- Author: Michael Hsu
UCCE advisor outreaches to LGBTQ+ community, partners with Karuk Tribe in Northern California
Costumed as river creatures with papier mâché heads and dressed as the Army Corps of Engineers, Cleo Woelfle Hazard and a performance art group called The Water Underground dazzled the biennial Bay Delta Science Conference a few years ago.
Woelfle Hazard – then a Ph.D. student at the University of California, Berkeley – and his companions performed numbers from the film they were making, a “queer slapstick musical” about salmon migration. They soon got 150 scientists, engineers, resource managers and other conference attendees singing along to their songs.
“Meanwhile, some of my professors were in the audience, and they were saying, ‘Well, he's also a scientist, he doesn't just do this art stuff!'” recalled Woelfle Hazard, who started at the beginning of this year as the UC Cooperative Extension fire advisor for Humboldt and Del Norte counties.
Identifying as a “queer trans masculine person,” Woelfle Hazard has spent much of his career bringing together gender studies with his professional interests – a quest chronicled in his book “Underflows: Queer Trans Ecologies and River Justice.”
Prescribed burn training to help shape queer fire ecology
In his new role, Woelfle Hazard is organizing a prescribed burn training for people who are 2SLGBTQ+ (2S is a common abbreviation for Two-Spirit, which refers to people of Indigenous North American descent who identify as having both masculine and feminine qualities). The sessions, which began in the middle of Pride Month in June, will continue over three more weekends in the fall when participants conduct forest thinning and prescribed burns.
Inspired by the WTREX (Women-in-Fire TRaining EXchanges) burn trainings for women organized by UC ANR Fire Network Director Lenya Quinn-Davidson and her colleagues, Woelfle Hazard is excited to grow skills and foster connections within the LGBTQ+/Two-Spirit community.
“I try to be ‘out' in different contexts that are not particularly queer,” Woelfle Hazard said. “And the queer burn training is one way that I'm trying to increase the visibility of queer people in fire.”
He has been overwhelmed by interest in the training – with over 100 people already registered – and is looking forward to learning how subcultures within those diverse communities can contribute to a nascent “queer fire ecology.”
“I do social science and I do ecology, but my core field is feminist science and technology studies,” Woelfle Hazard explained, “which is a field where we're looking at the social context of science and who asks the questions and how the questions change if a Native person, or a Black person, or a queer person, or an immigrant is asking those questions.”
Working alongside Karuk Tribe on Klamath River floodplain restoration
The book “Underflows” also explores the intersectionality of queer theory with Indigenous conceptions of kinship and belonging – building on Woelfle Hazard's extensive experience working with tribal communities.
During his undergraduate years, Woelfle Hazard edited an anthology, “Dam Nation: Dispatches from the Water Underground” and contributed a chapter on tribal-led dam removal efforts, including those of the Karuk, Hoopa, Yurok, and Klamath Tribes in the Klamath Basin. In graduate school, he also participated in the UC Berkeley-Karuk Collaborative, started by UCCE specialist Jennifer Sowerwine and others.
Later in his career, as a faculty member at the University of Washington, Woelfle Hazard had an opportunity to work more directly with the Karuk Tribe. Seeking to bring students to the region for field sessions, he contacted Lisa Morehead-Hillman, who directed the Píkyav Field Institute, the educational wing of the Karuk Department of Natural Resources.
In return, she asked if there was a way her Karuk students could benefit from the experience as well – and Woelfle Hazard said he would be glad to host them in Seattle. “She had never had anyone from a university make that offer before, so that was really the foundation of building trust,” he said.
From there, Woelfle Hazard connected with Leaf Hillman, the founder of the Karuk Department of Natural Resources, and they co-developed a project to look at how reconnecting the Klamath River with its floodplain could restore ecological processes and eco-cultural practices such as basketry.
Working alongside Morehead-Hillman and University of Washington students Jocine Velasco and Ry Yahn, they produced a Storymap, patterned after the Karuk creation story of “Coyote's Journey,” recounting the historical impacts of mining, dams and fire suppression in the region. They are now working on a follow-up Storymap that will describe the tribe's plans to restore the floodplain and revitalize the Tishániik ceremonial site.
Navigating intersections of science, culture
Earlier this month, Woelfle Hazard brought climate scientists from the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) to Orleans in Humboldt County, where the Karuk Department of Natural Resources is located. NCAR scientists had developed a climate model that describes changes to the Klamath Basin under a variety of future fire regimes, and Woelfle Hazard presented on how well the model meets the needs of local communities.
“Our activity kind of broke their model, which they're pretty happy about, actually,” Woelfle Hazard said. “There's a lot of learning just about what is actually useful for the tribe and other organizations; we're working with the Western Klamath Restoration Partnership, which is a tribal-led partnership with the Forest Service and a number of NGOs in the Klamath Basin.”
As part of the NCAR Innovators project, which intentionally pairs social scientists with NCAR scientists, Woelfle Hazard also studied the researchers themselves, interviewing them about their experiences and looking at ways they can better partner with tribes and grassroots organizations.
“It's been a really complex project, putting together lots of different forms of knowledge – Karuk science, climate science, and I'm in the middle, trying to translate between them,” Woelfle Hazard said.
Native and Western ways of knowing. Social sciences and natural sciences. Fire and water. Artist and scientist. In work and in life, Woelfle Hazard has sought to deconstruct binaries that obscure more complicated realities – and blur those distinctions to illuminate greater truths.
During Pride Month and throughout the year, he said it's important to celebrate progress while also continuing to fight so all people can secure their basic rights and live their lives with dignity and purpose.
“Queer ecology is another frontline of the struggle; if you're a queer/trans/Two-Spirit person and you want to be a fish ecologist, you should be able to be a fish ecologist,” he said. “You shouldn't have to worry that people are going to be saying some stuff while you're out in the field getting into your wetsuit!
“This is work that we all have to do – dismantling these structures of racism, of sexism, of homophobia. And we have to do it all the time, every day.”
/h3>/h3>/h3>/h3>- Author: Mike Hsu
To commemorate Pride Month in June, the LGBTQIA+ Employee Resource Group at UC ANR has assembled links to articles and videos that offer historical context and additional information for the community.
Pride Month & General Information
Pride Month
https://www.loc.gov/lgbt-pride-month/about/
https://youth.gov/feature-article/june-lgbt-pride-month
Milestones in the Gay Rights Movement: https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/features/stonewall-milestones-american-gay-rights-movement/
The first Pride march in New York City was held on the one-year anniversary of the Stonewall Uprising: https://www.loc.gov/lgbt-pride-month/about/#pride-50th-anniversary (including footage of early Pride march)
Numbers in the U.S.
https://news.gallup.com/poll/329708/lgbt-identification-rises-latest-estimate.aspx
Stonewall Uprising
Stonewall Then and Now: https://news.harvard.edu/gazette/story/2019/06/harvard-scholars-reflect-on-the-history-and-legacy-of-the-stonewall-riots/
Arrest Reports from the 1969 Stonewall Uprising: https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/projects/documents/arrest-reports-from-the-1969-stonewall-uprising
How the Stonewall Riots Sparked a Movement (video): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q9wdMJmuBlA
The Stonewall You Know Is a Myth (video): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S7jnzOMxb14&t=86s
NYU Documentary celebrating 50 years of the Stonewall riots (video): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=31CX1Y0cen8
The Day the Stonewall Riots Shook America (video): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tCFwOJcMjM0
https://www.biography.com/news/stonewall-riots-history-leaders
https://guides.loc.gov/lgbtq-studies/stonewall-era
History of the Pride flag (video)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CMM-ybN3K5g
Wanda Sykes Take Us Through the History of LGBTQ+ (video)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wkzwDOCEDCo
Practices for Inclusion of Individuals of All Genders and Sexual Orientations (4-H PLWG - Program Leaders Workgroup)
LGBTQ America (2016): A Theme Study of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and Queer History
https://www.nps.gov/subjects/tellingallamericansstories/lgbtqthemestudy.htm
This Is What LGBT Life Is Like Around the World | Jenni Chang and Lisa Dazols | TED Talks (video)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ivfJJh9y1UI
Aging as LGBT: Two Stories (video)
Exploring The Roots Of Chicago's Queer South Asian Community | NBC Asian America (video)
Introduction to Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and Queer history in the United States
https://www.nps.gov/subjects/lgbtqheritage/upload/lgbtqtheme-history.pdf
NPS, in collaboration with History Pin, a nationwide, web-based project, is now available to enable individuals, communities, and other organizations to “pin” places of LGBTQ history and heritage, making a truly crowd-sourced and image-rich map.
Lesbian & Gay Communities
Background information
Definitions: https://lgbt.ucsf.edu/glossary-terms
LGBT identification in U.S.: https://news.gallup.com/poll/329708/lgbt-identification-rises-latest-estimate.aspx
Two-Spirit People: Sex, Gender & Sexuality in Historic and Contemporary Native America
https://www.ncai.org/policy-research-center/initiatives/Pruden-Edmo_TwoSpiritPeople.pdf
Queer Latino podcast ‘De Pueblo, Católico y Gay' aims to fight LGBTQ stigma
What Do All the Initials Mean? (video)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DE7bKmOXY3w
Two Spirits, One Dance for Native American Artist (video)
Journey of Indigenous Gender Identity (video)
When Black Lives Matter Meets Gay Pride (video)
What's it Like to be Latino and Gay? (video)
Inside the World Of Being Machismo And Gay In Latino Culture (video)
Tracing The Evolution Of Asian-Pacific Islander LGBTQ Nightlife Spaces | NBC Asian America (video)
Bi+ Community
Background information
Description of identity terms: https://rcsgd.sa.ucsb.edu/education/bi-education
Merriam-Webster definition: https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/bisexual
Pansexual: https://lgbt.foundation/news/5-things-you-should-know-on-pansexual-visibility-day/161
Understanding Bisexuality: https://www.apa.org/pi/lgbt/resources/bisexual
History of Bi+ Community: https://web.archive.org/web/20230604074642/https:/glaad.org/blog/us-bisexual-movement-biweek-history-lesson
Bisexual Resource Center
Information for Allies
https://biresource.org/bi-info/for-allies/
Getting Bi: Voices of Bisexuals Around the World
What Does It Mean to be Bisexual? (video)
Tania Israel: Bisexuality and Beyond | TEDxUCLA (video)
https://tedx.ucla.edu/project/tania_israel_bisexuality_and_beyond/
Tee Noir: Performative Bisexuality: Y'all Not Tired? (video)
Engage:
Follow @BiNetUSA on Twitter. BiNet USA is America's oldest advocacy organization for bisexual, pansexual, fluid, queer-identified and unlabeled people. #BiWeek #BiMenExist
Asexuality & Aromanticism
Asexual Community
Timeline of asexual history: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Timeline_of_asexual_history
Asexual history: http://wiki.asexuality.org/Asexual_history
Asexual pride flag: https://aceweek.org/stories/ace-flag-history
Asexual Census Summary Report: https://asexualcensus.files.wordpress.com/2017/10/2015_ace_census_summary_report.pdf
FAQ for Family/Friends: https://www.asexuality.org/?q=family.html
The Asexual Manifesto: https://www.scribd.com/document/414122159/The-Asexual-Manifesto-Lisa-Orlando
The Asexual Community is Predominantly White. Why?: https://medium.com/@Michael_Paramo/interrogating-the-whiteness-of-the-asexual-community-b5765a71f62b
Asexual Awareness Week (in late October): https://aceweek.org/
Laci Green and David Jay: “No Sex?! – Asexuality” (video): https://youtu.be/77o83_U8O5o
Yasmin Benoit: Asexuals Need Media Representation | TEDx (video): https://youtu.be/ifwRAT3DM2E
Aromantic Community
Ace and Aro: Understanding Differences in Romantic Attractions Among Persons Identifying as Asexual: https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10508-019-01600-1
Aromantic pride flag: https://www.unco.edu/gender-sexuality-resource-center/resources/pride-flags.aspx
Introduction to Romantic orientations: https://asexuality.org/?q=romanticorientation
Definition of queerplatonic: http://wiki.asexuality.org/Queerplatonic
Coming out as Aromantic (video): https://youtu.be/Kox1NMdBVgg
Harassment and violence directed at ace and aro individuals (content warning)
https://www.reddit.com/r/asexuality/wiki/anti_ace_bias/
https://www.huffpost.com/entry/asexual-discrimination_n_3380551
Sherronda J. Brown: Romance is not the only love that matters
On Black love and non-romantic relationships: http://blackyouthproject.com/romance-not-black-love-matters/
Anonymous: “Testimonio 17”
A Chilean blog shares testimonies in Spanish of people's experiences with identifying on the asexual spectrum (content warning: mentions of sexual assault): https://asearrochile.tumblr.com/post/629371145710387200/martesdetestimonio-con-identidad-demisexual
auraboo: “My Asexual Story”
A comic artist shares her experience with asexuality and relationships: https://auraboo.tumblr.com/post/172390677318/my-asexual-story-2018-another-little
Jackie Bussjaeger: “Aces in Space: An Asexual Reading of Star Trek”
An analysis highlighting the limited representation of ace and aro characters in media: https://www.startrek.com/news/aces-in-space-an-asexual-reading-of-star-trek
Trans*, Non-Binary & Intersex Communities
Trans* Community
https://glaad.org/transgender/transfaq/
Non-Binary Community
https://lgbt.foundation/who-we-help/trans-people/non-binary
Intersex Community
https://www.hrc.org/resources/understanding-the-intersex-community
What and When is Transgender Day of Remembrance?
https://www.joincake.com/blog/transgender-day-of-remembrance/
Why We Ask Each Other Our Pronouns
https://www.hrc.org/resources/why-we-ask-each-other-our-pronouns
Mapping Attacks on LGBTQ Rights in the U.S.
https://www.aclu.org/legislative-attacks-on-lgbtq-rights
National Center for Transgender Equality
https://transequality.org/about-transgender
Toolkit for Allies
https://www.aclu-mo.org/en/toolkit-allies
Trans Agenda for Liberation
https://transgenderlawcenter.org/trans-agenda-for-liberation/
The Gender Unicorn
https://transstudent.org/gender/
National Center for Transgender Equality: Introduction to Transgender People (video)
https://www.facebook.com/TransEqualityNow/videos/vb.40078161989/10153582088701990/
5 Non-Binary People Explain What “Non-Binary” Means to Them (video)
Samy Nour Younes: A Short History of Trans People's Long Fight for Equality | TED talk (video)
Scott Turner Schofield: Ending Gender (video)
InQueery: What Does Intersex Mean? (video)
As/Is: What It's Like to be Intersex (video)
Know Trans Rights in the US
https://transequality.org/know-your-rights
National and State Action Centers
https://transequality.org/action-centers
Equality California
https://www.eqca.org/take-action/
Engage:
Follow @TransEquality on Twitter. The National Center for Transgender Equality is the nation's leading social justice advocacy organization winning lifesaving change for transgender people.
Follow @TransPOCC on Twitter. Trans People of Color Coalition (TPOCC) is the only national social justice organization that promotes the interest of Trans People of Color.
#WontBeErased #TransRightsAreHumanRights
/h2>/h2>/h2>/h2>/h2>
- Author: Pamela Kan-Rice
Nate Looney, a transgender man and CEO and owner of Westside Urban Gardens, was a guest speaker on June 17. Westside Urban Gardens, an urban agriculture start-up based in Los Angeles, sells its produce at local farmers markets. The farm gives back to the community by teaching other LGBTQ+ farmers the skills they need to thrive in the industry.
Looney, a U.S. Army veteran, gave a presentation about his experiences working in agriculture. A recording of “The workplace and the LGBTQ+ Community in Rural Agriculture is posted on the Learning and Development diversity website.
Guest Sam Gottlieb, a transgender man, facilitated a book discussion of Alison Bechdel's critically acclaimed graphic memoir, “Fun Home: A Family Tragicomic” over Zoom on June 21.
National 4-H featured Vice President Glenda Humiston in its social media Pride campaign. Its June 28 Facebook post reads:
“A place to belong and feel welcome, 4-H is proud to elevate and celebrate what makes us unique, strong and better together. 4-H alum, Glenda Humiston, Vice President for UC Agriculture & Natural Resources, shares how 4-H provided opportunity, community and helped her discover her voice.
‘When I was a child, I was very active in 4-H and accepted for who I was. My 4-H experience contributed largely to the leader I am today. 4-H gave me opportunities I may not have otherwise had growing up in rural Colorado. It inspired my curiosity to learn more about the world, to attend college, get involved in public service and to travel to Tunisia as a Peace Corp volunteer. In 4-H, I learned how to work with others to get things done, I honed my public speaking skills and developed self-confidence.' #ThisIs4H”
- Author: Pamela Kan-Rice
“First, we will send out weekly educational emails to highlight the history of the LGBTQ+ community in the US, including a deeper dive into the various identities included in the LGBTQ+ umbrella,” said event co-organizer Rebecca Ozeran, UCCE livestock and natural resources advisor for Fresno and Madera counties. “Second, we are hosting three interactive Zoom sessions with time for discussion after each one.”
The first Zoom session will be introductory, including why it's important for us all to learn more about the community. The second session will include a documentary on Stonewall and the history of Pride Month.
The third session, June 30, will include a special guest facilitator Sam Gottlieb leading a book discussion of “A Year Without a Name” by Cyrus Grace Dunham. Participants who register by June 1 may request an e-copy of the book.
Gottlieb (he/they) is director of people & culture at RISE, a nonprofit organization that serves both victims of intimate partner violence and sexual assault/abuse as well as their loved ones. Gottlieb provides queer education workshops and talks to a variety of audiences covering a broad range of topics. They believe in the power of conversation and strive to embolden folks to enter into meaningful discussions.
When:
Zoom sessions on Wednesdays, June 9, 16 and 30 from 10:30 to 11:30 a.m., with the option to continue discussions until noon. Weekly emails will go out every Tuesday in June, beginning on Tuesday, June 1.
Why:
To learn more about Pride Month and how ANR can support the LGBTQ+ community.
How:
Register for one or more Zoom sessions by clicking here. Weekly emails will be sent out to all of ANR so you do not need to register to receive them.
If you have questions, contact Ozeran at rkozeran@ucanr.edu. If you would like to join the LGBTQ+ Employee Resource Group, email Ozeran or Katherine Soule at kesoule@ucanr.edu.
Sharing your input on diversity, equity and inclusion
The world is focused on fighting anti-Black racism, which has shone a spotlight on the necessity of our critically reviewing diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) challenges at UC ANR and developing actionable plans to address them. Everyone's ideas and input are critical to improving DEI in our organization, just as everyone's actions will be part of the solution. I know each of us as individuals has been engaged in deep reflection about how we can create change, both personally and professionally, and I ask you to share your thoughts.
Here are some ways to share your input:
- DEI is an aspect of nearly all the goals in the updated version of the UC ANR strategic plan that is launching this summer and is identified specifically in Goal 6, “Improve Diversity, Equity and Inclusion.” The July 16 town hall meeting will be focused on opportunities to engage with leadership and your colleagues on improving the future of UC ANR and input sessions will follow in July and August. Individual Zoom input sessions will be held in REC conference rooms in order to ensure that staff without internet access can participate in providing input on the strategic plan.
- The August 20 town hall will address the results of the ANR@Work survey, both overall and in relation to improving diversity, equity and inclusion.
- We will implement a “Coffee Hour with Senior Leadership” recurring event beginning in July to provide a regular opportunity for staff to have conversations with me and other senior leaders concerning DEI or any other topics you wish to discuss.
- If you have other ideas about how to get more voices involved in shaping UC ANR, please send an email to dei@ucanr.edu.
Additionally, Strategic Communications is developing an anti-racism resources page similar to this page from UC Berkeley and other UC pages. There are also some resources on the Learning and Development site. Please send your ideas and suggestions for additional resources to include to contentpipeline@ucanr.edu. We also welcome your suggestions for resources related to other marginalized groups to help build content that addresses the breadth of DEI. We recognize ANR can do more as an organization to make learning resources available and to create space for self-reflection and critical conversations.
Juneteenth
Juneteenth, widely celebrated in African American communities as “Freedom Day” or “Emancipation Day,” marks the date of June 19, 1865, when the federal orders were read by Union Colonel Gordon Granger in Galveston, Texas, informing more than 250,000 still-enslaved Blacks that they had their freedom. The notice came to slaves in the state of Texas more than two years after President Abraham Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation, which became official on January 1, 1863.
Although Juneteenth is not a federal holiday, most states and the District of Columbia have passed legislation recognizing it as a holiday or observance. California recognizes the third Saturday of June in each year as Juneteenth National Freedom Day: A Day of Observance.
Like many across the UC system, I encourage all colleagues to observe Friday, June 19, as a moment to reflect on our country, its treatment of Black, brown and Native American peoples, and to consider how UC values can help guide us into the future.
I agree with Executive Vice President and COO Rachael Nava that “Acknowledging the significance of Juneteenth is a good place to start thinking about how we lift each other up rather than holding some among us down. Though many attempts have been made to make Juneteenth an official federal holiday, until that happens, I encourage all supervisors and managers to make a point of allowing employees to use vacation or accrued time off to celebrate Juneteenth freely and with the full pride of UC behind them.”
Due to COVID-19, many Juneteenth celebrations have moved online and a selection of events are listed below:
- BSFO's Juneteenth Virtual Mixer Zoom – 6/19 from 5 p.m.-6 p.m. To join BSFO, email BSFO-UCOP@ucop.edu
- MOAD SF's Juneteenth Harlem of the West Presentation
- Juneteenth - Dia de Los Negros
- Riverside Juneteenth Celebration
- Smithsonian National Museum of African American History & Culture- The Coming of Freedom Celebrating Juneteenth
Pride Film Fest
Please be reminded that the ANR Pride Film Fest continues tomorrow night at 6 pm. Register for the Film Fest at http://ucanr.edu/pride2020 to get the Zoom link.
June 17: Kiki (2017) 1 hour, 34 min. – If anyone wondered where Madonna heard about "voguing," the documentary "Paris is Burning" was the answer. "Kiki" is another deep dive into the same scene. It's an intimate look at a marginalized community, many of whom rely on the various neighborhood clubs for support systems that don't exist anywhere else. The so-called "Kiki" scene is not just about the various competitive dance club contests. The scene provides a social structure, a "net" for kids who have nowhere else to go.
Glenda Humiston
Vice President