Ally Conference for diversity will return in October
GREEN BAY — The second annual ALLY Conference at the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay will seek to empower its participants with the knowledge and enthusiasm to strive for change and allyship through its workshops and keynote speaker, organizers say.
The conference, scheduled from noon to 6 p.m., Saturday, Oct. 24, 2009, emphasizes diversity and accessibility issues within all student populations, and also provides a safe environment to celebrate the diversity and talents of women, people of color, persons with disabilities and the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgendered, Questioning (LGBTQ) community. Conference participants will also learn how to become an ally, or advocate, for these communities.
An “ally” is described as “a person who recognizes they are on the privilege side of a particular prejudice/oppression divide that society creates and actively engages in the search and implementation of strategies to dismantle that divide.”
The conference’s keynote speaker is best-selling author and LGBT civil rights leader Shane L. Windmeyer, a member of the American Indian Iowa Tribe of Kansas and Nebraska. He is a leading author on gay campus issues, a national leader in gay and lesbian civil rights and a champion for LGBT issues on college campuses. He has been featured in The New York Times, Rolling Stone and TIME Magazine, and has been on MSNBC’s “The Situation” with Tucker Carlson.
Windmeyer’s keynote message will address the impact of hate on a college campus. The program intends to create a foundation of understanding surrounding hate crimes, explore an individual’s awareness of prejudice and motivate individuals to make a difference in the larger campus community.
Windmeyer is cofounder and executive director of Campus Pride, a national organization for student leaders and campus organizations working to create a safer college environment for LGBT students.
Released in fall of 2006 by Alyson Books, Windmeyer is the author of The Advocate College Guide for LGBT Students, the first-ever college guide profiling the “100 Best LGBT-Friendly Campuses.” He is also the editor of Brotherhood: Gay Life in College Fraternities and co-editor of the books Inspiration for LGBT Students and Allies, Out on Fraternity Row: Personal Accounts of Being Gay in a College Fraternity, and Secret Sisters: Stories of Being Lesbian and Bisexual in a College Sorority.
ALLY Conference workshops will be held in the University Union, 2420 Nicolet Drive.
The conference is free for UW-Green Bay students. Community members can attend for $25.
Pre-registration is required by Wednesday, Sept. 30. Registration is available online at http://www.uwgb.edu/aic/ally.
The ALLY Conference is sponsored by UW-Green Bay’s American Intercultural Center, Campus Life Diversity Taskforce, Human Development Program, Social Change and Development Program, Women’s and Gender Studies Program, Social Work Program, Office of Student Life, Office of Residence Life, and the Residence Hall and Apartment Association. Harmony Café in Green Bay is a community sponsor.
(Editor’s note: For more on keynote speaker Shane L. Windmeyer, visit his website at http://www.shanewindmeyer.com/.)
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