Transgendered, Bisexual, Gay, Lesbian Awareness Days at Colorado State University Presents Marci Bowers

Colorado State University Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender Student Services will host T’BGLAD Days April 3-9 with a variety of programs and presentations. The keynote presentation by Marci Bowers, a renowned gynecologic surgeon, will be at 6 p.m. Wednesday, April 5, in the Lory Student Center Theater.

T’BGLAD Days, or Transgendered, Bisexual, Gay and Lesbian Awareness Days, is designed to create awareness of the gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgendered community, discuss issues and address concerns that affect people within that community. In addition, the event is designed to educate the Colorado State and Fort Collins communities about what it means to be gay and the effects of hatred and anti-gay acts.

Bowers, who works in Trinidad, has more than 19 years of experience performing pelvic surgery. She has completed more than 200 primary gender reassignment surgeries in Colorado, performing two to five surgeries per week. She has appeared in a number of television documentaries on stations including The Learning Channel and the Discovery Channel.  

Travis Mathews, an expert in substance abuse issues in the gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgendered communities, will speak at 7 p.m. on Thursday, April 5, in Room 230 Lory Student Center. Mathews made his first feature movie, "Do I Look Fat," a look at gay men, their body images and eating disorders, in 2005.

Events during T’BGLAD Days include the following.

Monday, April 3

– 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., Second Class Citizens, Lory Student Center plaza, flag display demonstrating the 1,039 rights not afforded to people who are gay, lesbian, bisexual or transgendered.

– 7 p.m., Lory Student Center room 224-226, Bisexual students panel: a panel of bisexual students will tell their stories and discuss issues surrounding bisexuality on a college campus.

Tuesday, April 4

– 11 a.m., Lory Student Center room 213-215, business panel. Community business people who are gay, lesbian, bisexual or transgendered will talk about their experiences in the workforce.

– 1 p.m., Drag queens and drag kings, Lory Student Center Room 213-215. Entertainers will give pointers for performing as a drag artist.

– 5 p.m., Transgeneration program, Lory Student Center, Room 213-215. This program will highlight the experience of an individual on campus who is transgendered.

– 7 p.m., Political activism, Lory Student Center, Room 213-215. A panel of dynamic individuals who are activists in Colorado will talk about ways students can be effective in bringing about changes in the political climate for gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgendered individuals. Individuals on the panel include Pat Steadman, lobbyist, Equal Rights Colorado board member, GLBT Commission; Kendra-Sue Derby, Coloradans for Fairness and Equality; Mark Ferrandino, Colorado Stonewall Democrats; Alex Sanchez, GLBT Commission, Colorado Democratic Latino Initiative; and Morris Price, Gill Foundation, GLBT Commission.

Wednesday, April 5

– 11 a.m.-1 p.m., Meet the Gays, Lory Student Center plaza. A panel of student members of the gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgendered community will answer pre-submitted questions. Questions should be submitted by 5 p.m. Tuesday, April 4 at the Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgendered advocacy office or the university’s information desk in the Lory Student Center.

– 6 p.m., keynote address by Marci Bowers, Lory Student Center Theatre.

Thursday, April 6

– 5 p.m., Transgeneration, Lory Student Center, room 230. This program will highlight the experience of an individual on campus who is transgendered.

– 7 p.m., Travis Mathews address, Lory Student Center room 230.

Friday, April 7

– 1 p.m., Laramie Project panel, Lory Student Center room 217. Students who were cast for Colorado State University theatre’s Laramie Project will discuss the process and their experiences working on this production, including meeting with people who were involved in the Mathew Sheppard incident.

– 7 p.m., Laramie Project film, Lory Student Center theatre. Touted by HBO as a groundbreaking HBO Film event that recreates the efforts of a New York theatre troupe to shed light on a western town’s loss of innocence following a hate crime perpetrated on a 21-year-old University of Wyoming student. Adapted from the acclaimed play of the same name, the film features an all-star cast.

– 9 p.m., Times of Harvey Milk, Lory Student Center theatre. Touted by film company Telling Pictures as a story about Harvey Milk who was elected to the San Francisco city council in 1978, becoming the first openly gay person elected to public office in California. One year later, he and the mayor were killed by a fellow council member, former police officer and fire fighter. The film recreates Milk’s grass-roots election, the murders and their repercussions including the angry mobs who stormed city hall in the aftermath of lenient sentencing at his murder trial.

Saturday, April 8

– 7 p.m., Drag Show, Lory Student Center commons. Student participants will perform in drag.

Sunday, April 9

– Lavender Graduation: The annual dinner that concludes T’BGLAD week, at the Hilton, located on 425 Prospect Road, honors graduating gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgendered students and community members who have exhibited a commitment to fostering a supportive environment.

Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender Student Services at Colorado State, which officially opened in the Lory Student Center on campus in 1998, is committed to providing a safe place for students who may be gay, lesbian, bisexual or transgendered, other minorities and allies at Colorado State. The organization is involved in student group advising, counseling, education outreach programs, alumni development, and supports those individuals who have been harassed or reported discrimination.

For more information about T’BGLAD, call (970) 491-4342, email glbtss@lamar.colostate.edu or visit glbtss.colostate.edu.

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