Joy Wiggins to Speak at Western Nov. 7 about Feminist Solidarity in the Workplace

Author, adjunct professor, and professional consultant Joy Wiggins will speak at Western Washington University Libraries at 4 p.m. on Thursday, Nov. 7 in the Reading Room (Wilson 4 Central) about a new vision for feminist solidarity in the workplace.

This presentation is free and open to the public.

Wiggins’ latest book, co-written with Kami J. Anderson, investigates how the workplace’s patriarchal past defines its present, triggering women to work in opposition. Socialized behaviors and ideologies that influence implicit bias also keep women and people of color on the margins, setting them in competition. From Sabotage to Support: A New Vision for Feminist Solidarity in the Workplace, offers strategies not only for working women, but also for business leaders who want to understand the toll of patriarchy and explain how to create an inclusive, diverse and better working environment for everyone.

In this book, Wiggins and Anderson share research, interviews, actions, and tools, with chapters featuring candid conversations between the authors on the ways race, privilege, and power play out in their own lives, work, and friendship. During this talk, Wiggins will examine the intersections of power and privilege, looking at feminist history for milestones as well as missteps, and plotting a course for true inclusion. 

Joy L. Wiggins, PhD, teaches Elementary Education at Western, and is the founder and executive director of a consulting company that focuses on equity, inclusion, and social justice. She received her doctorate in multicultural education, with a focus on social justice in children’s literature, from Ohio State University.

This talk is part of the Western Libraries Reading Series, dedicated to featuring the scholarly and creative work of Western faculty and staff by featuring diverse speakers from a variety of backgrounds and disciplines who are engaged in research, writing, and teaching at Western. For more information about this event, please contact Jenny Oleen, Scholarly Communications Librarian at Western Libraries, at Jenny.Oleen@wwu.edu.