Renowned American writer, professor and cultural critic Roxane Gay is known for her bold perspectives that challenge the status quo. So, it makes sense that this August you’ll find her at the Festival of Dangerous Ideas (FODI), which is taking over Carriageworks in Eora/Sydney. This year’s theme – Sanctuary – aims to create a space where we can pause, reflect and delve into the complex and confronting topics we rarely get to engage with. Gay will be discussing the power of “dangerous ideas” and the importance of asking questions of a society that often prefers its answers in neat little boxes. (FYI: Gay is also presenting a talk in Melbourne on August 29 for Now or Never – tell your Melburnian mates!)
If you’re a Millennial like me who took it upon yourself to dip your toes into feminist discourse beyond the generic yassification of girl-boss/gaslight/gatekeep culture, you might already be familiar with Roxane Gay. For those who aren’t, let this be your guide to why you should be.
I’m not really dissenting...I’m just articulating what everyone deserves; a voice, safety, and the right to live freely.
Like a lot of well-meaning white women, my first exposure to Gay came with the release of Bad Feminist in 2014. The essays in this book gave me and many others permission to draw outside the lines of the feminism we felt we had to conform to – freeing us to enjoy those “guilty pleasures” that seem at odds with feminist ideology, like trashy television and problematic song lyrics. Gay’s words opened my mind to understanding power from an intersectional lens, which allowed me to explore my own gender identity and sexuality, and pushed me towards a more collective understanding of feminism – one that seeks to liberate all people, not just women.
Over the next ten years, her words held me through a journey that expanded my understanding of the world and my place in it. In 2017, Hunger provided me with the language to articulate my experience of living in a body that society labelled and judged. It challenged me to rethink my relationship with myself and the value of personhood. And now, in 2024, I find myself sitting at my desk on a Zoom call – staring at the woman who told me that I am not only allowed to ask “why?”, but that it's important that I do.
At this year's FODI, Gay will be in conversation with Narelda Jacobs for a talk titled How to Have Dangerous Ideas. But what does it mean to have a truly dangerous idea? During our all-too-brief conversation, Gay clarifies that true dangerous ideas are not those championed by “these edgelords, the Jordan Petersons of the world” who claim bravery in spouting “misogyny and other forms of bigotry”.
Instead, Gay believes that the true danger lies in the ideas that “challenge power and authority, and who holds it”. For Example, the Mabo case, which challenged the doctrine of terra nullius, was once considered a radical idea – yet, it led to the recognition of Indigenous land rights and the Native Title Act 1993. This landmark decision acknowledged Indigenous peoples as the traditional custodians of the land in so-called Australia, which enabled Indigenous communities to be formally consulted and recognised as key advisors in land management and environmental conservation. While we still have a long way to go, it’s these ideas that don’t just disrupt the status quo, but help us move towards breaking it down, so that we can achieve a more equitable and just society.
In contrast, ideas that seek to maintain (and in some cases, regress) the distribution of power like debating the definition of what constitutes a woman. However, as Gay points out, “there’s just no question that is more banal and pointless than what is a woman”. These debates, often disguised as protecting women (read: patriarchal infantalisation), fail to advance or protect women's rights. Instead, they seek to deny the humanity of others, which we’ve seen first-hand with the media frenzy around Olympic boxer Imane Khelif. These conversations do nothing but enforce narrow standards that ignore the diversity of women worldwide.
“It’s very interesting that we all have such, frankly, romantic notions about dangerous ideas, [because] a great many people are attached to authority and the status quo,” notes Gay. In a world where progress is often stifled by those invested in maintaining their dominance, dangerous ideas are not only necessary, but essential for moving society forward.
Roxane Gay’s career has earned her the label of “serial dissenter” – a title she seems to find amusing. While this label suggests that she’s perpetually at odds with the world, Gay is quick to clear this up. For her, dissent isn’t about opposing ideas for the sake of it; it’s about advocating for what should be universal rights. “It’s always interesting to be framed as a dissenter, when I’m not really dissenting,” she explains, “I’m just articulating what everyone deserves; a voice, safety, and the right to live freely.”
To her, it’s not rebellious to request basic human rights, and when we normalise the dehumanisation of people – denying their bodily autonomy, questioning their right to exist – it highlights a glaring problem in the way we think. Do we really want to live in a world that sees working towards ensuring dignity and respect for all people as an act of rebellion? It’s clear that this distinction is important to her. Being labelled as “staunch” or “difficult” mirrors the experiences of so many marginalised people, especially Women of Colour, whose identities and lives are often oversimplified for the comfort of others, reducing their voices to one of opposition rather than advocacy. It’s a reminder that the complexity of Gay’s work – or anyone else’s – can’t be fully captured by a single label.
Much like the talks and experiences offered at FODI, Gay’s latest book Do the Work: A Guide to Understanding Power and Creating Change, co-authored with Megan Pillow, is a rare opportunity for people to gain guided exposure to knowledge that has traditionally been held within the ivory tower of higher education. What I love most about Do the Work is how Gay and Pillow have made crucial knowledge about the complexities of power, privilege and justice accessible to everyone. It’s an entry point for anyone who sees injustice in their community but feels powerless to do anything about it, providing readers with tangible ways to learn, engage and do the work.
The impact of sharing knowledge in an equitable way is not lost on Gay, and you only need to look at Australia’s current economic and social climate to see what happens when that access is limited. When the Whitlam Government abolished tuition fees for university education in 1974 (this ended in 1989, sadly), it opened doors for a generation that would become more financially prosperous than any before them. However, today’s reality paints a different picture. With the rising cost of living and the escalating expenses of university degrees – particularly in fields like arts and humanities – Millennials and Gen Z face narrowing options for furthering their education and are the first generations that will likely be less financially secure than their parents.
It’s very interesting that we all have such, frankly, romantic notions about dangerous ideas, [because] a great many people are attached to authority and the status quo.
Gay recognises that most “people are very well-meaning, and don't know where to start when it comes to thinking about engaging with politics, social justice and creating change”. In today’s media landscape, where the pressure to produce content quickly can compromise nuance and accuracy, Gay stresses the importance of media integrity, but also media literacy amongst consumers. “Media outlets have the power to shape our focus and perceptions, that can be a blessing, and it can also be a curse,” she says.
Many people consume news from sources that reinforce their existing views, creating echo chambers that limit understanding and increase susceptibility to misinformation. “So the media [you consume], even when you have different news sources, they kind of are all on the same page,” Gay observes. Embracing a wider range of perspectives, including those of People of Colour, women, and LGBTQIA+ individuals, is crucial. “We need to have diverse points of view in the public sphere,” she says. By broadening our media consumption and critically engaging with various viewpoints, we can foster a more informed, compassionate society.
I’ll never forget how hard it was to embrace the discomfort I had when first engaging with Roxane Gay’s “dangerous ideas”. But now that I have, it’s impossible to look back. If this piece has left you feeling intrigued about expanding your perspectives, or even a little confronted about new ideas, that’s OK. Perhaps it’s time for you to dip a toe in at the Festival of Dangerous Ideas. And, if I can leave you with one piece of advice for the next time you feel challenged by an idea – always remember that Google is free.
Roxane Gay will appear at Carriageworks in Sydney, as part of the Festival of Dangerous Ideas (August 24-25) and at Melbourne Town Hall (August 27) presented by The Wheeler Centre and Now or Never.
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