To complain is an intimate, dangerous act. Whether it’s speaking up about racism in the workplace or taking a stand against sexual harassment at university, the act of complaining
to an institution can leave you isolated and undermined, all while the original injustice remains unresolved. Time and time again, we see these unanswered complaints compound to disastrous effect.
In No is Not a Lonely Utterance, Sara Ahmed dissects the anatomy of a complaint, revealing how institutions create hostile environments that stigmatize complainers, and charts a way we can listen to grievances with ‘feminist ears’: going beyond mere validation and seeking instead to address the root causes of injustice and inequality.
Weaving together testimonies from various walks of life, Ahmed shows us what we learn about the ways institutions exercise their power when complaints are raised, and indeed
what we learn about our capacity to collectivize and create social bonds through complaint. In doing so, she inspires us to create better environments for our life’s work.
Sara Ahmed is an independent feminist scholar who works at the intersection of feminist, queer and race studies. Her research is concerned with how bodies and worlds take shape; and how power is secured and challenged in everyday life as well as institutional cultures. She has published eleven books including The Feminist Killjoy Handbook.
Dr Erin Maglaque is a historian at the University of Sheffield. She is writing a history of the female body.
Feel free to arrive early to sample a cocktail or a drink from the bar at The Victoria prior to the beginning of the event.
Victoria is brought to you by the makers of The Mowbray and The Chimney House completing a trinity of Northern event spaces and recognised in ELLE, The Observer and Yorkshire Weddings. Beautifully considered and sustainably masterminded reveals an outstanding piece of in-house design with luxury at its heart and the art of ‘doing good’ in its soul.
Standing proud in Sheffield's Historic quarter of Neepsend, Victoria presents a 500 capacity event space for all - an exhilarating mix of premium dining and drinking events, matched with lifestyle, business, wellness, music and design alongside a dynamic calendar of seven days a week private hire events on top of the award winning weddings at its heart.