Lambda Alums visit campus

Keith Boykin to deliver keynote address

This weekend's Lambda Alumni conference will be a star-studded event.

The conference, which will bring together some of Oberlin's gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgendered alumni, includes a lecture by a prominent activist in the black gay community and a screening of a film by a critically acclaimed lesbian filmmaker and OC alumnus.

Keith Boykin, former executive director of the National Black Gay and Lesbian Leadership Forum, will deliver the keynote address at the conference this evening.

Boykin, who also served as a special assistant to President Clinton for two years, has written about the relationship between blacks and gays in the U.S. His most recent book, One More River to Cross: Black and Gay in America, deals with the friction between America's racial and sexual minorities.

Boykin has said that as a black man who is also gay he "has spent a great deal of time shuttling back and forth between his two identities." His book argues that the lesbian and gay community, the black community and the black lesbian and gay community need to start an honest dialog that deals with their fears and biases.

Boykin's work is a perfect fit for the theme of the conference: diversity in the LGBT community.

Another highlight of the weekend will be the screening of Hide and Seek, the 1996 film from award-winning director Su Friedrich, OC '75. The film examines lesbian adolescence in the 1960s from the perspective of 12-year-old Lou.

One review of the film described it : "Interwoven with Lou's story are the mostly hilarious, sometimes painful recollections of adult lesbians who try to figure out how they got from there to here."

In addition to Friedrich's film and Boykin's address, there will be several workshops organized by other Oberlin alumni, students and staff.

Workshops on Saturday will deal with LGBT relationships, issues of aging in the LGBT community, living with AIDS/HIV and being out at work. There will also be a meeting of the people of color caucus. Saturday will also include an interfaith memorial service in the afternoon and LGBT night at the 'Sco later in the evening.

Sunday morning will include a presentation by Mike Muska, director of athletics about athletics and the LGBT community.

Other events throughout the weekend include a LGBT student recital, a book signing by Boykin and a brunch with President Nancy Dye.

Students are welcome at all the weekend's events.

The conference has been organized by Kathy Hines, OC '89 and Jim Harrington, OC '73, co-chairs of Lambda, Angela Nichols, LGBT coordinator in the Multicultural Resource Center, and Margaret Erikson, director of on-campus alumni activities. "It's a real cooperative effort," Erikson said.

The conference, which is the fourth organized for members of Lambda, is held every other year. Lambda is the largest affiliate organization of Oberlin alumni.

Keith Boykin's keynote address will be at 8 p.m. today in Warner Concert Hall. Hide and Seek will be shown Saturday at 8 p.m. in King 106. For information on the rest of the weekend's events contact the MRC or the Office of Alumni Affairs.