From the award-winning scholar and filmmaker, an essential, enlightening exploration of gender and the self

Gender is one of the most contested topics of our age, as ideologies are weaponised by the far right and real trans lives are targeted. But what are we talking about when we talk about gender? What are the origins of the concept itself, and where might it take us in the future?

Rooted in decades of deep research and first-hand experience, Susan Stryker's sharp-eyed analysis invites us into her lifelong quest to uncover what gender means and does. From nineteenth-century phrenology to present-day anti-trans conspiracies to examples from her lifetime as an agenda setting historian, filmmaker and activist, Stryker finds surprising places to tune into the origins, idiosyncrasies and generative possibilities of the gender concept.

We are looking forward to hosting this event, with Susan Stryker in conversation with Finn Mackay. Tickets cost £7 and include a glass of wine or a soft drink and £5 off the book. Presented by bookhaus.

Susan Stryker is an award-winning historian and filmmaker whose work has shaped conversation on gender and feminism for decades. She holds a visiting Professorship at Stanford University. Previous works include Transgender History, Gay by the Bay and the Emmy Award-winning documentary Screaming Queens.

Finn Mackay is a Senior Lecturer in Sociology at the University of the West of England and completed a PhD in the Centre for Gender & Violence Research at the University of Bristol. A longstanding feminist activist, Finn founded the London Feminist Network in 2004; and is a frequent media commentator on feminist and LGBTQI+ topics