Geographies of Girlhood Identities In-Between Inquiry and Pedagogy Across Diverse Contexts Kathleen deMarrais, Series Editor deMarrais and Lapan, Eds. • Foundations of Research: Methods of Inquiry in Education and the Social Sciences Bettis and Adams, Eds. • Geographies of Girlhood: Identities In-Between Tutwiler • Teachers as Collaborative Partners: Working With Diverse Families and Communities Geographies of Girlhood Identities In-Between Edited by Pamela J. Bettis Washington State University Natalie G. Adams University of Alabama '^^ LAWRENCE ERLBAUM ASSOCIATES, PUBLISHERS 2005 Mahwah, New Jersey London Copyright © 2005 by Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Inc. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form, by photostat, microform, retrieval system, or any other means, without prior written permission of the publisher. Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Inc., Publishers 10 Industrial Avenue Mahwah, New Jersey 07430 www.erlbaum.com Cover design by Jonathan S. Billing Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Geographies of girlhood : identities in-between / edited by Pamela J. Bettis, Natalie G. Adams. p. cm. — (Inquiry and pedagogy across diverse contexts) Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 0-8058-4673-5 (cloth : alk. paper) ISBN 0-8058-4674-3 (pbk. : alk. paper) 1. Girls—United States—Social conditions. 2. Girls—United States— Psychology. 3. Teenage girls—United States. 4. Preteens—United States. 5. Identity (Psychology)—United States. I. Bettis, Pamela, 1955- II. Adams, Natalie Guice, 1962- III. Series. HQ777.G46 2004 305.235'5—dc22 2004053289 CIP Books published by Lawrence Erlbaum Associates are printed on acid- free paper, and their bindings are chosen for strength and durability. Printed in the United States of America 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 21 We dedicate this book to our fabulous girlfriends. This page intentionally left blank Contents Preface xi 1 Landscapes of Girlhood 1 Pamela J. Bettis and Natalie G. Adams PART I BEFORE SCHOOL 2 Barbies, Bases, and Beer: The Role of the Home 19 in Junior High School Girls' Identity Work Don E. Merten 3 Power Beads, Body Glitter, and Backseat Bad-Asses: 35 Girls, Power, and Position on the School Bus Laura Jewett PART II AT SCHOOL 4 Girl Talk: Adolescent Girls' Perceptions of Leadership 55 Dawn M. Shinew and Deborah Thomas Jones 5 Girls in Groups: The Preps and the Sex Mob Try Out 69 for Womanhood Pame la J. Bettis, Debra Jordan, and Diane Montgomery VII viii CONTENTS 6 "The Beauty Walk" as a Social Space for Messages About 85 the Female Body: Toward Transformative Collaboration Rosary Lalik and Kimberly L. Oliver 7 Fighters and Cheerleaders: Disrupting the Discourse 101 of "Girl Power" in the New Millennium Natalie G. Adams 8 "Only 4-Minute Passing Periods!" Private and Public 115 Menstrual Identities in School Laura Fingerson 9 In the World But Not of It: Gendered Religious 137 Socialization at a Christian School Stacey Elsasser 10 "We Ain't No Dogs": Teenage Mothers (Re)Define 155 Themselves Sandra Spickard Prettyman PART III AFTER SCHOOL 11 Black Girls/White Spaces: Managing Identity Through 177 Memories of Schooling Cerri A. Banks 12 Unstraightening the Ideal Girl: Lesbians, High School, 195 and Spaces to Be John E. Petrovic and Rebecca M. Ballard 13 Disputation of a Bad Reputation: Adverse Sexual 211 Labels and the Lives of 12 Southern Women Delores D. Liston and Regina E. Moore-Rahimi 14 Border Crossing—Border Patrolling: Race, Gender, 231 and the Politics of Sisterhood Lyn Mikel Brown and Sandy Marie Grande 15 "I Am a Woman Now!": Rewriting Cartographies 253 of Girlhood From the Critical Standpoint of Disability Nirmala Erevelles and Kagendo Mutua CONTENTS ix Afterword: Girlhood, Place, and Pedagogy 271 Pamela]. Bettis and Natalie G. Adams Author Biographies 281 Subject Index 287