What most call my attention is the fact that the ethnographer has become an engaged player herself, and the challenge of making an ethnography while being an active member of the community.
The sketch's discussion of the author's argument and the theoretical debates that this book engages (antiblackness, whiteness, humanitarianism, development, critical race theory, feminism)
“In the text, the author addresses the seemingly intangible and “touchy feely” nature of the practices these organizations employ, but then uses that to lead into evidence of their impact in the community. The opposition might be those who do not believe youth development has the same goals as what Ginwright assumes” - response
I’m interesting in learning more about these affective structures. This is the type of data that really only an ethnographer can get at. What were the emotional and physical responses to these practices? What were the tensions? How does Ginwright address those contradictions and tensions? How does this book challenge space formation? Where is the theorization in this text? Who is doing it? Is theory grounded in the text? Is it coming from the interlocutors? How are these “touchy feeling” moments being theorized?
The ideas around knowledge seem particularly interesting. What knowledge matters? Who holds it? How is knowledge related to power?
"Miller and Sinanan begin with the theoretical claim that all communication is mediated, and verify that by demonstrating how webcams are just as mediated as in-person communication. They challenge assertions that tech-mediated communication is somehow less human / less authentic."
I know very little about Zanzibar, and the sketch informed me of the extensive (and somewhat dramatic) history the country has. Specifically, this section was interesting:
"It is mainly situated in the post-socialist context, at the wane of the 1980s, when Zanzibar and the rest of Tanzania were opened back up to commercial relations with non-Soviet bloc countries, especially those where some Swahili, Arab, and Asian Zanzibaris had family networks (like in the Arabian Peninsula and across the Indian Ocean). Keshodkar analyzes how ustaarabu and coastal identity politics have shifted from the earlier era of Omani imperialism, through British colonialism, to the 1964 revolution in Zanzibar and its Pan-Africanist vision and union with Tanzania, and then finally to the current post-socialist era in which Zanzibar remains a site of tourism."
The brief metion of the manners in which religion both aids and hurts infertile women drew my attention, and left me wanting more, particularly the manner in which patriarchy informs the place of women within their religious institution. In addition, I was drawn to the sketch's discussion of the new knowledge the text brings into circulation. I appreciated that there is an escape from essentialist conceptions of what it means to be a Middle Eastern woman and the manner in which infertile women resist social pressures. Finally, I appreciate the focus on individual women's stories, and how their experiences fit within the larger historical and social processes of womanhood in Egypt.
Although the topic of the text is in itself interesting to me, I think the most notable portion of the sketch was the answer about the authors reflexivity. In response to this it is stated that, “The author reflects on ethnographer's role doing research in digital platform: how to credit the authors of online discussion stream? How to protect their identities without losing academic integrity?” I think these are really important questions to answer as so much of our communication exists in a digital space making it such a rich source of data relevant to ethnographic inquiries and would be interested to see how the author navigates these issues.
I'm interested in the methodology of the author. Mary mentions that the author did fieldwork for over two years and spent time with individuals at all stages of their migration journey. I'm curious about that - did the author first meet her interlocutors at the shelter where she was working? Did she begin in one of the Central American countries she describes? How does this influence the work she produced?
The sketch describes that technology is the central theme of the book. I seldom study science and technology, not to mention an ethnographic study of it. I am therefore interested in knowing more how the book parse out the relations between technological use and human experiences, structural conditions, and cutlural implications.