Marina Morgenshtern Dr. Shoshana Pollack Faculty of Social Work, WLU TESTIMONIO AS A MEANS OF CONDUCTING FEMINIST RESEARCH: DILEMMAS AND CHOICES Marina Morgenshtern Dr. Shoshana Pollack Faculty of Social Work, WLU

Presentation Focus Testimonio as a way of conducting feminist research to witness socio-political family stories of Jewish immigrant couples from the former Soviet Union (FSU) in Toronto to make visible ways in which systemic issues & dominant discourses (patriarchy, heterosexism, discourses about Jews, former Soviets and immigrants, Multiculturalism) impact the processes of rebuilding their lives in immigration to Canada. Testimonio – why? Testimonio – unexpected narratives Why this interview strategy may not be appropriate for the goals of this research - initial thoughts

Researcher Immigrant twice-over Jewish Heterosexual Woman Married Mother of 2 children Social worker experienced in work with immigrant & ethnic minority families in Israel PhD Candidate in WLU Canada

Another Source of Inspiration Current “historical moment” requires qualitative researchers to use research as a site for “critical conversations about democracy, race, gender, class, nation-states, globalization, freedom, and community” (Denzin & Lincoln, 2000, p.3)

Testiminio as Means of Gaining Collective Narratives of Struggle Rooted in South American social liberation movements Witnessing & validation of collective memory, naming oppression & resistance to oppression Reclaiming voice of silenced Allows narratives to speak for themselves Defining new paradigms for the relationship between researcher and participants Potential for understanding truth of the Other’s experience

Testimonio – Why? Offers complex view Allows re-appropriation of voices & agency Individual story part of collective reality Collaboration (speaking with not for) Identifying connections between experiences & structural conditions

What did we do? 4 interviews, not limited in time Reflective journal Grand-tour question “Can you talk about experiences of former Soviet Jews who immigrated to Canada? What was their situation like in FSU? What do you think it is like for them in Toronto?” Reflective journal Analytic purpose: Identifying what happens in interviews Identifying researcher’s bias Co-analysis of reflection Time, probes

What Emerged Thus Far Testimonio of the life in the FSU Collective story of individualism and capitalist meritocracy in Canada Possible explanations: Construction of Jewishness in Canada Immigrants’ relative privilege (White & professional) Doing research within & under Canadian gaze: Researcher as “an outsider within” (tensions arisen by the researcher’s status)

Testimonio – Concerns & Further Questions The Other comes from the Second World? Does community acknowledge any urgency in telling their story? Researcher introduces the framework of oppression to the participants? Whose agenda drives research? What is the agenda of those who are willing to participate? How do we facilitate interviews that help access critical understanding of the experience?

Bibliography Beverley, J. (2005). Testimonio, Subalternity, and narrative authority. In In N.K. Dezin and Y. Lincoln (Eds.). The Sage Handbook of qualitative research (pp. 547-558). Thousand Oaks, California: Sage Publication. Beverley, J. (1992). The margin at the centre. On Testimonio. In S. Smith and J. Watson (Eds.). De/colonizing the subject (pp. 91-114). Brabeck, K. (2004). Testimonio: Bridging feminist and participatory action research principles to create new spaces of collectivity. In: M. Brydon-Miller, P. Maguire, and A. McIntyre (Eds.). Traveling companions: feminism, teaching, and action research, (pp. 41-54). Praeger. Brabeck, K. (2003). Testimonio: A strategy for collective resistance, cultural survival and building solidarity. Feminism and Psychology, 13(2), 252-258. Brabeck, K. (2001) Testimonio: Bringing feminist ethics with activist research to create new spaces of collectivity. Paper presented at “Bridging the Gap: Feminisms and Participatory Action Research Conference” June 22-24, 2001 at Boston College. Retrieved on October 15, 2007 from http://ggsc.wnmu.edu/gap/brabeck.htm Denzin, N. K. and Lincoln, Y. (2000). Handbook of Qualitative Research. 2nd Edition. Thousand Oaks, California: Sage Publication. Yudice (1991). Testimonio and postmodernism. Latin American Perspectives, 18(3), 15-31.

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