I just wanted to report in that I used “look-see” today with a group of K-8 
elementary students and I thought it worked fabulously! They really understood 
the point of the move much better than the random g-word, and it was so cute to 
watch them intently and playfully gazing at each other as they went around. One 
of the band members particularly called out that she noticed my new language 
and thought it was brilliant and a big improvement. 

Obviously this is a group with little to no prior associations or names for the 
move, so no baggage. It was just a great name that worked, at least with that 
younger crowd and their parents/teachers.

I mentioned the problem to the band that someone on this list raised about not 
offending blind dancers with words referring to eyes and seeing, but they 
pointed out that we say “right hand turn” which would be equally unfair to a 
dancer missing an arm, and they felt that wasn’t a reason not to use it, as 
there are many ways of “seeing”.



> On Mar 16, 2018, at 1:00 PM, Ron Blechner via Callers 
> <callers@lists.sharedweight.net> wrote:
> 
> I also use "face-to-face", which I learned from Eric. I've heard Steve Z-A 
> and Lisa G switch to these terms, at least where I've heard them call.
> 
> I also use "right shoulder round" when it's a multi-caller event and that's 
> what people like. We agreed to this for Flurry Festival last month, and it 
> worked well all weekend with thousands of dancers.
> 
> I want to also echo that anything that sounds too much like g*psy is going to 
> rub at least some people the wrong way. I also thought jets/rubies was a 
> winner, and I've acknowledged that too many people think jet is a problem.
> 
> In dance,
> Ron Blechner
> 
> On Thu, Mar 15, 2018, 12:00 AM Eric Black via Callers 
> <callers@lists.sharedweight.net <mailto:callers@lists.sharedweight.net>> 
> wrote:
> I’m still bemused and befuddled that not so many years ago, this dance move 
> was decried because of perceived forced invasion of personal space. People 
> did not want to be told that they had to make eye contact when they were not 
> comfortable with it, that they did not like being told to flirt with people 
> they did not choose. Some of us callers told dancers that the eye contact was 
> optional, that the essential part of the move was that it was a face-to-face 
> do-si-do, no spins or twirls, just moving around each other.
> 
> Now the argument against the name of the move has completely lost all ground 
> on that front.
> 
> For some years I’ve used “face-to-face”, teaching it with the memorable 
> description “imagine a short gold chain joining the rings in your noses”.  
> Eye contact is optional, and not directed; dancers will or will not make eye 
> contact as they choose.  In private communication with a young caller who is 
> very vocal in various discussion fora I said there was no need to attribute 
> the term to me. Maybe I should have insisted.
> 
> I’ve tried “right [left] shoulder round” with favorable reception. 
> 
> ANYway, if we’ve been making progress in removing real or perceived invasions 
> of personal space, and gender issues, why regress in order to change the name 
> of a dance move to make progress in removing real or perceived ethnic slurs?
> 
> And no, “spiral” is out of the question. It’s a different move that includes 
> changing the distance between the dancers, whereas the move under discussion 
> does not.  English dancers know the difference.
> 
> Eric Black
> e...@eric-black.com <mailto:e...@eric-black.com>
> 
> 
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