Seventh biennial Women’s and Gender Studies Symposium moves online for March

The seventh biennial Women’s and Gender Studies Symposium will present “Engendering Emergencies: Gender Politics in Times of Crisis” from 1-3 p.m. Saturday, March 20, via Microsoft Teams.

The keynote speaker will be Dr. Tiffany Townsend, chief diversity officer and associate professor of psychological sciences at Augusta University.

“I know we have been hearing this phrase a lot, but this year has been unprecedented and nothing like anything we have experienced in our lifetime,” Townsend said. “For many of us, our stress levels are extremely high, and we haven’t had an opportunity to really process all the challenges we have faced and make meaning of those challenges in a socio-political context. I am looking forward to having these conversations with my colleagues at the WGST’s seventh biennial symposium.”

The guest speaker will be Dr. Roxana Cazan, co-editor of the Voices on the Move anthology and author of The Accident of Birth. The virtual event will include breakout rooms for question-and-answer themed discussions.

“This will be my first time hearing Dr. Cazan speak. I know that her work includes advocacy for immigrant populations, and I look forward to her talk,” Townsend said. “I hope attendees will benefit from having an opportunity to critically analyze racial, gender and other forms of inequities that are certainly not new, but are front and center during this pandemic.”

Registration is free.