Report on Activism/Academia Roundtable (19 March 2024)

^{from left to right: Robin Steve, Dr Matt Kennedy, Taylor Follett, Alexa Moore, Daire Dempsey}

by Robin Steve

In March we had our first event, and it was a pleasure to meet so many of you, thank you for attending so numerous and enthusiastic! At the roundtable, chaired by Dr Matt Kennedy, panellists Alexa Moore, Daire Dempsey, and Taylor Follett discussed the intersections, differences, and possibilities between activism and academia. After talking about what activism means to them and their relationship to it, the panellists discussed the divergences and intricacies of institutional power and grassroot power, and the clashes between them, with a focus on the challenges and disadvantages that those belonging to minoritarian identities face in academia. The roundtable then addressed the gap between the subjects of academic research on transness and the needs of the community, so that what the trans community needs and what academics research often do not align. They pointed out that there is an especially widespread focus on the more negative and tragic aspects of trans life in research. This nonalignment of academic research and needs of the trans community is also found in the focus on high theory in academia, while outside academia in the trans community the focus is much more strongly located on the material and practical conditions and needs of trans life (such as access to trans healthcare). The discussion then finished with our panellists exploring possibilities for communication, co-operation, and coalition between academia and activism in Ireland, highlighting ways in which the two can support each other.