Vanessa Cooper, joint PhD student in Women's and Gender Studies and English, alongside graduate student James Kiselik, organized a recent successful panel to discuss the Disney Channel Original Movie The Color of Friendship. Cooper facilitated a discussion with Kabelo Sandile Motsoeneng and Maya Sudarkasa following the film screening.
The Color of Friendship discusses "frank and difficult representations of the violent history" during the late 1970s, particularly concerning South African Apartheid. Cooper investigated questions about transnational histories, the function of film in history, and "the ongoing role of gendered tropes like sentimentality in multiculturalist rhetoric." The film panel discussed a wide range of topics regarding this film, including sociolinguistics, critical engagement with film, and the impact of sentimental historical fiction.
Attendees noted that the discussion offered valuable insight into the portrayal of the United States and its role in South African history in this film. One attendee noted that, "there's a lot of value in investigating the construction of stories from your childhood!"
Congratulations to Vanessa Cooper on this successful event!
Thanks to the English, Comparative Literature, and Women's and Gender Studies departments for their co-sponsorship of this event.
See the full event description here.
