Feminist, Gender, and Sexuality Studies Commons^™

Meeting The Social Media Needs Of Lexington’S Lgbtq Community, Erin Weber

LIS Student Conference

Erin will present a strategic plan for the social media needs of the Pride Community Services Organization (PCSO) and Pride Library in Lexington. She will include discussion on whether social media is a means to a larger goal or a means unto itself for PCSO.

No Human Right To Sodomy: Christian Conservative Opposition To Sogi Human Rights, Cynthia Burack

Biennial Conference: The Social Practice of Human Rights

The American Christian conservative movement is the most consistent and persistent adversary of sexual orientation and gender identity (SOGI) civil rights in the US. In recent years, the Christian right has responded to changes in attitudes to same-sex sexuality in the US by relocating some of their attention and operations to issues and arenas of contest outside the US that hold more promise for implacable antagonism to rights and recognition for LGBTQ people. In some parts of the world, these US-based anti-LGBTQ actors have become recognized as “experts” on gender and sexual minorities and the dire consequences the existence of …

We Just Need To Pee: Bathroom Bills And The Intersection Of Human Rights, Gender, And Race, Lena Tenney

Biennial Conference: The Social Practice of Human Rights

Although rarely publicly discussed, bathrooms are a fundamental element of everyday life. In fact, the majority of the population does not question their right or ability to access public restroom facilities because they are a mundane aspect of daily routine. However, the recent rise of “bathroom bills” in state legislatures has sparked significant media coverage and highlighted activist movements seeking to guarantee safe, affirming, and legally protected access to bathrooms for people of all gender identities and expressions.

This paper will illustrate that bathroom access is not only a matter of public policy, but also a question of human rights. …

Homophobia, Human Rights And Diplomacy, Douglas Janoff

Biennial Conference: The Social Practice of Human Rights

Multilateral human rights diplomacy is a product of the triad relationship between intergovernmental organizations (IGOs), civil society organizations (CSOs), and states. This paper examines the emergence of LGBT rights within the context of the UN human rights system. Recently, the global debates around LGBT rights have become much more public and increasingly complex: Ministers, leaders, and even the UN Secretary-General routinely call on states to do more to protect sexual minorities. Countries such as Uganda and Russia are labeled “homophobic” — not just by human rights activists, but by other states. These “accusations” are delivered both bilaterally and in multilateral …

Interrogating Rights: How The United States Is Not Complying With The Racial Equality Treaty, Malia Lee Womack

Biennial Conference: The Social Practice of Human Rights

In 1994, the United States ratified the United Nations’ core anti-racism treaty, ICERD. Although it has been more than two decades since the United States became a member to the multilateral agreement, a wide range of scholarship determines that the nation is not in compliance with the treaty. Little of this research focuses on gender. This paper intervenes with the research by conducting a gendered analysis, with a focus on African American women, of key areas where the US is not meeting its duties to the multilateral agreement.

This manuscript proves that, first, the United States does not comply with …

Gender, Displacement And Transitional Justice, Sinead Mcgrath

Biennial Conference: The Social Practice of Human Rights

In the past fifteen years, there has been huge emphasis on the need for gendered mechanisms dealing with both forced migration and peacebuilding. The UN landmark resolution on Women, Peace and Security (S/RES/1325) and the gender-mainstreaming of the 1951 Refugee Convention have urged all actors to increase the participation of women in peacebuilding and their protection in instances of displacement. An underdeveloped link between these issues has not been addressed by the academic community, particularly when looking at societies in transition and the relationship of displaced women to international migration organisations in the context of transitional justice. This study aims …

Asexual, Transvestive Role-Projection:"You Go Girl!" Guys And Game Of Thrones, Chloe R. Allmand

Graduate Student Symposium

This paper is an exploration of what I call asexual, transvestive role-projection, which is the act of watching a film or television show, and imagining oneself as a character of the opposite gender. I argue that this can occur when the character in question is not sexualized or sexually attractive to the viewer, and that this type of role-projection has become a more common phenomena especially for viewer’s who identify as male due to the rise of the “girl hero” in film, like Eleven in “Stranger Things,” Hit Girl in “Kick Ass,” and “Game of Thrones”’ Arya Stark, who along …

The Double Féminin In The Plays Of Jean Racine, Jaime Schultz

Celebration of Learning

This work takes on a feminist approach and studies extensively the oeuvre of Racine.

The Stories We Tell, Abigail A. Hoekstra

MAD-RUSH Undergraduate Research Conference

Two or Three Things I Know for Sure tells the story of Dorothy Allison as she comes to terms with her past and strives to move beyond it, to be empowered and embodied by it. In this short memoir, Allison explores the relationship she has with her mother and how that relationship has influenced her individuality and character, whose complacency has restricted Allison. Allison breaks away from the stories she has been told to tell a new story of abuse and disembodiment in which she finds love, and in turn, embodiment; the unification of her body and spirit. Story-telling and …

The Relationship Between Promoting Self-Efficacy And Informed Decision-Making In Pregnant Nulliparous Women And Method Of Delivery, Crystal Hunter

Scholarly and Creative Works Conference (2015 - 2021)

This presentation will cover the relationship between the concepts of decreased self-efficacy in pregnant women’s abilities to deliver their babies vaginally, fear of the pain and duration of labor process, and the acceptance of medical intervention without sufficient intrapartum education surrounding delivery methods. These interrelated variables impede the concept of informed choice. The current state of the problem surrounds women with low self-efficacy who are predicted to have negative childbirth experiences such as, consenting to an astronomically high rate of cesarean sections. The focus for nursing is that low-risk, healthy women who elect cesarean sections without the knowledge that permanent …

Using “Evil” To Combat “Evil”: The Regulation Of Prostitution In Renaissance Florence, Lilah F. Abrams

Young Historians Conference

In accordance with the general opinions towards women at the time, the establishment of the Office of Decency (known as the Onestá) in Florence, Italy during the Renaissance served to dehumanize the women participating in the profession. While many argue that the Florentine Onestá was established to preserve the city’s image, the ultimate intention of the ordinances was to use women as tools to regulate male behavior. Drawing on the remaining ordinances established by the Onestá as primary source material, this paper identifies the utilization of prostitutes to restrict the defiling of “virtuous” women by men through regulations on attire …

The Intersections Of Queerness And The Arab Jew, Julianne Zala

Student Symposium

The term Arab Jew (also referred to as Mizrahim) is extremely fraught, because they seem to have two contrasting identities. This group is not Arab or Jewish. They are not accepted by Palestinians, Arabs, or Israelis. Mizrahim are caught between two identities. In addition, not all Arab Jews want to define as such. Instead, some Arab Jews identify as either Arab or Jewish. I am using queer as an umbrella term for the LGBTIQA+ community. My project specifically looks at the intersections of these identities and the stories that exist in this community. Mizrahim are a heterogeneous group with different …

How Healthcare And Culture Impacts Cost And Experience Of Sex Reassignment Surgery In Various Sites Of Europe, Carson Shaw

Student Symposium

My presentation reviews how more widely accessible forms of health insurance impact a trans person’s ability to transition in the Netherlands, Germany, the Czech Republic, and Poland. This includes the steps and processes they must go through, the pressures of transitioning, and the overall costs of sex reassignment surgery, both socially and financially. It also takes into account the cultural stressors of transitioning as well as how different types of insurances are more or less beneficial to people in each of these countries. In order to achieve this research, I performed interviews and lectures on trans experience in each country …

Reactions To Sexism And Sexual Objectification, Olivia Rivera

Undergraduate Research Conference

Men and women have different attitudes about sexism (Phys.org Staff, 2015). Men are more likely than women to be indifferent about sexist situations.

However, most studies have not examined attitudes that college students have about sexist situations, jokes, and advertisements.

Therefore the aim of the current study is to examine gender differences and perceptions of sexism/sexual objectification in college students.

Poster Session, Jenny Warren

Collin College Undergraduate Interdisciplinary Student Research Conference

Posters presented:

• Kathleen Sanchez “Design and Function of MRI Scanners”
• Ahn T. Vo “Do We Need Another Cosmetic Product?”
• April R. Boyd “Students at Work”
• Zaynab Adeola Omisade, University of Texas, Arlington "Screening of Iotrochota Birutulata extracts with chloroform and Methanol/toluene (3:1) for anti-bacteria activity"
• Sarah Minich, Collin College “Does Flexibility in a Prosthetic Ankle-Foot System Improve an Amputee’s Everyday Life?”
• Shannon McCraw, Ph.D. & Madison Poteet, Southeastern Oklahoma State University "Exploring Individual Communication Traits: Assessing The Relationship Between Willingness To Communicate, Self-Esteem, And Individual Entrepreneurial Orientation"
• Shelby Garza, Texas State University "Examining Differences in the Rate of Decomposition between …

Who Are These People? Let's Find Out!, Niall E. Walsh, Lindsay Kline, Anastasia E. Zaluckyj, Crystal O. Nwokoro, Belynn Hollers, Paul Z. Armstrong, Lindsay Caudill

Collin College Undergraduate Interdisciplinary Student Research Conference

Panel Chair: Camin Melton

Papers presented:

"Muted Group Theory: A Struggle for Representation" by Niall E. Walsh

Abstract: This paper examines the concept of Cheris Kramarae's Muted Group Theory as it applies to a range of texts. The theory asserts that women have historically been at a disadvantage in society due to their inability to properly communicate their experiences. This problem is a direct result of a patriarchal society that has constructed predominantly masculine modes of communication.

"Cloelia: Breaking Class Ceilings Before it Was Cool (and How it Inspired Me)" by Lindsay Kline

Abstract: Cloelia lived during the sixth century …

Report-Talk And The Alienation Of Women In Dungeons & Dragons, Alexandra Chace

Georgia State Undergraduate Research Conference

No abstract provided.

Una Traducción Dúctil: El Beso De La Mujer Araña Y Los Códigos Artificiales, Sam Mccracken

Georgia State Undergraduate Research Conference

No abstract provided.

Keynote Address: "What Transpires Now: Transgeder History And The Future We Need", Susan Stryker

John Wesley Powell Student Research Conference

The 2017 keynote address presented by special guest Susan Stryker, Associate Professor of Gender and Women's Studies at the University of Arizona. Professor Stryker is also the Director of the Institute for LGBT Studies, founder of the Transgender Studies Initiative, and holds a courtesy appointment as Associate Professor in the Norton School of Family and Consumer Sciences at the University of Arizona. She is the author of many articles and several books on transgender and queer topics, most recently Transgender History (Seal Press 2008). She won a Lambda Literary Award for the anthology The Transgender Studies Reader (Routledge 2006), …

Gender Inequality In Sport Illustrated Advertisements, Elizabeth Kelly

Student Scholar Showcase

As sports have increased over the years, so has the media coverage and representation of teams and athletes. Women’s athletics drastically grew after the establishment of Title IX in 1972. As the participation of females in sport grew, so did the coverage of them. This study analyzes athletes modeled in advertisements of Sports Illustrated from 2010 – 2016. With a total of 497 advertisements analyzed, the improvement of female representation was evident. The number of female athletes featured in media outlets has increased, yet is still not equal to male athletes. While female athletes are featured more than previous years, …

Women In The Late Nineteenth Century: Involvement In The 1893 Chicago World’S Fair, Maria Miller

Undergraduate Research and Scholarship Symposium

The Columbian Exposition of 1893, also known as the Chicago World’s Fair, was a clear example of the women’s rights movement in nineteenth century America. It exemplified the inclusion of women in male-dominated fields by establishing a Board of Lady Managers. This group of women held executive authorities over the establishment of a Woman’s Building. The Woman’s Building was a space dedicated to displaying the achievements of women throughout the world. This Building also gave female visitors hope for a future of expanded rights. Despite this, the Woman’s Building isolated women’s work into a distinct section within the Exposition. The …

Can Feminism Get Into “Formation”: Whose Voice Is Missing From The Conversation?, Bwann Gwann

Lesley University Community of Scholars Day

Does Beyoncé embracing her sexuality make her identity as a feminist less valid? Feminist scholar bell hooks says that maybe it does, but what do you think? Join us for a discussion that explores Intersectionality, how Womanism is different from Feminism, and the importance of including all voices near and abroad at the Women’s Rights table.

Developing A New Department Culture: When Programs Merge, William Hoon, Aimee Shouse

Academic Chairpersons Conference Proceedings

This presentation will discuss some best practices that help transitioning cultures in merged or merging academic departments.

P09. Bearing Witness: Auto/Biographical Portraiture As Testimony, Gina Snooks

Western Research Forum

In this poster, I examine auto/biographical portraiture as medium through which to theorize women’s experiences of sexual trauma and the potential healing power of sharing personal experience narratives. In doing, so, I align with scholars who contend that auto/biographical photography is a performative act that provides a way to grapple with aspects of personhood that may be rooted in difficult and/or traumatic experiences (Spence 1996, Nuñez 2013, Shaughnessy 2015). I draw also on scholarship that understands shared storytelling as a valuable strategy through which to “call attention to the vulnerabilities” that some women may “endure in silence and shame” (Jones, …

P28. Canadian Jewish Women And Girls On The Homefront, 1939-1945, Jennifer Shaw

Western Research Forum

Background: The following presentation explores the roles and experiences of Canadian Jewish women on the Canadian homefront during World War Two. Despite knowing much about the lives of women in this time period in general, we do not know much about the experiences of particular groups, and how they differed from the majority of women.

Methods: Using first-hand accounts gathered from Canadian Jewish women, as well as archival materials, this presentation explores the different ways Jewish women and girls participated in the war effort and experienced the war years.

Results: While acknowledging that some of their experiences …

Constructing Spaces Of Queer Latinidad In Peru Through Artivism And Testimonio, Cynthia Melendez

Latin American, Caribbean, and U.S. Latino Studies Symposium

In this work, I look at the construction of queer space and identity in a LGBTQAI organization in Peru. This activist collective – which I call Voces Libres – is based out of the capital city of Lima and, over time, has become an important representation for LGBTQAI communities across the country. Since Peru is an incredibly diverse nation that lacks both laws to protect LGBTQ communities and education in understanding these issues at the governmental level, activists are playing a fundamental role to create spaces of knowledge and resistance to state violence. Voces Libres illustrates the intersections of this …