Just out., March 18, 2011, Page 15, Image 15

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OREGON S LGBTO NEWSMAGAZINE
MARCH 18. 2011
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One to Know
Power of One Conference
comes to Reed College
Trz
BY RYAN J. PRADO
The cause of human equality, while still an cy for student affairs educators and administra­
uphill battle around the globe, is of the utmost tors—has skyrocketed the conference into
immediacy in recorded history, especially when much more than a regional endeavor.
it comes to the LGBTQcommunity. Gay mar­
“Getting that partnership really solidified
riage is in constant debate at the highest levels and legitimized the conference and made it a
of government, anti-bullying laws have been bigger deal,” explains Webster, who is on the
put into effect and hate crimes legislation has Power of One committee for the first time. “We
made minorities safer than ever before, in theo­ now have a little more national attention and a
ry. Yet before LGBTQ_Americans were told en little more sustainability throughout the year.
masse“'it gets better,”the uncertainty and stigma We’re pretty much guaranteed to be able to
stemming from mainstream culture weighed continue on.”
daily on the minds of those who weren’t entirely
Webster reports that registration for the
convinced. It was with an ear toward the stu­ 2011 conference— the first at Reed College and
dent population of this demographic that the second with the NASPA partnership— is much
Power of One Conference was forged in 2004.
higher than last year. W hile the bulk o f attend­
The eighth annual event—
ees will travel from Wash­
held April 1-3 at Reed Col­ "We wanted to really try
ington, Montana and Idaho
lege— has evolved since its
to Portland for the event,
to challenge people by ...
inception as the O ut in the
the scope of the conference
W heat Fields Conference at forcing people to actively
has yielded an opportunity
Washington State University.
for Webster and the rest of
engage in this conversation
While the creation of an an­
the committee to target par­
nual LGBTQ_ leadership about the complexity of
ticipation from students in
conference for the North­
California and beyond.
identity and the varying
west was certainly a land­
At its core, the Power of
mark step in the right direc­ levels of privilege within the
One Conference is a North­
tion, founders Heidi Stanton
west student leadership
LGBT community."
of W SU and Leslie Webb of
summit designed to encour­
-KYLE WEBSTER, CHAIR,
Central Washington Univer­
age and empower LGBTQ^
POWER OF ONE CONFERENCE
sity knew that in staging an
college students, their allies,
event of this importance, a governing body was and the faculty and staff who support them.
necessary to help it grow.
This year’s event centers on the theme “Cross­
Enter Region V of the National Association roads of Identities,” which Webster explains as
of Student Affairs Professionals (NASPA)—en­ the “intersectionality of how different identities
compassing Utah, Alaska, Idaho, Nevada, M on­ come into play with someone’s sexuality, gender
tana, Washington, Alberta, British Columbia identity and expression.” Webster says that dur­
ing his undergraduate studies, the LGBTQ^
and Oregon—to the fold.
Kyle Webster, this year’s conference chair, focused conferences he attended were heavy on
explains that the NASPA partnership— which the gay, male, white culture— topics he in turn
provides professional development and advoca­ aimed to avoid while at the helm of this year’s
Power of One event.
“We wanted to really try to challenge people
by pushing away from that conversation as much
as possible,” explains Webster, “and really forcing
people to actively engage in this conversation
about the complexity of identity and the varying
levels of privilege within the LGBT community.
I think that that overarching theme will be car­
ried throughout, and our hope and our goal as a
committee is to really have that be an ongoing
conversation throughout the weekend.”
Helping carry that conversation along is
keynote speaker Parvez Sharma, director of A
Jihad fo r Love, a documentary chronicling the
lives of gay Muslims around the world. The ad­
dition of Sharma to the speakers list highlights
one of the major themes during the conference,
that of the opportunity for attendees to be
challenged by blatant religious dialogues—
something decidedly tricky at Reed College,
whose unofficial motto lists atheism as a cam­
pus-wide tenet.
Elena Rose Vera is likely to provide a similar
jolt during her discussion. Described as a “Fil-
ipina-Ashkenazic mixed-class trans dyke mes­
tiza,” Vera will hold a presentation on queer
women of color and read from some of her se­
lected works. Vera has previously performed to
sold-out crowds along the Pacific coast as a
spoken word artist and has been a repeat San
Francisco Pride featured performer with the
A speaker at the WSU/UI Power of
One Conference in 2010
National Queer Arts Festival production Girl
Talk: A Trans and Cis Woman Dialogue.
O ther guest speakers include Oregon C on­
gressman Earl Blumenauer, former Q_ Center
executive director and current Governor Kit-
zhaber staffer Kendall Clawson, Boston trans
slam poet Kit Yan, Silverton Mayor Stu Ras­
mussen, representatives from Basic Rights O r­
egon, and Nike’s GLBT and Friends Network,
who will give a panel discussion centering on
their efforts to end homophobia in sports, as
well as being out in a Fortune 500 corporation.
“I think that it’s very attractive to bring a
wide variety of people together to talk about
something that’s maybe not as often talked
about,” says Webster.
Having widened its focus beyond LGBTQ_
student education, the Power of One event has
become one o f the largest of its kind in the
Northwest. W ith growth comes the spread of
the messages o f pride in identity, equality and
expression. It’s only a matter of time before the
rest o f the world catches on.
The 2011 Power o f One Conference runs April 1-3
at Reed College, 3203 SE Woodstock Blvd. Regis­
tration information and a fu ll schedule are avail­
able online at nwlgbtleadership.wsu.edu.
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