My sexuality and lying by omission

As a lesbian, where do I stand in the midst of a - hopefully only seamingly - increase of gay debate? Do I take action to build LGBT helfpful projects, apps, safe havens? Well no not at the moment.

Although I self-proclaim myself as a Feminist in the first place and a lesbian in second, I do admit that the last few years I have made myself guilty of 'lying by omission' on the latter. While being openly gay since an early age, and active up to a point where my mom told me "all I find when Googling you are gay activist links, why must you be so gay?" and me answering her "because I am, both in spirit and in body" (wise guy/gay I guess). But with the onset of a new job, I put my gayness on second, third, fourth plain and I focused on elearning, mobile learning... not really taking along an activist, lesbian persona on my path to educational knowledge and position. At first it came natural: absorbing elearning projects is just that, but than I knew and felt I was omitting my sexuality at times, especially when visiting countries where gay rights equal gay imprisonment. And after my diabetes diagnosis, I even got quite scared and I became guilty of not mentioning it consciously. Scared because I realized that my body no longer was autonomous, as it became insulin dependent. So even under the 'best' of prison conditions I felt I would be at risk, and imprisonment can sometimes come simply because I love my partner which seems so normal and non-threatening to anyone else.

What does this evolution tell me? That I am not as courageous as I would dream myself to be, or that with age I got more scared (who's to tell). My partner Ciska Imschoot is much stronger, she keeps on trotting, writing columns on life in the UK with our son, sharing activist LGBT links for all. I admire her for that (and so much more). She is my moral beacon more than once and on more subjects as well. This morning she told me she shared the coming out speech of Ellen Page (actress, Juno and more). It is such a simple act coming out, yet still making a difference for those unsure whether there are 'others out there'. And indeed the world is filled with gays, lesbians, queers no matter which region or time.
I feel like such a coward, and yet I once was (and I still am) an active queer, but apparently now no longer as proud as I used to be. Even under what can only be described as 'a small amount of pressure' my queerness has shrunk.
So what about all those brave women, men and others out there that keep on standing, even amid the darkest of times? Being a lesbian is nothing new to humanity. It has always been there, and at times permitted or scorned, but always being part of the world. In the best of times there was a role in society for two-spirit people, dual-sex depiction, same-sex tales and those stories can be found in most ancient and contemporary societies. It is just one of the many varieties of humanity, and it is so completely non-threatening to anyone as it bears on the person and builds on something as simple as love, that it is hard to imagine it could be a point of debate or exclusion. So, when looking at Ellen Page her coming out, it dawned on me (again) that I was just too silent. So as a Valentine's pledge I plan to focus on elearning projects related to LBGT from now on.

#Feminism and Technology a distributed credited #MOOC

In the past months MOOCs have been debated on various levels. And as I am engaged in MOOC research for the last few months (following the development of FutureLearn the UK MOOC platform), I was looking for different angles that come closer to what I like to see in education: variety, creativity, recognized by many, providing credits for all who want to, catering options so different teachers can make and share the content the way they like it... and of course all delivered in a seamless learning format (will post a bit more on that subject in a couple of days).

And suddenly I came across an online course called "Feminism and Technology", in a format self-described by the organizing universities as DOCC (Distributed Open Collaborative Course. The course is set up by multiple universities, gives recognized credit to those willing to go for the credit track, and it features multiple professors and experts on the topic. The idea emerged from the people behind the FemBot collective and the DOCC on Feminism and Technology is part of what they call nodal course. The course is still being put together (if I assume correctly, just sent out an email to one of the facilitators to make sure).

From the organizers I heard that there is an online track being developed, next to a face-to-face track. The course itself will be launched on 23 September 2013. Here is what they shared: the FemTechNet Self-Directed Learners site is just getting off the ground at the FemTechNet Commons--look for it on the top menu. You may also want to explore the more interactive FemTechNet Google+ page @ FemTechNet Google+ site.  The San Antonio FemTechNet ¡Taller!/workshop which is co-facilitated by Penelope Boyer in Texas can be accessed at https://www.facebook.com/pages/San-Antonio-femtechnet-taller-Dialogues-on-Feminism-Technology/1407936279418801?ref=br_tf  Feel free to visit and Like it, or simply spread the word.

To me MOOCs lift the learner, they are diversified in the media they provide and I learn from multiple teachers/experts within the same course. This way I can make up my own knowledge and I inevitably get different viewpoints on the same subject matter. I like that very much because I am an adult learner, in fact I liked that approach of multiple looking glasses even as a child. In some strange way it helps me focus. This was the basis for getting MobiMOOC (an open course on mobile learning) organized and rolled out to the public. 

Of course this approach is not completely new, it fits the connectivist MOOC approach as it was first launched by George Siemens and Stephen Downes, but now it gets a nice feminist ring to it as well. 

Alexandra Juhasz, a professor of media studies at Pitzer who is the other co-facilitator of the DOCC, said to Inside Higher Ed reporter Scott Jaschik "our DOCC is built to value situated experience and emphasis, and to share authority and responsibility rather than the MOOC's top-down, one size fits all, sometimes elitist approach. Attention to discrete learners, teachers, and institutions is valued over simple numbers of participants. While these structures mirror my own feminist values and approaches, I imagine that most educators will be intrigued by this more democratic and responsive model for technology enhanced learning."

FemTechNet: The first DOCC,* a Feminist MOOC from NITLE

Which reminds me I need to get back into the feminist realm to keep my mind alert. Engaging with a fembot collective unconference might be an idea.