A Conversation with George Johnson
Event Details
The Department of Human Development and Family Studies invites you to A Conversation with George Johnson on Wednesday, April 9 at 6 p.m.
In their memoir-manifesto, "All Boys Aren't Blue," Johnson demonstrates the importance of sharing diverse stories: why we should remain resilient, how representation in media can support young adults' mental and physical health, and what we can do to support these voices. Johnson draws on their memoir to illuminate issues that still face Black queer people today—like toxic masculinity, LGBTQIA+ policy and law, and intersections of oppression—and how these issues play out in communities.
Join Johnson, Molly Countermine, HDFS teaching professor, and Breneil Malcolm, Ph.D. candidate in learning sciences with gender and sexuality studies at Penn State, as they explore the problems that Black queer people face and discuss how we have the power to create a world where all young people are free to be fully themselves.
Attendees will be invited to submit questions via the Q&A function during the event. Closed captioning will be available.
*Only the first 500 attendees to login in will be granted access to the webinar.
About the Discussants
George Johnson
George M. Johnson, whose body of work on diversity and queer identity inspires readers across the world to “be themselves unapologetically,” is an award-winning Black non-binary author and activist. Johnson has been named one of the TIME100 Next, TIME‘s annual list of rising stars, as well as one of Out’s 100 Most Influential LGBTQ+ People. They use their inspiring life story to teach individuals, corporations, and policymakers about LGBTQIA+ activism and social justice in healthcare.
Johnson is the author of the New York Times bestselling young adult memoir "All Boys Aren’t Blue," which explores their adolescence growing up as a young Black Queer boy in New Jersey through a series of powerful essays. The book is a Teen Vogue Recommended Read, a Buzzfeed Recommended Read, a People Magazine Best Book of the Summer, a New York Library Best Book, and a Chicago Public Library Best Book. It was optioned for Television by Gabrielle Union’s “I’ll Have Another Productions” and Sony TV. George serves as the executive producer and co-writer for the upcoming series based on their real-life college experience at the HBCU Virginia Union University.
Johnson has written for major outlets including Teen Vogue, Entertainment Tonight, NBC, The Root, Buzzfeed, Essence, Ebony, THEM, and The Grio. They have also served as guest editor for BET.com’s Pride month. They were awarded the 2019 Salute to Excellence Award by the National Association of Black Journalists for their article “When Racism Anchors your Health” in Vice Magazine and was named to The Root 100 Most Influential African Americans in 2020.
Molly Countermine
Molly Countermine, teaching professor of human development and family studies, teaches HDFS 254N Reading Our Lives: Understanding Diversity and Human Development through Memoirs, which uses personal narratives, including “All Boys Aren't Blue,” to explore the diversity of the human experience. Countermine's unique teaching style combines storytelling, humor, and conversation to create lively and engaged classes. In 2023 she won the Joyce Hopson King Diversity Achievement Award for fostering diversity and inclusion in the College of Health and Human Development.
Breneil Malcolm
Breneil Malcolm is a gender nonconforming critical intersectional scholar pursuing their Ph.D. in learning sciences with gender and sexuality studies at Penn State. They focus on diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging (DEIB) among underrepresented groups in higher education. More specifically, they research identity, human sexuality, intersectionality, and agency using critical, feminist, queer, and intersectional methodologies, with an emphasis on transgender and gender nonconforming (TGNC) people.
