Lecture description:

In this lecture I will reflect on what I have learnt from how the figure of the feminist killjoy has been translated into different languages. I will return to some of my earlier considerations on the ethics of translation in Strange Encounters (2000) and also connect ‘killjoy translations’ to my recent concern with how ‘no’ is a sociable utterance. I will explore how activism might require the perpetual act of translating our refusals of gendered, institutional, state and colonial violence.

Event description:

With this one-day event, we aim to explore and reframe the horizons, challenges, and possibilities of transfeminist queer translation in its interconnection with theories of affect and decoloniality. The conference’s idea was born out of reflections stemming from the translations into Italian of the work of leading feminist writer and independent scholar Sara Ahmed, who will act as a keynote speaker at the event, and of other recent translations into Italian of feminist and queer thinkers and writers. It also stems from a special issue on affect and queer feminist translation that Michela and Samuele are co-editing for the journal Italian Culture.

Further details here: https://www.queerfeministtranslation.uk/

In her talk, Dr. Ahmed explores how diversity is increasingly framed as forced change, an ideological imposition, or as compelled speech. Given these attacks on diversity and equality initiatives, it might seem that it is time to abandon critiques of what diversity is not doing. The aim of Dr. Ahmed’s lecture is to show how these critiques provide the tools to explain and challenge what is going on.

Dr. Ahmed will draw on two projects: the first on complaint; the second on common sense. For the former, she uses research from her newest book A Complainer’s Handbook: A Guide to Building Less Hostile Institutions for an understanding of institutional power and institutional change. She will also draw on a new project on common sense. Common sense is increasingly appealed to as a legacy, an alternative to “wokeism,” and as an argument against institutional change.

Further information and registration: https://events.ok.ubc.ca/event/changing-institutions-common-sense-complaint-and-other-lessons-in-legacy/

Time zone: 9am PST and 5pm GMT.

In this lecture I will share some reflections on why the feminist killjoy has become a central figure in my writing, philosophy and activism. Drawing on Living a Feminist Life and The Feminist Killjoy Handbook, which have both been recently translated into Polish, I will explain why I think of killing joy as a task more than an identity. To be a killjoy at work is to work on institutions as well as at them, to be willing to complain about institutional problems even if that means becoming the problem. To be killjoys at work is also to show how institutions often resist being changed by appearing to be committed to it. I will offer some observations on the creativity and collectivity of killing joy drawing on my recently completed, A Complainer’s Handbook: A Guide To Building Less Hostile Institutions. 

https://artmuseum.pl/en/events/killjoys-at-work-lecture-by-sara-ahmed

Time is Eastern Time (4pm GMT).

In my book, On Being Included: Racism and Diversity in Institutional Life, published over a decade ago, I explored how diversity is used by institutions as a way of appearing to doing something. The appearance of change can be a form of resistance to change. And yet, diversity is increasingly framed as forced change, an ideological imposition, or as compelled speech. Given these attacks on diversity and equality initiatives, it might seem that it is time to abandon our critiques of what diversity is not doing. One of my aims in this lecture is to show how these critiques give us the tools to explain and challenge what is going on. I will draw on two projects: the first on complaint; the second on common sense. For the former, I spoke to academics and students who had made or considered making complaints about abuses of power and inequalities within universities.  I am now working on a new book A Complainer’s Handbook: A Guide to Building Less Hostile Institutions (a companion text to The Feminist Killjoy Handbook) in which I pull out the significance of this research for an understanding of institutional change. I will also draw on a new project on common sense. Common sense is increasingly appealed to as a legacy, an alternative to “wokeism,” and as an argument against institutional change. 

Register here

https://zoom.us/meeting/register/tJYldu2hrjguH9N-c4TyOf8H7_UI3d5voMCu

Information and registration here:

https://www.thephilosopher1923.org/events/on-feminist-killjoys

https://cajanegraeditora.com.ar/acciones/sara-ahmed-en-conversacion-con-carmen-romero-bachiller/

https://cajanegraeditora.com.ar/acciones/sara-ahmed-en-conversacion-con-carmen-romero-bachiller/

Futher Information available here:

https://www.losencuentrosdepamplona.com/en/participante/sara-ahmed/

https://womenslibrary.org.uk/event/sara-ahmed-killjoys-on-tour/

https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/finding-other-killjoys-tickets-909321253347

In my book, On Being Included: Racism and Diversity in Institutional Life, published over a decade ago, I explored how diversity is used by institutions as a way of appearing to doing something. The appearance of change can be a form of resistance to change. And yet, diversity is increasingly framed as forced change, an ideological imposition, or as compelled speech. Given these attacks on diversity and equality initiatives, it might seem that it is time to abandon our critiques of what diversity is not doing. One of my aims in this lecture is to show how these critiques give us the tools to explain and challenge what is going on. I will draw on two projects: the first on complaint; the second on common sense. For the former, I spoke to academics and students who had made or considered making complaints about abuses of power and inequalities within universities.  I am now working on a new book A Complainer’s Handbook: A Guide to Building Less Hostile Institutions (a companion text to The Feminist Killjoy Handbook) in which I pull out the significance of this research for an understanding of institutional power and institutional change. I will also draw on a new project on common sense. Common sense is increasingly appealed to as a legacy, an alternative to “wokeism,” and as an argument against institutional change. 

 https://nieuweinstituut.nl/en/events/changing-institutions-sara-ahmed

https://linktr.ee/skopjeprideweekend?fbclid=IwZXh0bgNhZW0CMTAAAR02CpnWbDjIZAMIswkBVF5L-wkp9yE8cC8J8wpYp8lO8h1FkYIm3QyuWYk_aem_ZmFrZWR1bW15MTZieXRlcw

Further Information here:

https://literalbcn.com/activitats/explorar-les-identitats-sara-ahmed-conversa-amb-bel-olid/

In haar boek Queer Phenomenology uit 2006 heeft Sara Ahmed het uitgebreid over tafels. Ze begint met schrijftafels, één van de meest besproken objecten in de filosofie, en richt zich vervolgens op keukentafels en hoe deze familiebijeenkomsten faciliteren en oriënteren. Ahmed levert in haar werk geregeld kritiek op ‘gelukkige’ tafels, waarbij ze de rol van de feministische pretbederfster opneemt, die een gezellige sfeer in de weg staat. Tijdens deze lezing zal Ahmed stilstaan bij hoe tafels ertoe doen – van schrijftafels over keukentafels tot vergadertafels. Ze zal aantonen hoe instellingen diversiteit inzetten om de indruk te wekken dat iedereen kan deelnemen, dat iedereen een zitje aan de ‘verzorgde’ tafel krijgt. Ze laat zien hoe we net méér te weten komen over instituten (inclusief het gezin) als we weigeren de tafel op te poetsen. Sara Ahmed is een onafhankelijke queer feministische wetenschapster van kleur. Haar werk focust op hoe macht wordt ervaren en uitgedaagd in het dagelijks leven en binnen institutionele culturen.

Further information: https://www.visit.brussels/en/visitors/agenda/event-detail.Setting-the-Table-Reflections-on-How-Tables-Matter-Sara-Ahmed-Kunstenfestivaldesarts.50008654

In my book, On Being Included: Racism and Diversity in Institutional Life, published over a decade ago, I explored how diversity is used by institutions as a way of appearing to doing something. The appearance of change can be a form of resistance to change. And yet, diversity is increasingly framed as forced change, an ideological imposition, or as compelled speech. Given these attacks on diversity and equality initiatives, it might seem that it is time to abandon our critiques of what diversity is not doing. One of my aims in this lecture is to show how these critiques give us the tools to explain and challenge what is going on. I will draw on two projects: the first on complaint; the second on common sense. For the former, I spoke to academics and students who had made or considered making complaints about abuses of power and inequalities within universities.  I am now working on a new book A Complainer’s Handbook: A Guide to Building Less Hostile Institutions, in which I pull out the significance of this research for an understanding of institutional change. I will also draw on a new project on common sense. Common sense is increasingly appealed to as a legacy, an alternative to “wokeism,” and as an argument against institutional change. 

https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/changing-institutions-common-sense-complaint-and-other-lessons-in-legacy-tickets-863633229237

In my book, On Being Included: Racism and Diversity in Institutional Life, published over a decade ago, I explored how diversity is used by institutions as a way of appearing to doing something. The appearance of change can be a form of resistance to change. And yet, diversity is increasingly framed as forced change, an ideological imposition, or as compelled speech. Given these attacks on diversity and equality initiatives, it might seem that it is time to abandon our critiques of what diversity is not doing. One of my aims in this lecture is to show how these critiques give us the tools to explain and challenge what is going on. I will draw on two projects: the first on complaint; the second on common sense. For the former, I spoke to academics and students who had made or considered making complaints about abuses of power and inequalities within universities.  I am now working on a new book A Complainer’s Handbook: A Guide to Building Less Hostile Institutions, in which I pull out the significance of this research for an understanding of institutional change. I will also draw on a new project on common sense. Common sense is increasingly appealed to as a legacy, an alternative to “wokeism,” and as an argument against institutional change. 

https://t.co/t5BIhLCVJW

11am EST, 4pm BST

Sara Ahmed presents two of her books, 'Feminist Killjoy Handbook' and 'Queer Vandalism', with her co-translators Emma Bigé and Mabeuko Oberty.

She also talks about the forthcoming book 'Vivre une vie féministe' (published by Hors d'atteinte).

https://www.lafayetteanticipations.com/en/manifestation/killing-joy-queer-projecthttps://www.lafayetteanticipations.com/en/manifestation/killing-joy-queer-project

Join us on IWD to express killjoy solidarity, the solidarity we need to face what we come up against. This informal discussion, led by feminist of colour scholar-activists Sara Ahmed and Akanksha Mehta, marks the moment of the paperback release of The Feminist Killjoy Handbook. We hope to create a space for shared reflection on how we survive and transform institutions, finding each other in the midst of many violences. We will keep in mind Chicana-Palestinian feminist Sarah Ihmoud’s vital question, “What does it mean to practice feminism in a moment of bearing witness to genocide?” 

Sara Ahmed (she/her) is a queer feminist scholar of colour. She has been writing about feminist killjoys for some time (but has been a feminist killjoy for much longer).

Akanksha Mehta (she/her) is a queer feminist educator, researcher, and writer from India, living in SE London. She likes to fight, dismantle, build and dreams of a world that is not  so exhausting for every one of us. 

Registration details coming soon!

Join us to share some killjoy solidarity and to celebrate the paperback release of The Feminist Killjoy Handbook! Author Sara Ahmed will be in conversation with her friend and comrade in queer world making Jonathan Keane. They will reflect together on why the figure of the feminist killjoy has so much queer potential. 

Further information and tickets here: https://www.outsavvy.com/event/18284/the-feminist-killjoy-handbook-sara-ahmed-in-conversation-with-jonathan-keane

Details and tickets here: https://www.thesmallcitybookshop.co.uk/event-details/the-feminist-killjoy-handbook-paperback-launch-with-sara-ahmed

In this lecture I reflect back on my experience of writing The Feminist Killjoy Handbook (Seal Press, 2023). I explain why I gave feminist killjoys a book of their own, well over ten years after giving them a chapter in The Promise of Happiness. I explore how feminist killjoys turned up in my own work and what I have learnt from killjoy encounters, at home and at work. I will also clarify what I mean by “killing joy as a world making project,” which is the tagline for my feminist killjoy blog. 

Register here: https://ramconnect.wcupa.edu/CWGE/rsvp_boot?id=2260070

Time zone EST (5-6.30pm GMT)

Further details here: https://www.goodwoodbooks.com.au/

Tickets: https://events.humanitix.com/sara-ahmed

To be a killjoy at work is to work on institutions as well as at them. In this lecture I explore what we come to know about institutions from our efforts to transform them. I will draw especially from two chapters “The Feminist Killjoy as Philosopher” and “The Feminist Killjoy as Activist” in my newly published The Feminist Killjoy Handbook. To be killjoys at work means being willing to confront institutional problems, to question how diversity is happily claimed by organisations, and to challenge how they use our efforts to change them as evidence they have changed. To be killjoys at work also requires being alert to how the figure of the feminist killjoy can be appropriated and neutralised. We have to find other institutional killjoys, because the more we come up against, the more we need more.

Register here: https://www.kpu.ca/provost-presents

To be a feminist killjoy is to be a killjoy at work. We work on institutions as well as at them. In this talk I explore what we come to know about institutions from our efforts to transform them. I will draw especially from two chapters “The Feminist Killjoy as Philosopher” and “The Feminist Killjoy as Activist” in my newly published The Feminist Killjoy Handbook. To be killjoys at work means being willing to confront institutional problems, to question how diversity is happily claimed by organisations, and to challenge how they use our efforts to change them as evidence they have changed. To be killjoys at work also requires being alert to how the figure of the feminist killjoy can be appropriated and neutralised. We have to find other institutional killjoys, because the more we come up against, the more we need more.

8-10am (Pacific Daylight Time), 4-6pm (British Summer Time)

Details and registration here: https://events.wsu.edu/event/english-dept-webinar-killjoys-at-work-by-dr-sara-ahmed/

To be a killjoy at work is to work on institutions as well as at them. In this lecture I explore what we come to know about institutions from our efforts to transform them. I will draw especially from two chapters “The Feminist Killjoy as Philosopher” and “The Feminist Killjoy as Activist” in my newly published The Feminist Killjoy Handbook. To be killjoys at work means being willing to confront institutional problems, to question how diversity is happily claimed by organisations, and to challenge how they use our efforts to change them as evidence they have changed. To be killjoys at work also requires being alert to how the figure of the feminist killjoy can be appropriated and neutralised. We have to find other institutional killjoys, because the more we come up against, the more we need more.

9.30-11.00 (PDT), 5.30-7pm (BST).

Register here: https://www.kpu.ca/provost-presents

In my newly published The Feminist Killjoy Handbook, I suggest that the feminist killjoy is a queer figure with a queer history. When you reclaim the term feminist killjoy you end up in conversation with other people who, like you, find a potential or promise in that term, how its negativity can be redirected. In this lecture, I explore the queerness of the project of killing joy as a project of redirecting negativity. I develop some of my arguments about ‘the unhappy queer’ from The Promise of Happiness (2010) as well as ‘queer use’ from What’s the Use? On the Uses of Use (2019). In giving the feminist killjoy a queer history, I also show how and why killing joy is a world-making project."

Further Information: https://www.wesleyan.edu/fgss/events.html

“I am not willing to make happiness my cause” Sara Ahmed

“I refuse to be polite or civil with anyone who does not recognise my full humanity” Mona Eltahaway

Please join us for a conversation between Sara Ahmed and Mona Eltahawy about impolite, uncivil and killjoy feminisms and why they are key to the disruption of hetero-patriarchy, colonialism and racial capitalism. The conversation is to mark the launch of The Feminist Killjoy Handbook, written as a “helping hand” for feminist killjoys everywhere, and published by Seal Press on October 3rd, 2023. In the handbook, Sara includes Mona’s The Seven Necessary Sins for Women and Girls as one of her recommended texts for feminist killjoys.

Registration is here: https://peoplesforum.org/events/book-launch-the-feminist-killjoy-handbook-w-sara-ahmed-mona-eltahaway/

Bios of Speakers

Sara Ahmed is an independent queer feminist scholar of colour. She is an unprofessional feminist and a professional feminist killjoy and her work is concerned with how power is experienced and challenged in everyday life and institutional cultures. She has just published her first trade book, The Feminist Killjoy Handbook with Seal Press. Previous books (published by Duke University Press) include Complaint! (2021), What's The Use? On the Uses of Use (2019), Living a Feminist Life (2017), Willful Subjects (2014), On Being Included: Racism and Diversity in Institutional Life (2012), The Promise of Happiness (2010) and Queer Phenomenology: Objects, Orientations, Others (2006). She is currently writing A Complainer’s Handbook: A Guide to Building Less Hostile Institutions and has begun a new project on common sense. She blogs at feministkilljoy.com.

Mona Eltahawy is a feminist author, commentator, and disruptor of patriarchy. She is founder and editor-in-chief of the newsletter FEMINIST GIANT. Her opinion essays have appeared in media across the world. Her first book Headscarves and Hymens: Why the Middle East Needs a Sexual Revolution (2005) targeted patriarchy in the Middle East and North Africa and her second The Seven Necessary Sins for Women and Girls (2019) took that disruption worldwide. She is a contributor to the recent anthology This Arab is Queer and is editing the anthology Bloody Hell! And Other Stories: Adventures in Menopause from Across the Personal and Political Spectrums. Her new book due 2024 is a memoir of menopause called The King Herself: How Hatshepsut Helped Me Unbecome.

The New School’s Mellon Initiative for Inclusive Faculty Excellence is excited to invite you to a talk by Sara Ahmed  "Killjoys at Work." To be a feminist killjoy is to be a killjoy at work. We work on institutions as well as at them. In this lecture Sara explores what we come to know about institutions from our efforts to transform them. She will draw especially from two chapters “The Feminist Killjoy as Philosopher” and “The Feminist Killjoy as Activist” in her newly published The Feminist Killjoy Handbook. To be killjoys at work means being willing to confront institutional problems, to question how diversity is happily claimed by organizations, and to challenge how they use our efforts to change them as evidence they have changed. To be killjoys at work also requires being alert to how the figure of the feminist killjoy can be appropriated and neutralized. We have to find other institutional killjoys, because the more we come up against, the more we need more.

With Deva Woodly (Brown University) as discussant, the talk will be followed by a reception for Sara Ahmed’s new book, The Feminist Killjoy Handbook. Introduced by Dr. Renée T. White. Copies will be available for purchase and signing.

Register here: https://event.newschool.edu/saraahmedonkilljoysatwork

Join us for an evening with renowned feminist author, Sara Ahmed, as she discusses her latest book, The Feminist Killjoy Handbook. In this collection of essays, Ahmed explores the ways in which feminist politics is often met with resistance, and how being a feminist killjoy can be a form of resistance in itself. Drawing on her own experiences and those of other feminists, Ahmed offers insightful and thought-provoking commentary on issues such as racism, sexism, and homophobia, and the ways in which they intersect.

During the event, Ahmed will read from her book, followed by a discussion and Q&A session with the audience. This is an excellent opportunity to engage with one of the most important voices in contemporary feminist thought and to gain a deeper understanding of the challenges and rewards of feminist activism.

Tickets here: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/a-conversation-with-sara-ahmed-the-feminist-killjoy-handbook-tickets-616391051227?aff=ebdshpsearchautocomplete

In my recently published The Feminist Killjoy Handbook, I suggest that the feminist killjoy is a queer figure with a queer history. When you reclaim the term feminist killjoy you end up in conversation with other people who, like you, find a potential or promise in that term, how its negativity can be redirected. In this lecture, I explore the queerness of the project of killing joy as a project of redirecting negativity. I develop some of my arguments about ‘the unhappy queer’ from The Promise of Happiness (2010) as well as ‘queer use’ from What’s the Use? On the Uses of Use (2019). In giving the feminist killjoy a queer history, I also show how and why killing joy is a world-making project."

The event is sold out but you can register for the livestream here:

https://events.teams.microsoft.com/event/8dab7d15-716b-422d-abe6-98578e1459cd@8370cf14-16f3-4c16-b83c-724071654356

Join us when we mark Feminist Book Fortnight with a discussion of Sara Ahmed’s THE FEMINIST KILLJOY HANDBOOK and Hannah Dawson’s anthology THE PENGUIN BOOK OF FEMINIST WRITING.

Organised by Pages of Hackney bookshop. Tickets and further information available here: https://www.pagesofhackney.co.uk/event/sara-ahmed-and-hannah-dawson-in-conversation/