Post submitted by James Rector, HRC Arkansas Field Organizer

The third Annual Midwest Queer Trans Indigenous People of Color Conference was hosted in Columbia, Missouri at the University of Missouri. The conference, titled, “Healing, Growth, and Liberation: Finding Yourself, Your Worth, and Your Community” focused on creating a space to share ideas, actions and inspiration specific to communities of color.

It was an amazing experience for me because I have Cherokee heritage and it is rare that I see spaces that hold deeper conversations about LGBTQ Indigenous people. One of the many great experiences from the weekend were the caucuses, which allowed for people to discuss their race and ethnicity, gender identity and sexual orientation.

HRC was in attendance at this year’s conference and hosted a table to share career opportunities and discuss resources for the community.

The keynote speaker was Storme Webber who describes herself as a Two-Spirit, Aleut/Black/Choctaw writer, interdisciplinary artist, curator, educator and cultural producer. Her writings and poetry have been featured in multiple anthologies and she has appeared in numerous documentaries including Venus Boyz.

The conference included workshops, an artist reception featuring attendee submissions, a screening of the documentary film Major and free HIV and STD screenings. The weekend was hosted by the Queer Trans People of Color organization located in the LGBTQ Resource Center at the University of Missouri, which strives to help students find a place to call home away from home.

Visit HRC’s website to find out more about career opportunities with HRC. You can also explore HRC’s commitment to racial and ethnic diversity. We strongly encourage people of color, transgender and non-binary people to apply. HRC is an equal opportunity employer and welcomes everyone, including non-LGBTQ people, to join our team.