The American Anthropological Association’s 116th Annual Meeting was brimming with how can we even? under the Trump administration. The theme, “Anthropology Matters,” had everyone wondering whether there was punctuation missing, while the confusing hills and towers of the Wardman Park Marriott in Washington, DC, forced anthros to rethink theories of landscape, design ethnography, and tropic aggression. However, the complementary drawstring bags were by far the best AAA has delivered in at least eight years.
1. “We’re all gonna drink out of the same ceremonial cup and have some of that gross merlot.”
2. “A true anthropologist doesn’t use toilet seat covers.”
3. “I just did a twirl in the lobby so people know I’m unique. I believe in demonstrative teaching.”
4. “I don’t usually ask about people’s sex lives. I mean, I don’t think my questions were that intrusive. I mean, they could’ve been more intrusive.”
5. “Can objects be corrupt?”
6. “You know, we’re not really into this marriage thing, but we love each other!”
7. “I just can’t keep repeating that gay men have gender and straight women have sexuality.”
8. “We need to do a Latour-informed spoof of Goop!”
9. “I want the meeting next year to be called ‘Resistance,’ exclamation point, colon, ‘Fuck you, Trump.’”
10. Person 1: “Yes, I’m three months pregnant!”
Person 2: “You’re literally creating personhood!”
11. “Anthropologists love Practical Magic! I mean, witches, right?”
12. “Innovation station, what’s your dissertation?”
13. “Why are there two different categories for ‘dog eating’ in the conference index?”
14. Person 1: “So India Netflix is totally different from US Netflix.”
Person 2: “Yeah, but that’s part of the fieldwork experience.”
