The Women’s and Gender Studies Program co-sponsors two speaker series every year: OUTspoken (an LGBTQ speaker series) and the Women's and Gender Speaker Series. These presentations are free and open to the public. If you are interested in becoming a sponsor for either of these speaker series please contact Coral Wayland at cwayland@uncc.edu or 704-687-2290. All contributions are tax deductible.

 The Women’s and Gender Speaker Series

Every spring the Women’s and Gender Studies Program, the Feminist Union, and Triota bring a nationally known speaker to campus to address issues that are central to women’s and gender studies. Past speakers include international best-selling author Naomi Wolf, foremost African-American feminists bell hooks and Patricia Hill Collins, anti-sexist educator Jackson Katz, and writer and activist Gloria Steinem.

This year we are proud to announce that Professor Anita Hill will be the keynote speaker for this series.  Prof. Anita Hill captured the nation’s attention during the Clarence Thomas Supreme Court confirmation hearings.  Her participation in these hearings ignited a national discussion of sexual harassment, race, gender and power.  Now a professor at Brandeis University, Hill continues to address issues of equality, affirmative action, fairness, and social justice.  Join us for a rare opportunity as Prof. Hill reflects on how her experiences changed the way we view sexual harassment, gender, and the judicial confirmation process.

Professor Hill will speak in McKnight Hall (in the Cone University Center) on March 27 at 7:00 p.m.  This will be followed by a book signing and dessert reception in the Lucas Room. This event is free and open to the public.

OUTspoken

Every fall, the Women’s and Gender Studies Program, the Multicultural Resource Center, the Counseling Center, and PRIDE co-sponsor OUTspoken, an LGBTQ speaker series that brings a nationally known speaker to campus to talk about gay, lesbian and/or transgender issues. Past OUTspoken guests include noted transgender queer youth activist Kate Bornstein, former Executive Director of the Human Rights Campaign Elizabeth Birch, and author and political commentator Keith Boykin, and Brian Sims, the only openly gay NCAA football captain, and author/activist Jennifer Baumgardner.

Stay tuned to see who our 2012 OUTspoken speaker will be…