Dr. Liz Peavy
Keynote Address

Liz Peavy speaks of "Liberation Literacy", a literacy that facilitates a spiritual freeing of the mind in order to feel, think, or act in order to bring about a conscious betterment of the mind, as opposed to a literacy that is oppressive, smothering, or that keeps people down (socially, politically, culturally, etc.). She details how in the United States, the system is designed to oppress, especially women, and even more so, women of color. Giving the illusion of a democracy "education for the people, by the people, etc.", she faults Horace Mann, the framer of public education, and how that he assured the most influential businessmen of his day an education for the masses, education that would preserve the existing social order. The curriculum which was based on rote learning an emphasis on discipline, and rigid rules, was put into place to keep certain people down, to control the actions and thinking of the students; and to prepare the students for low paying jobs in a capitalistic society. The system was directed toward poor Whites, thus by the time Blacks came along, the system of oppression had been perfected.

Peavy illustrates the success of the system by stating that the number of wealthy elite rose from the nineteenth to the twentieth century, and will rise more in the twenty-first century. This rise creates an even greater need to sustain the social order and to keep people working for low wages. It is epitomized by welfare to work today, giving the illusion of work and prosperity. She proposes that women in literacy programs must be made to understand that being literate means more than reading and writing, it is the act of thinking critically and creatively about the realities of the world; to develop a critical consciousness. The women need to be made aware of realities, such as, the history of education, economic productions that create and maintain social inequality, and how these ideologies are spread through the educational system. She credits those who came before Horace Mann, the colonizers, as laying the foundation for this oppression. The early goals of the colonizer was to bring imperial education and culture to the poor, uncivilized, etc. In the process, the colonizers discovered that culture carries rules for thinking. By imposing their culture on the poor, they could limit the creativity of their visions and destroy their ability to act with the intent of their own interest.

She follows a path that illustrates the continuation of this capitalistic colonization. Stating that the government today claims to be preparing people to be a part of the "global economy", but questions this by citing how it was described by Williams (keynote) at the Women's International League for Peace and Freedom Conference. Peavy sees the "global economy" as nothing but apartheid benefiting multinational corporations, controlled by the U.S. at the expense of women and children. She charges that when they oppress women around the world, it shows what they think about women here, despite the illusion created by what they tell us. Peavy calls for a need to shift from focussing on women's lives and rights to focussing on a change in women's lives, which also changes the world. This shift would address gender, equity and women liberation. She indicates that the United Nations reports the global disparity between the richest and the poorest has been rising. For example, 70% of the world's trade is controlled by half of the multinational corporations. There is a need for a literacy to cut through the language of the institution, racism, and sexism, and uncover a core of social contradictions that has plagued all of us, regardless of our race. Contradictions such as "welfare to work is a success", yet women are working hard and earning less in jobs that pay very little. Another contradiction is noted by the Black Power Party, as "internal colonization", whereby, capitalistic corporations come into an inner city and 'bleed it to death', leaving it economically dependent on the larger society. This is done via high interest loans, threats of repossession, high food costs, check cashing services, etc. In the name of free market, these policies in reality widen the gap between poor and rich, simultaneously creating a conditioned mind. This needs to change.

Peavy proposes the need to transform, to become critically aware of issues of power, control, dominance, relationship and learning to work collectively for community development. Literacy programs need to teach women to develop the use of the empowering techniques of the culture for solving problems. Our programs should be creating a way of studying and analyzing HER STORY, literature, drama, poetry, and social sciences in order to reduce powerlessness and inequality of social arrangements. This calls for a focus on skill development, which can be empowering if not done by rote. We cannot move forward in the midst of current routines. Peavy suggests that through conceptualization, we compel people to go deeper within themselves. Learners need to tackle the conceptual process using their personal reality. Using the KOANA (Swahili) process to unveil hindrances to social and economic realities, one can change a participant's perception of what can and cannot be accomplished. This process is taught through the "circle of culture" method, where, through extensive dialoguing of the specifics, it evolves into a conceptual process.

Sharon M. Darling
Graduate Research Assistant
Educational Psychology and Special Education