Program Description

In her lectures, Kayla not only discusses her experiences negotiating the changing demands on today’s military, but she addresses the changing role of women in society.  She expounds on the notion that as society changes, the military must necessarily change along with it – but, as we’ve seen with “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,” the military is often slow to accept and reflect the evolving views of society.  And, unfortunately, many of the issues that women face in the military are not exclusive to the military or to war.

In her role as an interpreter, Kayla was able to garner a deeper understanding of the Iraqi culture, and reinforce her view that it is crucial to the health of our society to embrace diversity and uphold the doctrines of basic human rights.  Kayla is able to help audiences better understand that their own challenges, navigating a society with ingrained gender roles and cultural preconceptions, are equally valid.

Kayla’s experiences in Iraq, and her struggle to reintegrate into civilian society upon her return home, enable her to relate to many different types of audiences.  She vividly describes the sometimes harrowing and heartrending challenges of being both a soldier/veteran and a wife, and how difficult it is sometimes to reconcile the two roles – this audio interview at NotAlone.com is a lucid encapsulation of Kayla’s experience.  Also, she is able to relay a first-hand perspective on the questionable treatment of Iraqi prisoners (she witnessed soldiers cross the line between interrogation and torture), the stress of combat, and the effects of physical injury and PTSD — her husband (also a veteran) suffered a serious brain injury sustained in combat.

One of Kayla’s overarching messages is that we MUST take care of our veterans.  We all have a role in the war effort, regardless of personal politics, and it is crucial that our returning soldiers get what they need in order to become contributing members of civilian society once again.  She recently addressed United States House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs on this issue.  Her remarks, entitled “The Growing Needs of Women Veterans: Is the VA Ready?” can be found here.

Bio

Kayla is a member of the Board of Directors of Grace After Fire, a senior adviser of VoteVets.org and she regularly blogs at The Huffington Post and VetVoice.com.  She has appeared on numerous media outlets including CNN, Fox, NPR and HBO’s “Real Time with Bill Maher,” and elsewhere, to discuss the challenges faced by women serving in the armed forces and the additional challenges they face re-adjusting to civilian life as veterans.  She recently earned a Masters degree in International Affairs with a focus on the Middle East from American University, and continues to work on issues related to U.S. policy and the treatment of veterans.

Garry began her professional career as part of the management team that launched MTV in 1981 and it is that experience that shaped her view that the media profoundly influence the attitudes and opinions of people on nearly every issue.  With her 1997 appointment as executive director of GLAAD, a position she held for eight years, Joan realized she had connected her professional experience with her powerful voice.

Whether it was debating Jerry Falwell and Bill O’Reilly, or taking on The New York Times and persuading the Times to change its policy to include gay and lesbian couples on its wedding pages, Garry has been at the forefront of issues that mean something to her family and to countless other families across America.  This was never more evident than during the transformational election of 2008, when Garry was the Co-chair of the National LGBT Finance Committee for Obama for America, leading a committee of 75 fundraisers nationwide to engage and mobilize the LGBT community to champion the candidacy of President-elect Obama.

Currently a featured blogger at The Huffington Post, Garry is working to help Americans connect the front page to the world in their own back yards. She offers commentary on issues of relevance to the gay community as a columnist with The Washington Blade, and her personal essays have been published in The Newark Star Ledger, The New York Times and elsewhere.

Program Descriptions

The Civil Rights Issue of Our Time:  LGBT Equality

As one of America’s most prominent gay rights leaders, Garry offers thoughts on the current state of the movement,  examines it in terms of historical context and considers its trajectory over the next 5-10 years.  She addresses the opportunities and challenges facing the next generation of leadership, and proposes (and answers) difficult questions about the most effective ways to achieve success.

Goal-Oriented, Team-Driven Leadership

After a decade at the helm of one of the most visible gay rights organizations in America, Garry’s perspectives on leadership are authentic and unique.  From debating Jerry Falwell to persuading the New York Times to include gay and lesbian couples on its wedding pages, Garry has demonstrated leadership attributes that are forceful, effective and at the same time empathetic and respectful.  In her lecture, she shares the lessons gleaned from both her tenure as the Executive Director of GLAAD, and during the preceding fourteen years as a cable television executive with positions in strategic planning and new business development.

Media and its Impact on Changing Hearts and Minds

Historically, civil rights movements have focused on government, politics and the law to effect change.  The gay civil rights movement may have been the first to recognize and understand the power of the media to shape attitudes and opinions.   Garry shares the history and successes of this media activism, offering valuable lessons on the power of media advocacy to bring an issue to light and in so doing, change hearts and minds.

Activism: A How-To Guide

As a prominent civil rights leader with demonstrated success in effecting change, Garry speaks about what it means to be an activist, the forms activism can take and the strategies and tactics that can be employed to move people to action.

Making a Difference in Non-Profit America:
Can You Really Making A Living Doing Something You Care About?

Garry tells her own story – diving into a non-profit leadership role after a successful career as a media executive – and offers insight into non-profit work – the skills and expertise she brought with her from corporate America and the new ones she unearthed.

Bio

Garry plays a critical role as a visible media spokesperson and critic.  In 1999, Entertainment Weekly featured her on its list of the “100 Most Influential People In Entertainment.”  Garry’s articulate advocacy has been featured across all national news networks, with notable media appearances including NBC’s “Today;” ABC’s “World News Tonight;” PBS’ “The NewsHour with Jim Lehrer;” CNN’s “NewsNight with Aaron Brown;” CNBC’s “Dennis Miller Live;” numerous appearances on CNN, CSPAN, MSNBC (including “Hardball” with Chris Matthews) and Fox News Channel (including “The O’Reilly Factor” and “Hannity & Colmes”).

Her comments are frequently sought by leading newspapers, magazines and news services, including The New York Times, the Associated Press, Reuters, the Washington Post, USA Today, Time Magazine, Newsweek, The Wall Street Journal, the Los Angeles Times, Advertising Age and PR Week, among others; and her thought-provoking op-ed essays have appeared in outlets such as The New York Times and USA Today.

During her eight-year tenure at GLAAD, Garry led the organization through a series of high-profile campaigns, most notably GLAAD’s highly successful public education initiative to combat and expose the defamatory rhetoric of “Dr. Laura” Schlessinger.

Garry lives in New Jersey with her partner of 27 years and their three children. Her landmark 1993 court challenge to New Jersey’s second-parent adoption law made Garry the first lesbian in the state to adopt her partner’s biological children.  She also blogs with and about her kids at www.whosthegrownup.com, and on her own at www.joangarry.com.  In the spirit of using her voice to advocate for change, Garry is the first and only female singing member of the New York City Gay Men’s Chorus.

Wrapped in Rainbows-the first biography of Zora Neale Hurston in 25 years-was published to enormous critical acclaim. It was hailed by Alice Walker as “magnificent” and “extraordinary”; by The Washington Post as “definitive”; and by the Boston Globe as “elegant and exhilarating.” The Southern Book Critics Circle honored it with the 2003 Southern Book Award for best nonfiction of the year.

Program Descriptions

Don’t Go Chasing Waterfalls: The Story of Black Women in Hollywood

In her eye-opening lecture slide program, Boyd takes audiences on a journey into her ongoing research for her forthcoming book, Spirits in the Dark: The Untold Story of Black Women in Hollywood, a groundbreaking study tracing the ­­­history of black women in film and television from the 1920s to the present. Accompanied by a dazzling array of slides, Boyd walks audiences through a gallery of Hollywood’s most important black women players, decade by decade, from Lena Horne to Halle Berry, from Hattie McDaniel to Queen Latifah.

Chronicling the battle for inclusiveness that African-American women have waged over the years, this talk explores how numerous women-mostly as actresses, but later also as writers, directors and producers-have challenged and changed the movie capitol of the world, and how others have been devoured by it.

Their Eyes Were Watching God: The Back Story

In this in-depth discussion, Boyd shares with audiences the impetus and inspiration for Hurston’s 1937 masterpiece, Their Eyes Were Watching God. Pulitzer Prize-winning novelist Alice Walker has said there is no book more important to her, and Oprah Winfrey has called the novel her favorite love story of all time. Winfrey even turned the book into a television movie starring Halle Berry. But where did this timeless novel come from? How did Hurston dream it up? It turns out that the love story of Janie and Tea Cake was inspired by the author’s own rendezvous with a younger man in the 1930s. Boyd reveals details about Hurston’s own Tea Cake and delves into the roots of this American classic.

Bio

Boyd is the Charlayne Hunter-Gault Distinguished Writer in Residence at the University of Georgia, where she teaches narrative nonfiction writing, as well as arts and literary journalism. An accomplished journalist and cultural critic, Boyd is the former arts editor at The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, and she has been published in numerous anthologies, magazines and newspapers.

Her articles, essays and reviews have appeared in Step Into a World: A Global Anthology of the New Black Literature, Ms. Magazine, Essence, The Washington Post, The LA Times, African American Review and other publications. She founded EightRock, a cutting-edge journal of black arts and culture, in 1990. In 1992, she co-founded HealthQuest, the first nationally distributed magazine focusing on African-American health.