UIS Speaker Series to explore “Queer Poets of Color: Undocupoets and Migrant Literary Activism"

WHAT: The University of Illinois Springfield Engaged Citizenship Common Experience (ECCE) Speaker Series presents a discussion on “Queer Poets of Color: Undocupoets and Migrant Literary Activism.” The presentation will be led by Christopher Soto, a poet based in Brooklyn, New York. The event is part of the national LGBTQ Day of Silence observed on campus.

WHEN: 4 p.m. on Thursday, April 11, 2019

WHERE: UIS Brookens Auditorium, located on the lower level of Brookens Library

DETAILS: Soto will discuss queer of color poetry from the Harlem Renaissance to the age of mass incarceration with an emphasis on undocumented literary activism. During this event, students will explore the intersections of queer identities and poetry with activism as it relates to undocumented youth.

Soto is the author of “Sad Girl Poems” (Sibling Rivalry Press, 2016) and the editor of “Nepantla: An Anthology Dedicated to Queer Poets of Color” (Nightboat Books, 2018). He cofounded the Undocupoets Campaign and worked with Amazon Literary Partnerships to establish grants for undocumented writers. In 2017, he was awarded The Freedom Plow Award for Poetry & Activism by Split This Rock and he was invited to teach a Poetry and Protest Movements course at Columbia University, as part of the June Jordan Teaching Corp. He is currently working on a full-length poetry manuscript about police violence and mass incarceration. He received his master of fine arts in poetry from New York University (NYU).

This event is cosponsored by the UIS Office of Gender and Sexuality Student Services, the UIS Diversity Center, the UIS Women’s Center and the Organization of Latin American Students.

Individuals with disabilities who anticipate the need for accommodations should contact the UIS Speaker Series Office at 217/206-8507 or speakerseries@uis.edu in advance. For a list of other upcoming ECCE Speaker Series events, visit www.uis.edu/speakerseries/.

LGBTQA Resource Office to announce name change to better acknowledge complex gender and sexuality identities

WHAT: The University of Illinois Springfield LGBTQA Resource Office will announce its new name during an unveiling ceremony on campus. The office is changing its name to better acknowledge the complexity of gender and sexuality identities.

WHEN: Monday, August 28, 2017, at 3 p.m.

WHERE: UIS Student Life Plaza, located on the east side of campus

DETAILS: The new name acknowledges that there is no one term, name, acronym, or list of letters that can sum up the vast diversity of gender and sexual identities. The office will continue to promote space for individuals and communities to self-identify with words that best represent and validate their identities.

“This new name can serve as an important catalyst for dialogue,” said Clarice Ford, UIS vice chancellor for student affairs. “As educators, advocates, and supporters of LGBTQA+ persons, we strive to promote the work of developing deeper understandings of gender and sexuality across campus.”

The name change will also mark the 10th anniversary of the LGBTQA Resource Office at the University of Illinois Springfield. The ceremony will include games, giveaways, food and a photo booth.

For more information, contact Kerry Poynter, director of the LGBTQA Resource Office, at 217/206-8316 or kpoyn2@uis.edu.

UIS Speaker Series honors National Day of Silence with interactive program on sexuality

WHAT: The University of Illinois Springfield Engaged Citizenship Common Experience (ECCE) Speaker Series, Diversity Center, LGBTQA Resource Office, Organization of Latin American Students and Disability Services present the interactive program, “Break the Silence: Beyond Binaries – Identity and Sexuality”.

WHEN: Friday, April 21, 2017, at 3 p.m.

WHERE: Lincoln Residence Hall – Great Room

DETAILS: Robyn Ochs, an educator, speaker, award-winning activist and editor explores sexuality over a lifespan as she breaks the silence of fluid sexual identities. Her program explores the landscape of sexuality and how society maps sexual orientation. Given that no two people are alike, how do labels get assigned to an individual’s complicated and unique experiences?

Ochs’ interactive workshop will conduct an anonymous survey of participants, look at the data and find where the group falls on the sexuality continuum. The program will encourage participants in the UIS Day of Silence to share their experience.

Ochs has taught courses on LGBT history and politics in the United States, the politics of sexual orientation and the experiences of those who transgress traditional binary categories. Her work focuses on increasing awareness and understanding of complex identities and mobilizing people to be powerful allies to one another within and across identities and social movements.

Individuals with disabilities who anticipate the need for accommodations should contact the UIS Speaker Series Office at 217/206-8507 or speakerseries@uis.edu in advance.

For a list of other upcoming ECCE Speaker Series events, visit www.uis.edu/speakerseries/. All events are free and open to the public.

UIS Speaker Series presents The Legacy Wall: LGBT History Exhibit

WHAT: The University of Illinois Springfield Engaged Citizenship Common Experience (ECCE) Speaker Series, LGBTQA Resource Office, Diversity Center, College of Public Affairs and Administration and UIS Departments of Women & Gender Studies, History and Political Science are proud to host the opening of The Legacy Wall: LGBT History Exhibit.

WHEN: Wednesday, October 5, 2016, at 7 p.m.

WHERE: UIS Public Affairs Center Concourse

DETAILS: The Legacy Wall is a one-of-a-kind traveling exhibit filled with photographs and biographies of 125 LGBT people well-known in the realms of politics, the arts, religion, sports and social activism. The project pays tribute to the contributions of lesbian, gay, bi-sexual and transgender individuals throughout history. The wall is designed to share the often-hidden LGBT lives to foster a culture of respect and appreciation for diversity.

Founder and Executive Director of The Legacy Project, Victor Salvo, is a University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign alumnus, who has also been inducted into the Chicago Gay and Lesbian Hall of Fame. UIS Assistant Professor of History Holly Kent and Political Science Professor Jason Pierceson will help kick-off the celebration.

The opening celebration for the exhibit also kicks off a month of LGBT activities honoring Queertober. Find out more about these activities at www.uis.edu/lgbtqa/programs/queertober.

The Legacy Wall will be on display from October 3-15 in the PAC Concourse.

For a list of other upcoming ECCE Speaker Series events and more information, visit www.uis.edu/speakerseries/. All events are free and open to the public.

UIS Speaker Series features poetry reading and discussion from Slow Lightning

WHAT: The University of Illinois Springfield Engaged Citizenship Common Experience (ECCE) Speaker Series presents ‘Cultural Code Switching in America,’ a poetry reading by author Eduardo C. Corral. The event is co-sponsored by the UIS Department of English, UIS LGBTQA Resource Office, College of Liberal Arts and Sciences and the Vachel Lindsay Association.

WHEN: Thursday, October 29, 2015 at 7:00 p.m.

WHERE: Lincoln Residence Hall Great Room

DETAILS: As part of Queertober, Eduardo C. Corral will present poems from his collection, Slow Lightning, a text that breaks taboos in embracing minority voices, using bilingualism and lyricism to explore the limitations individuals such as him experience.

Corral’s poetry addresses many possibilities as he provides a direct way of engaging with an anti-immigrant and heteronormative society to bring about positive social change.

Corral is a CantoMundo fellow. He holds degrees from Arizona State University and the Iowa Writers’ Workshop. His award-winning poems have been featured in numerous publications including; Best American Poetry 2012, Beloit Poetry Journal, and the New England Review. Slow Lightning, was selected as the 2011 winner of the Yale Series of Younger Poets competition.

Corral currently resides in New York City and teaches at Columbia University.

For a list of other upcoming ECCE Speaker Series events and more information, visit www.uis.edu/speakerseries/. All events are free and open to the public.

UIS Speakers Series to screen and discuss the documentary "Two Spirits"

WHAT: The University of Illinois Springfield Engaged Citizenship Common Experience (ECCE) Speakers Series will screen and discuss the documentary Two Spirits. The discussion will be moderated by Kerry Poynter, director of the UIS LGBTQA Resource Office. This event is free and open to the public.

WHEN: Monday, June 9, 2014 at 6 p.m.

WHERE: UIS Brookens Auditorium, located on the lower level of Brookens Library

DETAILS: Two Spirits tells the story of Fred Martinez, one of the youngest hate-crime victims in modern history, who was murdered at 16. The documentary explores the life and death of a boy who was also a girl, and the essentially spiritual nature of gender. Martinez was nádleehí, a male-bodied person with a feminine nature, a special gift according to ancient Navajo culture.

The film interweaves the tragic story of a mother’s loss of her son with a revealing look at a time when the world wasn’t simply divided into male and female, and many Native American cultures held places of honor for people of integrated genders.

Kerry Poynter has over fifteen years of experience working with LGBTQA students in higher education at a number of institutions including Duke University, Columbia University, New York University, and Western Michigan University. He has a master’s degree in Administration of College Student Affairs in Counselor Education & Counseling Psychology. He’s an adjunct instructor in the Women & Gender Studies Department at UIS and teaches a peer education course that trains LGBTQA & heterosexual allied students to facilitate interactive activities across campus on LGBTQA topics.

For more information on the ECCE Speakers Series event, contact Poynter at 217/206-8316 or kpoyn2@uis.edu.