Jasmin Hugle: Looking Back to Look Ahead: Intersectional Feminism of Amber Moon
Jasmin Hugle is a junior at the University of Kentucky, majoring in Psychology with a minor in English. Jasmin's research interests in feminism and women's rights led her to select the Amber Moon Productions scrapbooks from the 1980s. Amber Moon was a women’s group that advocated for cultural and performing arts in Lexington, Kentucky. During her research, she delved into the intersectionalities present throughout the events hosted by Amber Moon and the events in which they are associated with. Her research also led her to look look comparatively at contemporary popular feminist groups, such as the Me Too Movement and the Women’s March.
Throughout her findings, she was reminded that none of these events were possible without the hard work, synergy, and dedication of previous generations of women who needed their voices to be heard. Jasmin's work studying intersectionalities of feminism has encouraged her to discover more ways to influence others and uplift them. Jasmin will return to UK in the fall as director of University of Kentucky’s EMPOWER Leadership Program.
Jasmin's research was selected for a poster presentation at the National Conference of Undergraduate Research, which was to be held at Montana State University in Bozeman, Montana, March 26-28, 2020. Travel support was funded by UK Libraries and Office of Undergraduate Research. The conference was cancelled due to COVID-19.
Research Abstract: Looking Back to Look Ahead: Intersectional Feminism of Amber Moon
Before feminist intersectionality was even a term, Amber Moon Productions, a nonprofit cultural group in Lexington, Kentucky, had an empowering mission of creating intersectional women-centered community in its small southern city in the 1970s to the early 1980s. While Lexington is known as a liberal community within a very conservative state, what Amber Moon Productions did, with community support from businesses, schools, and other institutions, is nothing short of extraordinary. Events typically invited diverse women to sing, perform theatrical performances, and create community to empower all women. Current feminist movements, such as Me Too and Women’s March, struggle with intersectionality and being inclusive to regards to race, sexuality, class, and ability. Research using primary source records from the Amber Moon Scrapbooks at the University of Kentucky Libraries Special Collections Research Center will investigate the types of cultural events and how the events appealed to women across the spectrum of race, class, sexuality, and ability. Understanding there is a distinct need for greater inclusivity within current feminist movements, this research will be used to establish best practices for current feminist movements. Looking back at what Amber Moon accomplished in a small city in the South 40 years ago through a 21st century racial, queer, and feminist looking glass of inclusivity will serve to create better pathways for today’s feminist movements.