By Kimberly Zapata
I resolved myself to make a video for this issue’s “From the Editor.” (I love watching online webcasts—industry-related and not—but I was not in love with the idea of watching myself.) Regardless, I picked a date, made plans for my husband to take our 10-month-old daughter out, and made sure my webcam was functioning. Check, check, check. What I didn’t plan for was a week-long cold—not just me but my entire family—the same week we were moving. So now I find myself writing instead….
I am extremely excited to introduce one of our feature articles this issue, “Cultural Appropriation,” by Kendra Jane and Alicia Cardenas. As many of you have already seen, cultural appropriation and white privilege have become quite hot topics as of late. (It is not a new topic, but a recent Tumblr post by Alan Vedge sparked an industry-wide conversation.) While the article is, in and of itself, an excellent read, it is not the content that excites me as much as what the article stands for, as this article is the first of—what we hope to be—a series of discussions in The Point. (Not attacks, not arguments, but open and ongoing dialogues.) These features will highlight industry hot-button issues with the hopes of encouraging our readership to offer their insights and opinions in future issues.
That said, keep in mind conversations are not one-sided. What one may say, you may not agree with (in fact, you may dislike it and blatantly disagree). That is okay! The intention of this series is not to foster anger, flame-wars, or hatred; it is to allow everyone to participate in a discussion that pertains to each and every one of us—even if we haven’t considered it yet. It is an opportunity for us to grow—personally and professionally—and to open our eyes to other perspectives and points-of-view.
I look forward to seeing where this series takes us. If you have an idea for a future feature or would like to engage in this issue’s discussion, submit here. (You can also feel free to stop me at Conference—in classes, walking the Expo, waiting in the halls, at the bar, wherever, whenever!)
I look forward to seeing old faces and meeting new ones this June, and welcome to issue #67 of The Point.
