Gender, Sexuality, and Women's Studies (GSWS)

Gender, sexuality and women's studies is an interdisciplinary ("involving two or more academic, scientific, or artistic disciplines" (Merriam-Webster)) area of study that emphasizes the social processes, structures, and institutions that shape how gender and sexuality is perceived and enacted upon. The way a person's gender, sex, or sexuality is perceived by society can have major impacts on their access to healthcare, education, housing, and more. 

Gender performativity

"Judith Butler is a post-structuralist philosopher and queer theorist. She is most famous for her notion of gender performativity, but her work ranges from literary theory, modern philosophical fiction, feminist and sexuality studies, to 19th- and 20th-century European literature and philosophy, Kafka and loss, mourning and war" (Big Think, 2011).

Intersectionality

"Distinguished Professor of Law at UCLA and Columbia Law School, Kimberlé Crenshaw is a leading scholar of critical race theory and the pioneer of intersectionality. She co-founded the African American Policy Forum (AAPF) and has, in recent years, campaigned to open up the My Brother’s Keeper social program to young black girls as well as boys. Her books include On Intersectionality: Essential Writings and Say Her Name: Resisting Police Brutality Against Black Women." (The Institute of Art and Ideas. 2021)

Gender Identity and Sexual Orientation

In this video, Dr. Lorri Sulpizio explains the difference between gender identity and sexual orientation (2023).