SU to host regional conference on LGBT studies

SU to host regional conference on LGBT studiesOctober 20, 2004Michele Barrettmibarret@syr.edu

On Oct. 23, Syracuse University will host a regional conference titled “LGBT Studies: Local, National and Global Perspectives.” The conference is the result of a multi-phase effort aimed at making lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender knowledge, experiences and perspectives more visible on campus and in the curriculum, organized by the University Senate Committee on LGBT Concerns, along with the LGBT Resource Center. This work has been supported by Vision Fund grants as well as funding from Academic Affairs and Student Affairs.

“We hope all faculty, students, staff and community members interested in and committed to education on LGBT issues will join us for this event, which we feel will bring us another step closer to establishing an interdisciplinary minor in LGBT studies at Syracuse University,” says Margaret Himley, co-chair of the LGBT Concerns Committee.

The conference, which will take place in the Kilian Room, Room 500 of the Hall of Languages from 9 a.m.-5 p.m., is free and open to the public. Vice Chancellor and Provost Deborah A. Freund and Barry L. Wells, senior vice president and dean of student affairs, will make opening remarks. Chancellor Nancy Cantor will make closing remarks. Lunch will be provided, and more information is available at http://students.syr.edu/lgbt/LGBTstudies.html/. Advance registration is required and is available online. For more details, contact the LGBT Resource Center at 443-3983.

“The conference provides an opportunity for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and heterosexual people to engage in dialogue about lived experiences, representation, the politics of difference, inclusive citizenship and pressing public policy concerns both within and across the boundaries of academic disciplines, regions and nations,” says Andrew London, co-chair of the LGBT Concerns Committee.

LGBT scholars from many disciplines including psychology, film, English, Latin American and Caribbean Studies, and women’s studies will speak at the conference. Speakers are from Syracuse University, Cornell University, University of Rochester, Binghamton University, SUNY College at Plattsburgh, Empire State College and the Center for Lesbian and Gay Studies at the City University of New York Graduate Center.

There will be two keynote speakers, two sets of concurrent panels, and roundtable discussion focusing on the work of faculty, staff and students. The keynote addresses will be delivered by David Halperin, the W.H. Auden Collegiate Professor of English and Literature at the University of Michigan and author of “How to Do the History of Homosexuality”; and Amy Villarejo, associate professor of theater, film and dance at Cornell, whose most recent book is “Lesbian Rule: Cultural Criticism and the Value of Desire.”

Panel topics will include transnational feminist perspectives; identities and institutions; art and activism; “Queering the Academy”; film and popular culture; and populations and politics. The major themes of this conference reflect the theme of this year’s inaugural events, “University as Public Good: Exploring the Soul of Syracuse,” as it explores such areas as liberal education and responsible citizenship, addressing critical societal issues, struggling for inclusive rights and knowledge as power.

Several departments and programs have provided support for the event, including the anthropology, communication and rhetorical studies, English, geography, history, religion, social science, social work, sociology and women’s studies departments; the Writing Program; PARC and Hendricks Chapel.