A couple days ago I had the opportunity to attend a talk being given by Dr Bren LeFrancois, a professor at Memorial University of Newfoundland, whose work in Mad Studies has inspired me and my mad cohort considerably. While the presentation contained information which is familiar to me (an introduction to Mad Studies) it was delivered in such a way that I left the room enriched by how much I had learned. Now I'm still sifting through my notes and my thoughts, trying to assess why it landed so deeply with me.
Was it the delivery? Articulated with clarity, grace and intelligence, the material captured succinctly some of the key concepts in Mad Studies. But that wasn't alone what moved me. I think – yes, I'm sure – it was the courage of conviction that Prof LeFrancois brought to the room. Unapologetically political, passionate for justice, they reminded me to ground myself and to always maintain awareness of the context of the world around me.
What, is that not obvious? Why do I need to be reminded? Well, because madness dislodged me. It sent me reeling away from my positions, my commitments – it taught me to walk a different road.
To oppose something is to maintain it.
They say here, “all roads lead to Mishnory.” To be sure, if you turn your back on Mishnory and walk away from it, you are still on the Mishnory road. To oppose vulgarity is inevitably to be vulgar. You must go somewhere else, you must have another goal; then you walk a different road. (LeGuin, Left Hand of Darkness)
But the taste of freedom, and expansion, and perspective which madness offers – it is seductive. I often find myself lost in stargazing, forgetting where my feet are planted on the ground. I resist being pinned down to rigid prescriptions, I embrace paradox, I seek the alternate point of view. But this can become slippery. Where does flexibility serve us well, and where does holding firm serve us better?
“Madness is a political stance, rather than a personal identity,” said Prof LeFrancois. The personal is political. And here are some further notes I scribbled down during the talk:
post-colonial, anti-colonial, decolonial, critical race and transnational feminism
anti-colonialism should always be part of Mad Studies
I am imploring you to take on your colonial history when engaging with Mad Studies
I think this is what struck me so forcibly at the talk: I suddenly felt acutely aware of the responsibility I hold as a part of my privileges. I felt it like a sucker punch – something I know very well in an intellectual way suddenly felt deeply, incredibly personal and emotional. I have to confess that I came home and ordered books to read about racism and classism, to put these matters in front of my nose and to do some homework, to educate myself, to bring this more sharply into focus in my work as a mad activist.
I will surely return to this in further posts – but now it is quite late so I'll stop there and simply say that I'm feeling immensely grateful just now, like I'm standing on the grass in my bare feet, mud squelching between my toes, staring up at the stars.
Photo by Akhil Lincoln on Unsplash