The 4th Annual Gender & Sexual Minorities Conference - 2021 Virtual

The LGBTQ Resource Center and Women's Center present:

The 4th Annual Gender & Sexual Minorities Conference

Activism: Lead, Give, Build, Teach, Question, Initiate, Advocate

Friday, February 12th 2021 | 10am-5pm | Virtual

To Attend the Conference:

The Gender & Sexual Minorities Conference is free to attend!

If you plan on attending the conference, either as a presenter or attendee, pre-registration has been made easy; just fill out the form at the following link: GSMC 2021 Online Registration Form. Please pre-register by February 11th, 2021. You will still be able to attend the conference if you miss pre-registration, this just makes it easier for us to track attendance.

Keynote: Malcolm Kenyatta

As a legislator, he has championed proposals to address generational poverty, raise the minimum wage and protect workers’ rights, increase access to mental health care, enact common-sense measures to address gun violence, and strengthen our digital infrastructure. 

In 2016 and again in 2020, he was elected to serve as a delegate to the Democratic Convention to represent Pennsylvania’s Second Congressional District; both times garnering the second-highest vote total of any delegate in the Commonwealth. He has also appeared on local and national media outlets to discuss systemic poverty, affordable education and childcare, and how to make government more accountable to citizens. He was the subject of an award-winning short documentary, ‘Going Forward’, produced by Seven Knot Productions, which premiered on ‘The Atlantic Magazine Selects’ in 2018. 

11 am

Christian and Queer? LGBTQIA Affirming Theology
Zoom Meeting ID: 926 1649 2911

Session Description: 
This workshop will discuss the intersection of Lutheran Christianity and LGBTQIA+ affirming ministries and theologies. Participants will be invited to uncover biases and previous harmful stances by the Church and acknowledge the ways ministry in today’s context has sought to rectify these wrongs. The session will include discussions how Christianity and Queer Theology meet in life-giving and affirming ways. Attendees will be invited to participate briefly through-out the session as they feel comfortable doing so.

Jonah Davis - He/Him
Presenter Bio: 
Jonah Davis is a senior year seminarian studying for his MDiv at United Lutheran Seminary. As a queer transgender individual Jonah is aware of, and has experienced, some of the unique challenges the LGBTQIA+ community face in church life. He hopes to accompany others on pathways of deep listening, relationship building, and Christ-focused engagement.

LGBTQ+ Inclusive Sex Ed: What You Didn’t Learn in High School
Zoom Meeting ID: 950 1817 5952

Session Description: 
While high school Sex Ed courses are important, they also tend to be lacking in certain areas - specifically anything regarding the LGBTQ+ community. Come learn about the difference between sex and gender, the care and keeping of your intimate bits, surgeries and hormonal interventions for transgender/non-binary people, the different types of sexual interactions and how to stay safe and happy!

Brit Barlup - She/They & Bec Miller - She/They
Presenter Bios: 
Brit Barlup is a graduate student in the Clinical & Mental Health Counseling program at Kutztown University. They graduated with a BS in Psychology from Kutztown in 2018. They currently work as a Graduate Assistant for the Women’s Center and LGBTQ+ Resource Center, as well as interning at the LGBT Center of Greater Reading. She hopes to find a job counseling within the LGBTQ community and continue her activism/advocacy work.
Bec Miller is a graduate student in the Clinical & Mental Health Counseling program at Kutztown University. They graduated with a BS in Psychology from Kutztown in 2020. During her undergraduate years, she worked as an Undergraduate Assistant for the LGBTQ+ Center and Women’s Center, and served as president of Allies. They currently work as a Graduate Assistant for the Honors Program.

Safe Space Training
Zoom Meeting ID: 949 3814 4391

Session Description: 
The mission of the Kutztown University Safe Space Program is to provide education and resources to KU community members as a means to create a safe and nurturing environment that is free of discrimination based on sexual orientation, sexual identity, or gender identity.

Justin Trice - He/Him
Presenter Bio: 
Justin Trice is the Graduate Assistant for the LGBTQ+ Resource Center at Kutztown University and a student pursuing his Master’s degree in Clinical Mental Health Counseling. He hopes to become a Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC) working in private practice and specialize in the unique needs of the LGBTQ+ community.

12 pm: No sessions. Break for Lunch

1 pm:

I Hope You're Not an Ally
Zoom Meeting ID: 917 8149 5896

Session Description: 
Instead of calling yourself an ally, I hope your actions display your commitment. In this session about problematic allyship and truly leveraging your privilege, participants will center their learning around the following principles: (1) If you don't start with yourself, you'll fail. (2) If it's not hard, you're failing. (3) The second you've arrived as an ally, you've failed.

Amanda Slichter - She/Her
Presenter Bio: 
Amanda Slichter is the Assistant Director of Residence Life at Kutztown University. Her passion areas include racial justice and advocacy surrounding LGBTQIAP+ identities.

Queers, Queens and the Fight for Equality
Zoom Meeting ID: 995 6669 6960

Session Description: 
A queer history timeline told through the lives of identical twin drag queens separated at birth by 25 years. Carol Ann's march begins in 1964, 5 years before the Stonewall Riots. Sharron Ann joined the parade in 1988 when the gay community was still reeling from the effects of HIV and AIDS. Since joining forces in 2010, they've seen the legalization of Gay marriage, the first Out presidential candidate, and the first trans* woman to lead PA's department of health. Join the girls for an emotional and memorable conversation about their journey within the modern LGBTQA equality movement.

Carol Ann Carol Ann - She/Her & Sharron Ann Husbands - She/Her
Presenter Bio: 
Carol Ann Carol Ann and Sharron Ann Husbands are ClanAnn! They began performing together in 2011 when they realized they were identical twins separated at birth (by 25 years).  From their humble beginnings in the Gayborhood of Philadelphia all the way to a MainStage performance at the 2019 World Pride Block Party in New York City these girls spread smiles and laughter wherever they go.  Believed to be the only dynamic duo drag queens doing duets, they aren’t afraid to get involved in the issues of the day.  Both have won the Pennsylvania Diversity Network’s Community Service Award (CACA - 2009, SAH - 2012) and have been involved with major fundraising events for the Bradbury-Sullivan LGBTQ+ Community Center.  Sharron Ann, along with Christine Price, started the OUT!@KU program.  
Carol Ann and Sharron hope you enjoy their presentation and that you are sparked to join the conversation!

2 PM:

Invisible and Disposable: Combating Violence Against Transgender Women of Color
Zoom Meeting ID: 991 1894 2457

Session Description: 
In 2019, the Human Rights Campaign reported that in the United States, twenty-six transgender women had been murdered; twenty-two out of those twenty-six women were either Black or Brown women. Black and Brown transgender women are vulnerable to severe harassment as well as brutal killings in the United States. They are subjected to more violence due to intersectional discrimination. Fully exploring this topic is imperative in understanding why it’s happening. Beverly Tillery, the executive director of the NYC Anti-Violence Project discusses in the article, “Two Recent Murders of Black Trans Women in Texas Reveal a Nationwide Crisis, Advocates Say” the reasons why these women are at such great risk. She mentions that “All of the discrimination results in people often living lives that are just more vulnerable to violence. You have a job that is more tenuous, you live in places that are more tenuous,” and in addition to that, “people look at you and they don’t care about your existence and they don’t value your life”. During my research, I have learned the importance of examining the beliefs behind this hate, its relation to white supremacy and transphobia, and what we can do to prevent it.

Tiersa Curry - She/Her
Presenter Bio: 
Tiersa Curry is a 2016 graduate of Muhlenberg High School. She has her Associate's Degree in Social Science from Reading Area Community College and is currently a senior at Kutztown University majoring in anthropology and minoring in Spanish. Her goal for her Honors Capstone is to spread awareness and knowledge about Black and Latino influences on the LGBTQ community.

Queering Citizenship: Politics, Power, and Justice a Conversation with Bruce Henderson
Zoom Meeting ID: 914 2505 0514

Session Description: 
This session explores Queer Citizenship, a chapter from Bruce Henderson's book Queer Studies: Beyond Binaries. The session includes students in COM/WGS 271 Sexualities and Communication in Everyday Life, their professor (Deryl Johnson) and the book's author-Bruce Henderson.

Deryl Johnson - He/Him & Bruce Henderson - He/Him
Presenter Bios: 
Deryl Johnson is a professor, Queer Scholar, member of the PASSHE Diversity Equity and Inclusion Advisory Panel, and a member of the Inclusion, Diversity, Equity, and Access (IDEA) Council of the National Communication Association. 
Bruce Henderson is a professor emeritus of communication studies at Ithaca College, where he previously served as the department’s chair. A member of the Women and Gender Studies faculty, Henderson received the Faculty Excellence Award from the college in 2011. The former editor-in-chief of Text and Performance Quarterly and Disability Studies Quarterly, he is coauthor or coeditor of several textbooks in performance studies and disability studies.

3 pm:

Understanding Cognitive Biases and Finding Teachable Moments
Zoom Meeting ID: 979 4822 1593

Session Description: 
Interim Director of The Gender and Sexuality Center at East Stroudsburg University, Ariel A. Tucci, will address cognitive biases and stereotypes. She will open a dialogue about how to identify hurtful biases and use them as teachable moments. She will discuss how her role as Interim Director of The Gender and Sexuality Center allows her to educate and empower students to advocate for themselves and others in the LGBTQIA+ community.
Assistant Professor Erica Joan Dymond will discuss how she uses literature, film, and television to both increase LGBTQIA+ representation and open a dialogue. She will address specific works of art that have proven successful in connecting with students. She will also note works that have proven problematic (and how those problematic moments are, in fact, teachable moments). The artistry of Alison Bechdel, Chuck Palahniuk, Darren Aronosfsky, John Ajvide Lindqvist, Zack Snyder, and more will be examined.
After both Interim Director Tucci and Assistant Professor Dymond introduce their topics, they will open the floor to discussion. Students are strongly encouraged to share their experiences and opinions. 

Erica Dymond (She/Her) & Ariel Tucci (She/Her)
Presenter Bio: 
In addition to being the Interim Director of The Gender and Sexuality Center at East Stroudsburg University, Ariel A. Tucci's scholarly work has been published in The Encyclopedia of Sexism in American Films (Rowman & Littlefield) (2019). She is also the project manager of The Encyclopedia of LGBTQIA+ Depictions in American Films (Rowman & Littlefield) (2022).   
In addition to being an Assistant Professor of English at East Stroudsburg University, Dr. Dymond is the co-editor of The Encyclopedia of Sexism in American Films (Rowman & Littlefield) (2019) as well as the forthcoming The Encyclopedia of LGBTQIA+ Depictions in American Films (Rowman & Littlefield) (2022).

Swing, Snap, Rock: Queerness Finding a Home in the TikTok Phenomenon
Zoom Meeting ID: 936 3174 5084

Session Description: 
Did you think TikTok was only about trendy dances? Discover and discuss the sub-community of Gay TikTok as a place for digital storytelling, community building, and activism. Fast growing since the start of the pandemic, TikTok has become a place for folx to connect and view creators with similar interests. Based on an algorithm setting that promotes similar videos of interest, the LGBTQ+ community is building a strong place for community, reclamation, and activism in the digital sphere.

Casey Roberts - She/Her
Presenter Bio: 
Casey Roberts is a second-year graduate student pursuing a Master of Education in Educational Leadership and College Student Affairs at Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania. She currently works in Residence Life as a Hall Director and is interning at the campus Women's Resource Center. As a member of the LGBTQIA+ community, Casey is always looking for ways to blend her identity with her professional work in Student Affairs.

4 pm:

Transgender Emergence; A Journey Towards Leadership & Advocacy
Zoom Meeting ID: 967 8567 5632

Session Description: 
This presentation reports on a case study of a transgender individual. The Transgendered Emergence Model (Lev, 2004) is used as a framework for the individual to share her transition story using a constructivist approach. The AIM Scale of Psychological Well Being and The Authentic Leadership Questionnaire were used to examine her psychological well – being and its influence on her leadership development. These measurements assisted with ascertaining areas of congruence between her narrative and leadership style.

Patricia Brenner - She/Her & Brian Peterson - He/Him 
Presenter Bios: 
Dr. Brenner received her Ph.D. in Educational Leadership from Alvernia University in 2020. She has been a full-time faculty member at Kutztown University for the past eight years. She is also a school-based therapist with Malvern CHS. She is a former school counselor and educational specialist.
Dr. Brian Peterson is a Professor at Immaculata University and program director for the M.S. in management and leadership program.

Death Proof: Exploitation or Feminism?
Zoom Meeting ID: 944 3878 1874

Session Description: 
A video will be played at the start of this session titled Death Proof: Exploitation or Feminism? that discusses Quentin Tarantino's film Grindhouse: Death Proof. The video takes a critical look at whether the movie can be considered women's empowerment or if it was really made for the male gaze and audience. After the video is played, an open discussion and Q&A will follow. Questions about the movie and video itself will be taken, but there will also be discussion of how women's empowerment media can be done better, as well as discussing any media examples that has done it better with comparison to Tarantino's film.

Hailey Johnson - She/Her
Presenter Bio: 
Hailey Johnson is a Kutztown University senior majoring in English with a dual minor in Women, Gender, and Sexuality Studies and Professional Writing. She has presented/submitted work at the Kutztown University Composition Conferences in Spring 2019 and Spring 2020 and has published with KU's literary magazine, Essence, in the 2020 edition. Outside of academics, she enjoys reading, writing, and playing video games.