Midwest Bisexual Lesbian Gay Transgender Ally College Conference
The Midwest Bisexual Lesbian Gay Transgender Ally College Conference (MBLGTACC), is an annual conference held to promote leadership, activism, networking, diversity, health, and empowerment among
gay,
lesbian,
bisexual,
transgender,
intersex, and
allied students, staff, and faculty around the
United States and
Canada.
It is the largest and oldest regional
queer college conference in
North America.
It is also commonly refered to as the
Big Gay Conference or as the
Alphabet Soup Conference.
The goals of the conference are to:
* Provide a safe and supportive forum for discourse about diverse issues of interest to
gay,
lesbian,
bisexual,
transgender,
queer,
questioning,
intersex, and
allied (
GLBTQQIA) collegians, staff, and faculty;
* Educate participants about
HIV/
AIDS prevention, building
activism,
sexuality, and
gender;
* Examine the relationship between
sexism,
racism,
classism,
ageism,
ableism, and
homophobia;
* Foster localized, grassroots networking among
GLBTQQIA collegians, staff, and faculty; and
* Promote visibility of
GLBTQQIA individuals and organizations throughout the
Midwest.
Currently, there is no oversight committee for MBLGTACC. Conference attendees and organizers have been discussing this possibility for years. Currently, the MBLGTACC Planning Committee at the
University of Minnesota plans to form such a committee at the upcoming conference in
2007.
*
1991: MBLGTACC was first conceived at a conference in
Des Moines,
IA.
*
1992: An organizing conference took place at
Emporia State University in
Emporia,
KS.
*
1993: The 1st annual
Midwest Bisexual Lesbian Gay College Conference took place at
Iowa State University in
Ames,
IA.
*
1998: The conference was renamed the
Midwest Bisexual Lesbian Gay Transgender College Conference.
*
2001: The conference was renamed the
Midwest Bisexual Lesbain Gay Transgender Ally College Conference.
MBLGTACC 2008
MBLGTACC 2008 will be held at the
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign in
Urbana,
IL in
February 2008. It will be hosted by
PRIDE and the
Office of Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender Concerns.
MBLGTACC 2007: Alphabet Soup - No Matter The Letter We Stand Together
MBLGTACC 2007 will be held at the
University of Minnesota at Twin Cities in
Minneapolis,
MN on
February 16 -
18,
2007. It will be hosted by the
Queer Student Cultural Center and the
Gay Lesbian Bisexual Transgender Programs Office.
Keynote speakers will include (thus far, more to be included):
*
Faisal Alam, founder of
Al-Fatiha Foundation, an organization dedicated to the empowerment and advancement of gay, lesbian, and transgender
Muslims*
Loren Cameron, a photographer famous for his documentation of female-to-male transformations and author of
Body Alchemy: Transsexual Portraits*
Robyn Ochs, co-founder of the Bisexual Resource Network and author of
Getting Bi: Voices of Bisexuals Around the WorldMBLGTACC 2006: Painting the Rainbow - Celebrating Unity Through Diversity
MBLGTACC 2006 was held at the Sioux Falls Convention Center in
Sioux Falls,
SD on
February 17 -
19,
2006. It was hosted by the
10% Society of the
University of South Dakota.
Keynote speakers included:
*
Jon Hoadley, a
Michigan State University alumnus and leader of the drive to defeat a proposed amendment in
November 2006 in
South Dakota that would ban
same-sex marriages and
civil unions*
Magdalen Hsu-Li, a singer-songwriter, painter, and cultural activist whose discography includes
Muscle and Bone (
1997),
Fire (
2001), and
Smashing the Ceiling (
2005)
MBLGTACC 2005: Building The Bridge To Bring It All Together
MBLGTACC 2005 was held at
Saint Cloud State University in
Saint Cloud,
MN on
February 18 -
20,
2005. It was hosted by
OutLoud! and the
Gay Lesbian Bisexual Transgender Services.
Kenyote speakers included:
*
Mandy Carter, a founding board member of the National Black Justice Coalition, an advocacy group for GLBT-identified persons of color
*
Ann DeGroot, co-founder and executive director of
OutFront Minnesota, the state's leading GLBT advocacy organization
MBLGTACC 2004: Speak Up! Speak Out! Celebrating the Power of Communication to Fight Hate and Fear
MBLGTACC 2004 was held at
Iowa State University in
Ames,
IA on
February 13 -
15,
2004.
Keynote speakers included:
*
Patrick Guerriero, executive director of the
Log Cabin Republicans, a former three-term
Massachussetts state representative, and former two-term
mayor of
Melrose,
MA*
Dave Noble, former executive director of the National Stonewall Democrats
*
Robyn Ochs, co-founder of the Bisexual Resource Network and author of
Getting Bi: Voices of Bisexuals Around the World*
Riki Wilchins, a gender-rights activist, as well as founder and executive director of
GenderPAC, a human rights organization focused on issues of gender
MBLGTACC 2003: Loving With Pride
MBLGTACC 2003 was held at
The Ohio State University at Columbus in
Columbus,
OH on
February 14 -
16,
2003. It was hosted by
FUSION and the
Gay Lesbian Bisexual Transgender Student Services.
Keynote speakers included:
*
Susie Bright, aka
Susie Sexpert, writer, teacher, performer, host of radio show "In Bed with Susie Bright", and co-founder and former editor of female sex magazine
On Our Backs*
RuPaul Charles, an American drag performer, dance music singer, actor and songwriter, filmography including
The Brady Bunch Movie (1995) and
But I'm A Cheerleader (1999)
*
Moisés Kaufman, playwright and director famous for co-writing
The Laramie ProjectMBLGTACC 2002: Still Moving Forward
MBLGTACC 2002 was held at
Michigan State University in
East Lansing,
MI on
March 15 -
17,
2002. It was hosted by
The Alliance of Les-Bi-Gay-Transgender and Straight Ally Students and
Multicultural Development: Lesbian-Bi-Gay and Transgender Concerns.
Keynote speakers included:
*
Leslie Feinberg, a trangender activist, speaker, managing editor of Workers World newspaper, and author of
Stone Butch Blues (1993) and
Transgender Warriors: Making History from Joan of Arc to Dennis Rodman (1996)
*
James Earl Hardy, an author and journalist dedicated to telling stories of black men who love black men
*
E. Lynn Harris, an openly gay
African American who has authored
Invisible Life (1991),
Just As I Am (1994),
And This Too Shall Pass (1996),
If This World Were Mine (1997), and
Abide With Me (1999)
*
Joo Hyun Kang, the former executive director of The Audre Lorde Project, and organizing center for GLBT people of color, and a member of CAAAV: Organizing Asian Communities
*
David Rakoff, an actor, journalist, and essayist who has been published in the books
Fraud (2001) and
Don't Get Too Comfortable (2005)
MBLGTACC 2001: Out and About - Breaking the Silence, Breaking the Boundaries, Breaking the Labels
MBLGTACC 2001 was held at the
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign in
Urbana,
IL on
February 16 -
18,
2001. It was hosted by
PRIDE and the
Office of Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender Concerns.
This year saw the addition of "Ally" to the conference name.
MBLGTCC 2000: Making Waves Into the New Millennium
MBLGTCC 2000 was held at the
Saint Cloud State University in
Saint Cloud,
MN on
February 18 -
20,
2000. It was hosted by
OutLoud! and the
Gay Lesbian Bisexual Transgender Services.
Keynote speakers included:
*
Kate Bornstein, a transgender author, playwright, performance artist and gender theorist
*
Mandy Carter, a founding board member of the National Black Justice Coalition, an advocacy group for GLBT-identified persons of color
*
Barbara Smith, an African-American, lesbian feminist who has played a significant role in building and sustaining Black Feminism in the
United States*
Robert Vázquez-Pacheco, director of community education and organizing for the Audre Lorde Project
MBLGTCC 1999: Moving Forward, Looking Back
MBLGTCC 1999 was held at the
University of Wisconsin at Madison in
Madison,
WI on
February 19 -
21,
1999. It was hosted by the
Ten Percent Society and the
Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender Campus Center.
Keynote speakers included:
*
Virginia Apuzzo, former Assistant to the President for Management and Administration in the
White House, and former Executive Director of the National Gay Task Force
*
Larry Kramer,
Oscar-nominated screenwriter of
Ken Russell's
Women in Love, author of the best-selling satirical novel
Faggots, founder of
ACT-UP (AIDS Coalition to Unleash Power), and co-founder of
GMHC (Gay Men's Health Crisis)
*
Rebecca Walker, contributing editor to
Ms. magazine since 1989
MBLGTCC 1998: Across the Fruited Plain
MBLGTCC 1998 was held at the
University of Illinois at Chicago in
Chicago,
IL on
February 20 -
22,
1998. It was hosted by
PRIDE: Lesbian Gay Bisexual and Transgender People Advocating Diversity, the
Chancellor's Committee on the Status of Lesbian, Gays and Bisexual Issues, and the
Office of Gay, Lesbian and Bisexual Concerns.
This year saw the addition of "Transgender" to the conference name.
Keynote speakers included:
*
Urvashi Vaid, former executive director of the
National Gay and Lesbian Task Force, and author of
Virtual Equality: The Mainstreaming of Gay and Lesbian Liberation*
Leslie Feinberg, a trangender activist, speaker, managing editor of Workers World newspaper, and author of
Stone Butch Blues (1993) and
Transgender Warriors: Making History from Joan of Arc to Dennis Rodman (1996)
*
Michelangelo Signorile, radio talk show host of
The Michelangelo Signorile Show and author of books such as
Queer in America and
Hitting HardMBLGCC 1997: We're Here! We're Queer! We're Fabulous!
MBLGCC 1997 was held at
Indiana State University in
Terre Haute,
IN on
February 21 -
23,
1997. It was hosted by
The Alliance of Bisexual, Lesbian and Gay Students and Allies.
Keynote speakers included:
*
Jim J. Bullock, an actor, comedian, talk show host, former cast member of Too Close For Comfort and The Jim J. & Tammy Faye Show
*
Leslea Newman, a well-published and controversial author, best known for books such as
Heather has Two Mommies and
Good Enough To Eat*
Kenneth Sherril, chair of the Political Science Department at
Hunter College, editor of essays such as
Gays and The MilitaryMBLGCC 1996: Building Queer Success in the Midwest
MBLGCC 1996 was held at
Beloit College in
Beloit,
WI on
February 23 -
25,
1996.
Keynote speakers included:
*
Lillian Faderman, an English Professor at
California State University at
Fresno, and author of
Love of Men,
Chloe Plus Olivia, and
Odd Girls and Twilight Lovers*
Miriam Ben-Shalom, founder and former chairperson of the Gay, Lesbian and Bisexual Veterans of America, and special needs teacher in the
Milwaukee Public School System
*
Paul Wesselmann, an active member of the GLBT community in
Madison,
WI, where he began Stone Soup Seminars, and the director of Volunteer Services at the Madison AIDS Support Network
MBLGCC 1995
MBLGCC 1995 was held at
Southern Illinois University at Carbondale in
Carbondale,
IL on
February 24 -
26,
1995. It was hosted by
Gays, Lesbians, Bisexuals and Friends.
MBLGCC 1994
MBLGCC 1994 was held at
Earlham College in
Richmond,
IN on
February 18 -
20,
1994. It was hosted by the
Lesbian, Bisexual, and Gay People's Union.
Keynote speakers included:
*
Angela Bowen, a black lesbian feminist writer and activist, former co-chair of the National Coalition for Black Lesbians and Gays, and recepient of the Fannie Lou Hamer Award for working to combat racism and celebrate women of color
*
Tom Neal, a gay student activist from
Texas, as well as founder and board member of the Coalition for Lesbian and Gay Student Groups in
Dallas,
TXMBLGCC 1993
MBLGCC 1993 was held at
Iowa State University in
Ames,
IA on
February 19 -
21,
1993. It was a collaborative effort between
Drake University and
Iowa State University.
MBLGCC 1992
MBLGCC 1992 was held at
Emporia State University in
Emporia,
KS in
February 1992.
1991 Organizing Conference
The initial discussions surrounding the establishment of the Midwest Bisexual Lesbian Gay College Conference were held in
Des Moines,
IA in
February 1991.
*
Midwest Bisexual Lesbian Gay Transgender Ally College Conference
