and am just curious as
>to who would identify with it. I would certainly argue for the necessity
>of an analysis of class _and_ race (as well as gender), but that's far
>from arguing that any of these terms are superficial.
>
>carol stabile
I see a lot of people saying "... gender ... race ..."; most are also struggling to figure out how to put it into practice.
I know this isn't the class-essentialist you're looking for, but I see a LOT more trouble from the entire legions of liberal and leftish "multiculturalists" and "cross-cultural communications" and "intercultrual management" types who ply some pretty thin approaches to gender and race issues, while entirely ignoring class (though at times they do talk about "poverty", as if it were a category of analysis on par with race and gender). Zizek did a spin around the block on this in New Left Review lately (No. 225, Sept/Oct 1997).
Tom
Tom Kruse / Casilla 5812 / Cochabamba, Bolivia Tel/Fax: (591-42) 48242 Email: tkruse at albatros.cnb.net