Eli Clare took part in three Winter Term sessions on disabilities, LGBTQIA identities and privilege.
Eli Clare, a national expert on intersectional identities, hosted three Winter Term sessions engaging 120 students and several classes in dialogue around disabilities, LGBTQIA identities and privilege.
The sessions explored disability as a social justice issue, as well as how disability communities and LGBTQIA communities can face overlapping issues, while gaining resilience and strength from intersecting identities.
Clare’s visit on Jan. 8, 2015, was subsidized in part by the Thomas Barnett Breaking Down Barriers Award, given annually to students who create projects focused on advancing accessibility and knowledge around disabilities at Elon.
The award was made in memory of Elon alumnus Thomas Barnett ’07 and the team of student awardees, now alumni, who received this award and chose to pay-it-forward included Emily Steiner, Amy Zemanick, Amelia Maki, Jess McDonald and Katie Atkins.
Co-sponsors for Clare’s visit included Inclusive Community, Disability Services, and the Gender & LGBTQIA Center. Clare was the first keynote speaker of Elon University’s 2015 Martin Luther King Speaker Series for Winter Term, which will also feature Robert Jensen, Kip Fulbeck, and Mei-Ling Hopgood.
Additional Winter Term events focusing on LGBTQIA identities includes the film “Living in the Overlap” as well as the “Sexy and Genderful God” series every Wednesday focusing on the intersections across faith identity, gender identity, and sexual orientation.