Founded in 1972, the Women’s Center at the University of Idaho has been supporting women and fighting for gender equality for 50 years. In celebration of all the work the center has done on campus over the years, the Women’s center is hosting a series of events and activities to bring students together in honor of this golden anniversary. One of the highlights will be the keynote speaker, Ijeoma Oluo, author of “So You Want to Talk About Race” the UI common read this semester, who will be speaking Wednesday Oct. 5 from 7-8:30 p.m. in the ICCU Arena.
The decision on who would speak for this significant anniversary was not taken lightly, and Women’s Center program coordinator Jeana Moody explained that the center wanted to focus not just on feminism but also people of color within the feminism movement and their important contributions. The focus this year for the anniversary events centers around the intersectionality of gender equality and racial equality.
“We want to highlight the work of women of color and people of color within the movement and the ways in which we’re working towards equity and equality here at the University. Not just with gender in mind but also with race in mind,” Moody said.
Planning for the 50th anniversary events has been happening since last October and the Women’s Center ultimately decided on Oluo as the keynote because of her outspoken passion for feminism, social justice and racial equality.
“We knew that we wanted to bring in a strong speaker, we knew we wanted to bring in somebody who’s looking at intersectionality and feminism,” Moody said.
With her book being the UI Common Read, Oluo is also someone students will be familiar with and may be able to connect with. Her work has impacted thousands nationwide and the Women’s Center anticipates that her address will be influential and powerful for everyone who attends.
“We’re drawing from someone who has been used in academia a lot but whose work is also really accessible,” Moody said. “And I think that’s so important, and her talk should be super accessible as well.”
The keynote address is free and everyone is welcome to attend, however online registration is encouraged so anyone interested can register here before the event. The event will not be livestreamed so in person attendance will be the only way to experience Oluo’s talk.
While this keynote is one of the biggest events for the Women’s Center this year, there are so many other things happening to celebrate the 50-year anniversary that the UI community can look forward to. Along with being the golden anniversary of the Women’s center, this year also marks 50 years of Title IX and the center will be commemorating this with a zoom discussion titled “Title IX at the University of Idaho.” This will be happening on Wednesday, Nov. 9 from 5:30-6:30 p.m. online and will include the first and current directors of women’s athletics here at UI, as well past and current female student athletes.
There will also be a 50th Anniversary Gala on Dec. 2 from 6-10pm at the 1912 center, as a way to gather with friends and celebrate all the work the Women’s Center has done these last 50 years with food, dancing and conversation. Tickets to this and other events as well as more information about the other activities the center is hosting can be found here.
“So that’s our quest during this 50th anniversary, really looking at where we started and where we are and what it took to get here along the way,” Moody said.
Grace Giger can be reached at [email protected]