“Queer Brown Voices” Author & HSU Alumni to Keynote Q-Fest

Arcata, California - Humboldt State University alumni, Dr. Salvador Vidal-Ortiz, will give the Q-Fest keynote address at 5pm on Wednesday, April 27 in the HSU Native Forum. Vidal-Ortiz will discuss his co-authored book Queer Brown Voices - a collection of oral histories that documents the experiences of queer Latin@ activism of the 1970s, 80s and 90s. His keynote will be followed by a book signing. A limited number of copies will be for sale on site.

Vidal-Ortiz is an Associate Professor of Sociology and Women's, Gender & Sexuality Studies at American University, Washington, D.C. He locates his scholarship and activism at the intersections of race, class, gender, sexuality and religion. He began his academic career in Puerto Rico where he earned his Bachelor’s degree. Later he came to HSU to study Sociology earning his MA. He went on to earn his PhD in Sociology from City University of New York.

His Fulbright research focused on the displacement of LGBT people in Bogotá, Colombia. With Juliana Martinez he is also working on “Transgendering Human Rights" with a focus on the Americas. An earlier book, The Sexuality of Migrations, received the 2010 distinguished book awards from the American Sociological Association and the Latino Studies Association.  

Professor Vidal-Ortiz will also facilitate a queer student activist lunch from Noon-1:30pm on
Wednesday, April 27 on the HSU campus. There are limited seats for this meeting: students
interested in attending this event should contact Liza Olmedo at leo30@humboldt.edu.

Professor Vidal-Ortiz’s keynote is a part of Q-Fest, an annual event held by the HSU
MultiCultural Center in celebration of the Queer community. The theme for this year’s Q-Fest is Theory in the Flesh: Celebrating Queer People of Color. Events include Queer Speed Friending, Creative Freedom Art Gallery, Q-Talks, and Queer Battle of the Bands. For times, dates, and locations of these events, please visit the MultiCultural Center website http://www2.humboldt.edu/multicultural/, call 707-826-3364, or email us at mcc@humboldt.edu.