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Book Launch: The Choice
A Novel by Orsola Severini
Date: Wednesday, November 19, 2025
Time: 2:00pm - 3:30pm ET
Location: Online
Register: https://yorku.zoom.us/meeting/register/dA3uPmh8Tyac588I7347Vw
Join author Orsola Severini, translator Veronica Frigeni, and Professor Andrea O’Reilly for the launch of The Choice, a powerful memoir on motherhood, loss, and reproductive justice in Italy. Published by Demeter Press, this conversation explores how personal storytelling can become a collective act of healing and resistance.
About the Author
Orsola Severini was born in Rome in 1981 to a French mother and an Italian father. She studied Contemporary History at the Sorbonne in Paris, where she also earned a master's degree in Linguistics. In addition to teaching French, she writes about history and culture for the online newspaper Globalist.
She made her debut in 2021 with the autobiographical novel Il Consolo, in which she recounts her painful experience of a therapeutic abortion. In 2023, she published the short story Yesterday in the women's anthology Arripizzari. Her latest novel, La quarta compagna, published by Fandango in 2024, explores the role of women in the Italian Resistance.
Navigating Postdoc Applications
A Robarts Connects Event
Date: November 27, 2025
Time: 1:00pm - 2:00pm ET
Location: Online (via Zoom)
Register: https://yorku.zoom.us/meeting/register/roCqegq_SqyH3AyllZf8Hw
Join the Robarts Centre and the Centre for Feminist Research for a virtual conversation about navigating the postdoc application process. After a brief information session on such applications, current postdocs at York University will share their insights and experiences.
This event will be moderated by Jessica Parish, Assistant Professor in the School of Public Policy and Administration at Carleton University.
Speakers
Kim McIntyre, Postdoctoral Services & Professional Skills Coordinator, Faculty of Graduate Studies
Ashlee Christoffersen, Adjunct Professor, Department of Politics and Associate, Centre for
Feminist Research
Hazal Goktas, Postdoctoral Visitor, 2SLGBTQ+ Poverty in Canada: Improving Livelihood and Social Wellbeing Project, York University
Alexandra Mourgou, MITACS Elevate Postdoctoral Fellow, York University, Dept. of History
Conducting Ethical and Effective Interviews with Wo/men in Conflict Zones
Date: November 28, 2025
Time: 9:00am - 3:00pm ET
Location: Accolade West Building, Room 106, York University - Keele Campus
Register: https://www.eventbrite.ca/e/conducting-ethical-and-effective-interviews-with-women-in-conflict-zones-tickets-1925012266509?aff=oddtdtcreator
In this workshop, participants will gain hands-on experience in interviewing and will learn how to approach sensitive subjects.
This workshop is designed to teach participants the skills and techniques necessary to conduct interviews with people in conflict zones. It focuses on ethical considerations, trauma-sensitive approaches, and practical methods for gathering stories from individuals who have lived through war and conflict. Participants will gain hands-on experience in interviewing and will learn how to approach sensitive subjects such as violence, displacement, and trauma.
A certificate of completion will be presented to participants.
Organized by the Home, Identity, and Belonging Research Cluster at York's Centre for Feminist Research.
Cost - Sliding Scale
Student Rate: $25
General Admission Rate: $50
Solidarity Rate: $100 (For those with access to institutional funding)
Candlelight Vigil for the International Day to End Violence Against Sex Workers
Date: Wednesday, December 17, 2025
Time: 12:00–12:30 PM EST
Location: Online (via Zoom)
Link: https://yorku.zoom.us/j/93078928779?pwd=r2b6F3nGKzYWyC0mATsUjsIWLVYzia.1
Please join us for a Candlelight Vigil in recognition of the International Day to End Violence Against Sex Workers — a day of remembrance, resistance, and collective care.
First observed in 2003, this day was founded by Annie Sprinkle and Robyn Few, founder of the Sex Workers Outreach Project–USA (SWOP-USA). What began as a memorial for the victims of the Green River Killer has grown into an international movement. Each year, communities around the world gather to honour the lives of sex workers lost to violence and to stand against the stigma, discrimination, and criminalization that enable such harm.
The red umbrella was first carried by sex workers in Venice in 2001 and later adopted by the International Committee on the Rights of Sex Workers in Europe, and has become a global symbol of resistance and solidarity.
Our short virtual gathering will include:
- A land acknowledgement
- A candle-lighting ceremony in memory of those lost and those most impacted by violence against sex workers
- Two minutes of silence
- An open conversation for attendees to share announcements about December 17th events, or to reflect on current issues affecting sex workers’ rights and safety
This event is hosted by the Critical Trafficking and Sex Work Studies Research Cluster at York University. All are welcome to join in remembrance and solidarity.
Past Events
Trans Technologies
ITS Virtual Seminar Series
Date: November 5, 2025
Time: 12:00pm - 1:30pm ET
Location: Online
Register: https://yorku.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_Fur1WjeDTqmRoZzac-rbrQ#/registration
Drawing from his new book Trans Technologies (MIT Press, 2025), Dr. Haimson discusses how technology creates new possibilities for transgender people, and how trans experiences, in turn, create new possibilities for technology. Mainstream technologies often exclude or marginalize transgender users, but when trans creators take technology design into their own hands, transformative possibilities emerge. Through in-depth interviews with over 100 creators of trans technology—including apps, games, health resources, extended reality systems, and supplies designed to address challenges trans people face— Dr. Haimson uncovers what trans technology means and explore its possibilities, limitations, and future prospects and examines the design processes that brought these technologies to life, the role of community in their creation, and how they empower trans individuals to create their own tools to navigate a world that often fails to meet trans needs. This work highlights the successes and limitations of current trans technologies, identifies gaps still to be addressed, and investigates how privilege, race, and access to resources shape which trans technologies are created, who benefits, and who may be left out. Finally, Dr. Haimson charts new directions for design and innovation to drive meaningful social change, inviting us to rethink the relationship between technology and marginalized communities.
Oliver Haimson is an Associate Professor at University of Michigan School of Information, author of Trans Technologies (MIT Press 2025), and a social computing researcher focused on how marginalized individuals and communities (especially trans and queer people) use social technologies and envision future technologies.
Not Your Rescue Project: Migrant Sex Workers Fighting For Justice
Book Panel with Niloofar Golkar, Chanelle Gallant and Elene Lam
Date: November 3, 2025
Time: 6:00pm – 7:30pm ET
Location: SHIFT Centre for Social Transformation, Concordia University (Montreal) and Online (Hybrid)
Register: https://concordia-ca.zoom.us/meeting/register/oHAtuQ3DRjmH_3jRIz82qA#/registration
Join us for a panel on the book Not your Rescue Project: Migrant Sex workers fighting for justice.
A landmark abolitionist primer on migration, sex work, policing, and the “anti-trafficking industry”—and a powerful argument about who is really leading the way toward justice: migrant sex workers themselves.
Chanelle Gallant and Elene Lam will join us in person for a conversation with Niloofar Golkar, postdoctoral researcher at Concordia's Social Justice Centre.
About the book:
In this impassioned corrective to decades of misguided, carceral approaches to migration and sex work, long-time organizers Chanelle Gallant and Elene Lam deftly expose the harms of criminalization in the name of “anti-trafficking” and lift up migrant sex workers’ organizing in the US, Canada, and elsewhere. In doing so, they make the compelling case that the only effective response to the needs of migrant sex workers must be led by migrants in the sex trade, as they fight for rights, safety, and autonomy.
Gallant and Lam illustrate how this movement is taking aim at the root causes of violence and abuse: the white supremacist securitization of borders, the criminalization of both migration and sex work, the patriarchial devaluation of women’s labor, and forced displacement due to climate disaster, war, and poverty—all fueled by racial capitalism.
An indispensable exploration of the relationship between migration and sex work—and the underlying societal conditions they reflect—Not Your Rescue Project is a thorough indictment of the anti-trafficking industry as an engine of criminalization and state violence, and an instructive account of the emancipatory politics already being practiced by migrant sex workers in their organizing. Throughout, Gallant and Lam place migrant sex workers at the center of struggles against border imperialism, carceral states, and capitalism—dispelling a range of poisonous myths and paving the way for deeper alliances across movements with the shared goal of dismantling and abolishing carceralism in all its forms.
Co-sponsored by the Simone de Beauvoir Institute, Concordia's Social Justice Centre, and the CFR
Palestine Research Cluster Launch
Date: Friday, October 31, 2025
Time: 9:30am – 10:30am ET
Location: Online (Zoom link provided upon registration)
Register: https://yorku.zoom.us/meeting/register/dlmTUI_mR7mxLdHQB4VlpA#/registration
The Palestine Research Cluster (PRC) was established in August 2025 to promote the academic study of Palestine by supporting multidisciplinary and/or interdisciplinary research, teaching, and intellectual collaboration among scholars within York University. PRC is housed within the Centre for Feminist Research and aims to provide an institutional home for faculty, graduate students, post-doctoral researchers, and students at York interested in research on Palestine. Read more about us at the following link: https://www.yorku.ca/cfr/palestine-research-cluster/
Our current priority is to build connections with students and researchers at universities in Palestine (Gaza and the West Bank) to: support and strengthen Palestinian academic institutions and their individual and research teams; develop the study of Palestine and Palestinians throughout Canada and the world; and develop research on Palestine with both academic and non-academic institutions in Canada and elsewhere.
Join us on Friday October 31 to learn more about ongoing research projects that PRC affiliates are leading, our plans for the coming months, and how you can engage with PRC.
If your research and/or academic work centers Palestine, we would love to have you join us for this launch event and add to our growing community!
Please email cfr@yorku.ca with questions, or to request becoming a member of the Palestine Research Cluster.
Rejecting the Romance of Police Reform
Date: October 28, 2025
Time: 6:00pm - 9:00pm ET
Location: Room 802, South Ross Building, York University - Keele Campus
Register: https://www.eventbrite.ca/e/rejecting-the-romance-of-police-reform-tickets-1824365318779?aff=oddtdtcreator
This event celebrates the new edition of Policing Black Lives by Robyn Maynard and the anniversary of Not Your Rescue Project; Migrant Sex Workers Fighting for Justice by Elene Lam and Chanelle Gallant.
Drawing from years of scholarship, activism, and experience, this panel challenges the belief that policing can be reformed to deliver justice or safety. It reveals how reform often expands criminalization, colonialism, and state violence—undermining Black, Indigenous, and migrant justice movements. Centering abolitionist and transformative frameworks, and stories of alternatives to policing. The panel calls for rejecting carceral and colonial logics and envisioning collective paths toward real safety and justice beyond policing.
Opening Remarks: Dr. Ruth Green
Speakers: Audrey Huntley, Chanelle Gallant, Dr. Elene Lam, Dr. Robyn Mayard, Terri Monture
Co-sponsors:
York University's Centre for Feminist Research * Critical Disability Studies * Critical Trafficking and Sex Work Research Cluster (CFR) * Harriet Tubman Institute * Mad Studies Hub * School of Social Work * Social Work Association of Graduate Studies * York Centre for Asian Research
Butterfly (Asian and Migrant Sex Workers Support Network) * HIV Legal Network * No More Silence * The Toronto Art Therapy Institute
"Caring in a Hostile Environment: Migrant Care Work and the Politics of Exclusion in the UK" with Dr. Obert Tawodzera
Date: October 28, 2025
Time: 2:30pm - 4:00pm ET
Location: 626 Kaneff Tower, York University - Keele Street
Register: Registration closed
With discussant Dr. Jenna Nassiri and introductions by Dr. Ethel Tungohan, Associate Professor and Canada Research Chair of Canadian Migration Policy, Impacts, and Activism
This talk examines the precarious position of migrant care workers in the UK’s evolving political and policy landscape. Drawing on ongoing research into care labour and migration governance, it explores how the “Hostile Environment” framework and rising nationalist sentiment intersect to intensify precarity within this essential workforce. The analysis shows how immigration policy institutionalises legal insecurity, enabling exploitation, while broader political narratives reinforce social exclusion. Together, these dynamics expose deep contradictions at the heart of the UK’s care system, one that relies on migrant workers while systematically marginalising them. The talk outlines preliminary findings from a developing research project and forthcoming grant proposal focused on migrant care worker organising, advocacy, and protection. It concludes by considering transformative approaches to social care that foreground dignity, justice, and rights in an era of growing hostility.
About the Speaker
Dr. Obert Tawodzera is a Research Fellow in the School of Social Policy and Society at the University of Birmingham. His work focuses on innovation in social care and the translation of research evidence into practice.
He holds a BA and MRes in Social Policy from the University of York, UK and a PhD in Sociological Studies from the University of Sheffield, UK. His doctoral research, undertaken within the ESRC-funded Sustainable Care programme, offered an in-depth analysis of aged care within Zimbabwean transnational families, establishing his expertise in care, migration, and the life courses of migrant families.
Over the past four years, Obert has worked with the IMPACT Centre as a Project Officer, advancing the co-production of evidence to improve adult social care policy and practice. His research interests span the intersections of migration, care, and family life, including caregiving in African contexts, the role of digital technologies in transnational care, the wellbeing of ageing migrants, and the work-life balance of migrant care workers.
Building on this expertise, Obert is currently leading the development of a major research project titled “An Examination of the UK Health and Care Worker Visa’s Impact on Migrant Care Workers.” This study critically explores how immigration policy shapes the working conditions, wellbeing, and rights of the migrant care workforce upon which the UK’s care system increasingly depends.
Race & Gender in Sex Work & Critical Trafficking Studies: A Tribute to Kamala Kempadoo's Influence on Sociocultural Feminist Scholarship
Date: October 23, 2025
Time: 4:00pm - 6:00pm ET
Location: 519 Kaneff Tower, York University - Keele Campus & Online (via Zoom - Hybrid)
Zoom link: https://yorku.zoom.us/j/95492446536#success
Join us for the launch of a special issue of the Feminist Anthropology Journal honouring Kempadoo's groundbreaking scholarship and activism, showcasing her global impact on feminist anthropology and social justice. We will toast and celebrate Kamala's transformative scholarship and decades of feminist activism. All are welcome!
Advancing Mobility Justice, Gender Equity & Climate Action through Sport Symposium
Date: October 15-17, 2025
Location: York University - Keele Campus
Register: https://event.fourwaves.com/cyclingtowardschangesymposium/registration
Register by September 26, 2025.
This three-day international event - funded by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC) and York’s Global Research Excellence Seed (GRE) fund - will bring together global leaders in sustainable mobility, gender equity, and climate action to explore how movement, sport, and bicycles can drive transformative change across diverse local and global contexts. Confirmed participants include grassroots organizers, international NGOs, UN Environment Programme representatives, and scholars from Canada, Uganda, Kenya, Nicaragua, Colombia, the Netherlands, Aotearoa New Zealand, and beyond.
Highlights of the symposium will include:
- Interactive panels
- The launch of policy briefs co-developed with grassroots organizations
- The screening of two documentary films: 1) Changing Gears – our research team’s documentary produced in Canada, Uganda, and Nicaragua; and 2) Dirt Relations – a film produced by the Indigenous Youth Mountain Biking Program that delves into the powerful connection between mountain biking, reconciliation, and healing intergenerational trauma.
- The symposium will also feature a mobile art exhibit showcasing the last decade of our visual and digital participatory action research on bicycles, mobility justice and climate action.
The symposium website is now live and accepting registrations at the following link: https://event.fourwaves.com/cyclingtowardschangesymposium/registration. Please register before September 26th (space is limited, and spots may fill before then).
If you encounter any difficulties with registration, please don’t hesitate to reach out. You can find recommended accommodations near the symposium at the following link: https://event.fourwaves.com/cyclingtowardschangesymposium/pages/40c05fff-8bd7-4a74-a96d-9c9f0f720466
If you have any questions or require further information, please don’t hesitate to get in touch with the organizing committee leads at the following email: dreaminglab@yorku.ca.
Sex, Money, and Censorship: Battles Over the Deplatforming of Sexual Expression in Games
Date: Thursday, October 2, 2025
Time: 12:00pm - 2:00pm ET
Location: Online (via Zoom)
Register: https://yorku.zoom.us/meeting/register/2HbNny3JT3uvRMwD7jSEug
In July 2025, following a campaign by the Australian anti-pornography organization Collective Shout and ensuing pressure from payment processors including Mastercard, Visa, PayPal and Stripe, videogame distribution platforms Steam and itch.io updated their policies on sexual content to align with payment processor expectations. While the policies may seem like common sense to some, they stand to curtail diverse sexual expression, efface sexual subcultures, and deplatform a wide range of sexual content. Join us for a roundtable discussion with advocates, designers, and game and sexuality scholars who will historicize and contextualize this emerging issue through a discussion of the role of affect in anti-pornography movements; payment processors’ power in shaping the internet; conservative movements and censorship; the impact of censorship on LGBTQ+ communities and sexual health education; and sexual videogames as a neglected archive.
This event is sponsored by the Canadian Game Studies Association and co-hosted by the Institute for Research on Digital Literacies (IRDL), in collaboration with The Institute for Technoscience & Society (ITS), Sensorium, and The Centre for Feminist Research (CFR)
Panellists:
Ashley ML Guajardo, Assistant Arts Professor, NYU Game Center, New York University
Jean Ketterling, Assistant Professor, Political Studies - Women’s and Gender Studies Program, University of Saskatchewan.
Val Webber, postdoctoral fellow, Sexual Health and Gender Research (SHaG Lab), Dalhousie University
Caroline Bem, Assistant Professor in the Department of literatures and languages of the world at Université de Montréal.
Kenzie Gordon, PhD Candidate, Digital Humanities and Media & Cultural Studies, University of Alberta
Ana Valens, journalist specializing in queer and adult content censorship, as well as an activist against the online censorship of sex workers and adult content creators
Mukadzi, Musha, Rugare | Woman, Home, Freedom: An Exhibition of Arts-Based Research on Zimbabwean Women’s Post-Colonial Activism
Date: October 2, 2025
Time: 11:30am - 3:30pm ET
Location: The Harriet Tubman Institute, York University - Keele Campus & On Zoom (Hybrid)
Register: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSeEI6gM7EX9jfRrg-FApIQ_MOiSXGibUUYUFvXGedMUAuBWKA/viewform
Join us for the opening of "Mukadzi, Musha, Rugare | Woman, Home, Freedom," an exhibition of Arts-Based Research on Zimbabwean Women’s Post-Colonial Activism, conducted by Dr. Ruth Murambadoro and installed at The Harriet Tubman Institute. A catered lunch will be provided.
Featuring performance, presentations, readings and panel discussions that reflect on African and transnational feminisms – their hard-won victories and persistent challenges, the solidarities forged across time and space, and their visions of the future.
Our speakers include:
- Dr. Ruth Murambadoro (Transitional Justice in Africa: The Case of Zimbabwe, Palgrave Macmillan, 2020)
- Dr. Jimmy Spire Ssentongo (Inquiry Into A Withering Heritage: The Relevance of Traditional Baganda Approaches to Sustainable Environmental Conservation Today, 2021)
- Jestina Mukoko (The Abduction and Trial of Jestina Mukoko: The Fight for Human Rights, 2016)
- Dr. Titilope F. Ajayi (Globalised Resistance and the Bring Back Our Girls Movement New Dimensions of Transnational Activism, 2025)
…and more!
This event is free, and registration is required. You can find more information and register at https://mukadzimusharugare.my.canva.site, or email mnmendez@my.yorku.ca.
CFR Annual Meet and Greet
Date: Wednesday, October 1, 2025
Time: 3:00pm - 4:30pm ET
Location: 626 Kaneff Tower
RSVP: cfr@yorku.ca
Meet the Director and associates at the CFR’s annual meet and greet! If you are curious about joining the Centre or a research cluster, have ideas for events or research grants for the year ahead, or just want to chat with other feminist researchers at York University, this is the perfect opportunity to connect. Please RSVP to CFR Coordinator Andi Schwartz at cfr@yorku.ca
Navigating Digital Harms: An Investigation of Transphobic Online Hate Against 2SLGBTQIA+ Organizations
Date: Thursday, September 25, 2025
Time: 1:00pm - 2:30pm ET
Location: Online (via Zoom)
Register: https://yorku.zoom.us/meeting/register/AclWWhcnQFKTZvq21WYAPw
Please join us for a launch event with team members from the Ontario Digital Literacy and Access Network (ODLAN), who will share insights from their recent report ‘Navigating Digital Harms: An Investigation of Transphobic Online Hate Against 2SLGBTQIA+ Organizations”. This event is hosted by the Institute for Research on Digital Literacies (IRDL), in collaboration with The Institute for Technoscience & Society (ITS) and The Centre for Feminist Research (CFR). Opening remarks provided by ComCult PhD student Alex Borkowski.
The Open Digital Literacy and Access Network is a community-based pilot initiative founded by 2SLGBTQIA+ graduate students, community members, and allies who are concerned with the digital divide in our communities. We are passionate about connecting organizations and individuals with resources and services that will minimize digital inequalities in 2SLGBTQIA+ communities.
The War on Gaza Now: Healthcare, Food Security, and Human Rights
Date: September 18, 2025
Time: 3:30pm - 5:30pm ET
Location: 140 HNES, York University - Keele Campus
Register: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdAHG_GAXI3MPc6Bu8FwYKWZ8F7elCVTPb3jeY3aMMMtG7bGA/viewform
This panel features three expert who will discuss the current conditions in healthcare, famine and food access associated with Israel's war on Gaza, as well as broader human rights and legal protections for Palestinians.
Speakers:
Dr. Tarek Loubani - Glia Project
Professor Abu Shaban - Dean of the Faculty of Agriculture and Veterinary Medicine
Al-Azhar - University-Gaza and Visiting Scholar, York University
Professor Heidi Matthews - Osgoode Hall Law School, York University
Moderated by Professor Christo El Morr - Faculty of Health & Director of the Centre for Feminist Research, York University.
Organized by the Palestine Research Cluster (PRC).
Co-sponsored by the YUFA Race Equity Caucus, YUProfs4Palestine, and the Centre for Feminist Research.
