Professors look forward to impact of lecture from celebrated fiction writer

AIDS Awareness Week will bring a New York Times best selling author and social commentator to Georgia College & State University to lecture on neglected social issues.

Author E. Lynn Harris will provide a lecture titled Liberty & Learning: The Identity Theory to enhance awareness of “-isms” such as racism, classism and sexism.

As one of the first well-noted gay authors in history, he will tie in his personal experiences with the ignorance of society to discuss topics such as homosexuality, HIV/AIDS, color, suicide and tolerance.

“I feel like everyone should know who he is,” Director of Diversity and Multicultral Affairs Allia Carter said. “He’s a well-accomplished author and he’s also one of the first well-noted gay authors.”

Carter said she selected Harris as a speaker for AIDS Awareness Week [Feb. 14-Feb.17] because he not only relates to individuals, but also to the community.

Carter is currently promoting the lecture at other colleges, including Macon State College, the University of Georgia and Emory University.

“During this week Harris will help to bring about a social consciousness

that some would prefer to ignore such as human sexuality,” Carter said.

Carter said she received support from many members of the English department while she was attempting to obtain Harris as a speaker.

Susan Cumings, program coordinator of Women’s Studies, said she is particularly enthusiastic about the lecture.

“I am thrilled we are bringing E. Lynn Harris to campus. He’s a great writer…and I also think he’s important to our time and our campus,” Cumings said. “I am proud of this community for welcoming him. We need him as a personal role model and a model for how great contemporary fiction can reflect the world we live in and still be great fun to read.”

English professor Scott Dillard said Harris will be a well-qualified speaker for AIDS Awareness Week.

“E. Lynn Harris is one of the best selling gay authors writing today,” Dillard said. “He writes about issues of black masculinity and sexuality as well as how AIDS has had an impact on the lives of the African American community.”

Although he speaks on gay issues now, Harris spent years struggling with his sexuality. He lied about his sexuality for years before opening his life up to the public through his memoir, Invisible Life. Harris addresses issues in this work as well as others of a gay-black community that is often otherwise ignored.

Harris has encountered many hardships. As a child, Harris was severely punished by his stepfather whenever he felt that Harris was acting like a “little sissy.”

Harris’ paternal father was killed by a drunk driver only a year after they met. He suffered from clinical depression, and many of his friends were dying of AIDS.

The turning point for Harris came in August of 1990, when he consumed a lethal combination of sleeping pills and alcohol. He decided after surviving the attempted suicide that God had plans for his life, and decided that he would do something about it.

Director of the Paul Coverdell Institute Gregg Kaufman said Harris has the opportunity to have an impact and increase awareness in the community.

“E. Lynn Harris offers us a great opportunity to grapple with social stereotypes that complicate race relations and impede our progress in our multicultural society,” Kaufman said. “The institute is honored to join the Diversity & Multicultural Affairs Department and Campus Activities Board in this endeavor.”

The Paul Coverdell Institute fosters a Creative Incentive Awards Project which provides funding for events that meet certain standards, are organized by others and foster creativity, Kaufman said.

Funding and advertising for the event were also provided by Director of Experiential Learning Dr. Robin Harris and the A.N.G.E.L.S. (Aids Now Grasps Every Living Soul) Foundation, Inc.

“I believe that anything that will draw people into conversation about HIV/AIDS is worthwhile. A speaker of his prominence can help us draw an audience that we might not otherwise reach,” Harris said. “We are very fortunate that Ms. Carter had lined him up to speak and wrote a successful Coverdell Incentive grant that provided the funds necessary to bring him here.”

Support for the program also came from the Campus Activities Board and the Office of Diversity & Multicultural Affairs. Harris’s lecture will be at 6 p.m. on Thursday, Feb.17 in the Magnolia Room in the new Student Center. Admission is free and open to the public. For more information, call (478) 445-4233.

Posted by Colonnade Archives on Feb 11 2005. Filed under News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry