Apart of ETSU’s Equity and Inclusion Conference, Gene Yang will be a keynote speaker. Yang is best known for his work on numerous Avatar series and the graphic novel and television series, “American Born Chinese.” He is set to take the stage on 4 p.m. Friday, Sept. 29, in the D.P. Culp Ballroom. The event is free and open to the public.  

Nathan Farnor, Coordinator of Leadership and Civic Engagement, said this is the fifth year of the Equity and Inclusion Conference.  

“The goal of the conference is an opportunity for faculty, staff, students and whoever in attendance to leave with some tangible resources and knowledge on how to make their spaces more inclusive,” said Farnor.  

This year the conference has two keynote speakers, Imani Perry and Gene Yang. Farnor shared since Perry is more academic, they wanted someone in another realm.  

“I think he’s an individual that students, even if they haven’t recognized his name directly, they for sure have heard of his work in some capacity,” said Farnor.  

Farnor shared that he hopes students learn from Yang’s story telling. Farnor said, “He’s a person who’s made a living of telling not just any stories, but diverse stories.” 

Yang will be talking about the importance of representation in the media, and why diverse stories are important to be heard. “. . .If anybody looks at the work that he’s done,” said Farnor, “They all tend to really focus on populations of people that you don’t always see on television, you don’t always read about in a book or that you hear music from.”

Photo of Gene Yang’s first graphic novel “American Born Chinese.” (Contributed/Gene Yang)

The Equity and Inclusion Conference this year will be held Sept. 29-30. There will be numerous breakout sessions available throughout the conference. Imani Perry begins her speech at 7 p.m. on Thursday, Sept. 28 in the D.P. Culp Center Auditorium.  

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