Naomi Wolf urges focus on ethics, democracy, and empowerment
Naomi Wolf (Connecticut & New College 1985) tonight stimulated lively discussion at Rhodes House with proposals for the Rhodes Scholarships to focus on promoting ethics, civil society and democracy, and empowerment.
Ms Wolf, a best-selling author who is in Oxford continuing doctoral study in English, spoke first of the progress made in the position of women in Oxford, including their sense of dignity and safety, since her years there from 1985 to 1988.
However, she also identified issues that continue to face young women - such as how to balance work and family, issues of identity, sexuality, eating disorders, handling criticism, and responding to an environment in which men are more likely than women to trade favours with one another.
Drawing on the work of the Woodhull Institute for Ethical Leadership, Ms Wolf spoke of the value for young women and young men of mentoring and training focussed on skills such as how to build a network, how to debate respectfully, how to handle uncomfortable cultural contexts (such as an environment of mannered privilege), how to start a not-for-profit organisation, and much else.
Ms Wolf identified the great global tension of today as being between open societies and forces - governmental, corporate, and others - threatening rights and freedoms in many countries, and she emphasized the importance of citizens resisting this encroachment and reclaiming constitutional values.
The Rhodes Scholarships and Oxford could play an important role, she urged, through a re-envisioned and more explicit focus on training young people from countries around the world to be ethical leaders committed to democracy and civil society values.
This, she said, required a reconsideration of what leadership has meant in the past, and what it could mean in the future, and a focus on ethical values (which she said were held in common by all religions, and were not ideological), the universal values of civil society and democracy, and the empowerment of individuals to be effective ethical leaders focussed on achieving a more just world.
Ms Wolf also encouraged expansion of the countries from which Rhodes Scholars come, for example to include countries in the Middle East, to help promote international understanding and to be used to maximum effect as 'a resource for good' in the world.
Ms Wolf had previously led a retreat for Rhodes women. Amy King (Australia-at-Large & Trinity 2007), who helped organise the retreat, said, 'Naomi Wolf exhorted us not to fear criticism... She reiterated the importance of drawing on networks of Rhodes women—and women more generally—for support and inspiration in our careers. By celebrating the successes of other Rhodes women we will help to increase the number of women in the public eye and to normalise women’s leadership in politics, law, medicine, science and education. By doing so, perhaps it won’t be too much longer until we see a female Rhodes portrait among the other national leaders in Milner Hall.'
The Warden of Rhodes House, Dr Donald Markwell, said that Rhodes Scholars were immensely grateful for Naomi Wolf's support and empowerment, and for her thought-provoking remarks, which stimulated sustained and lively conversation.
