ARLINGTON, Va.—Dee Dennis, founder of the CatalystCon sexuality conference, announces the lineup of Opening and Closing Keynote speakers for CatalystCon East, which will take place in Arlington, Va., March 14-16. Created to inspire exceptional conversations about sexuality, CatalystCon features more than 40 sessions and panel discussions on sexuality-based topics.
CatalystCon East officially begins on Friday, March 14, with an Opening Reception, followed by the Opening Keynote Plenary Address: Sparking Communication in Sexuality, Activism and Acceptance. The panel will include Melissa Gira Grant, Del Tashlin, Lauren Marie Fleming, and Mo Beasley, and will once again be moderated by Tristan Taormino. The panelists will address the ongoing debates over sexuality at the local, national and global levels and discuss how they’ve created their own sparks and been catalysts for change.
"The four letter word I'm most likely to overuse these days is 'work.’ So I'm psyched that CatalystCon is hosting several conversations about the work of sex work, and honored to be joining the Opening Keynote," said Grant, who will also be presenting a session on the work of sex work and holding a signing for her new book at CatalystCon East.
The Closing Keynote Plenary Address will take place on Sunday, March 16, and will feature author, artist, and PhD sexologist Betty Dodson. Dodson will be interviewed by sexologist and friend Carol Queen about her decades of sex-positive activism.
"I couldn't be more excited about talking onstage with Betty Dodson—she is my hero and one of the most significant people ever in grassroots sex education and culture change,” said Queen. “We'll cover her life as a fine artist, masturbation advocate, author and muse to the sex-positive feminist community!"
More information on both of the Keynote Addresses may be found at catalystcon.com/sessions/keynotes.
CatalystCon East takes place March 14-16, 2014 at the Hilton Crystal City in Arlington, Virginia. Registration is now open at catalystcon.com/register.
