The United Nations Association of the USA Hawaii Island Chapter and the University of Hawaii at Hilo International Student Services and Intercultural Education Program are presenting a free lecture at 7 p.m. Thursday titled “Genderism Made Them Disabled.”
The United Nations Association of the USA Hawaii Island Chapter and the University of Hawaii at Hilo International Student Services and Intercultural Education Program are presenting a free lecture at 7 p.m. Thursday titled “Genderism Made Them Disabled.”
The featured speaker is UH-Hilo Japanese language professor Yoshiko Okuyama. Her areas of specialization include Japanese mythology, pop culture, second language acquisition and technology-mediated communication and disability studies.
With the gender-inclusive facilities debate and the Orlando, Fla., nightclub shooting still fresh in many people’s minds, Okuyama will look at the hot topic of genderism — a belief that there are only two genders — from a cross-cultural perspective.
Japan is a society that has little or no tolerance for individuals with gender identity disorder, a questionable term still used in the medical model of disability. Her goal is to start an open conversation about gender fluidity.
The lecture will take place at the UH-Hilo Campus Center, Room 301.
The UNA USA Hawaii Island Chapter is dedicated to educating, inspiring and engaging citizens to support the principals and vital work of the United Nations.
For more information, contact Rosemarie Muller at rcmuller27@hotmail.com.