DAMYN HULTMAN
Advocate. Student. Leader
ABOUT
My name is Damyn Hultman, my pronouns are he/him/his and I am a Social Justice student. I am a proud queer, trans, man of color who is dedicated to creating change for people in marginalized communities. My area of concentration is in Queer and Trans Studies and Intersectionality.
Prior to Hamline, I attended University of Minnesota Duluth to study Graphic design. Despite learning a great deal in the nearly three years I spent there, I realized I had a greater calling. Transferring to Hamline was the best choice I ever made.
I have successfully completed 2 internships in Sexuality and Gender office positions, received over 6 scholarships and awards, and volunteered in an array of community-based work through activism and organizing. I am currently the Secretary of Spectrum, Hamline's LGBTQIA+ Student Group.
With the knowledge I have gathered I hope to utilize my Social Justice Skills with both my design toolset and community networks, in order to help activate social change.
CRITICAL INQUIRY
Violence against Trans Women of Color
For decades, trans people have been subjected to numerous forms of violence and oppression in the United States. Trans women of color, specifically, are currently facing an "epidemic" of violence as murders and incidents have continuously increased each year, what Time describes as a "national pattern of violence." The focus of this essay is to critically analyze the history and contemporary issues surrounding violence against trans women of color, all while addressing solutions to these issues and understanding why justice needs to happen. 2020 has seen a huge increase in response to violence against the black community, but by examining this issue in particular I hope to bring more attention to the current violence that black trans women and other trans women of color face as well. Furthermore, my area of concentration focuses on the interplay of LGBTQ+ identity and intersectionality, therefore this inquiry essay explores this theme quite thoroughly.
COURSEWORK
SOCIAL JUSTICE COURSES
SOCJ 1100-Intro to Issues in Social Justice
This course will introduce students to major streams of social justice thought, including historical social justice movements, theoretical problems having to do with social equality, personal freedom, access to social resources, marginalization, and stigmatization, and the ways in which communities respond to these issues.
SOCJ 5900-Social Justice Capstone
This course will permit major students to integrate theory, knowledge, and practical experience gained in their major using a series of readings, fieldwork experiences, and a major project.
BREADTH 1
PSCI 3690 - Politics of Urban and Metropolitan America
The emergence of metropolitan American and urban political systems. Special focus on ethnic and racial politics; machine and reform politics; community elites; urban political economies; political problems of metropolitan areas; metropolitan reform.
BREADTH 2
SOC 1120 - Social Issues: Wrongful Convictions
This course provides an exploration of wrongful convictions in the US criminal justice system. Issues include, but are not limited to, eyewitness identification, false admission, and prosecutorial misconduct. Do you know that eyewitness misidentification played a role in more than 70% of convictions overturned through DNA testing? Can you imagine what might compel you to confess to a crime you did not commit? Would you be surprised to hear that prosecutors have withheld evidence that would have cleared someone of the charges against them? We will also consider the way systemic issues of race and class play a role in wrongful convictions. Our primary goal is to acquire a “sociological toolbox” for understanding the criminal justice system, in particular the way that social forces influence that system.
BREADTH 3
LGBT 3152 - History of the International Homosexual Rights Movement (1895 - present) - UMD
This course introduces students to the long winding road toward the emancipation of sexual outsiders (homosexuals, lesbians, bisexuals, transvestites, intersex, and transgender individuals) worldwide.
BREADTH 4
PHIL 1140 - Ethics
The concepts of goodness, right, duty, obligation, responsibility, and freedom; important moral theories of the Western tradition; contemporary moral issues in light of these theories.
BREADTH 5
COMM 3390 - Organizational Communication
To introduce the role of communication in organizational settings, with particular emphasis upon examining organizational dynamics as communication processes; to introduce classic and contemporary organizational communication theoretical approaches; to gain skills in applying theoretical concepts to the investigation of communication issues in actual organizations; to examine processes of organizational communication, including culture, socialization, leadership, technological processes, and diversity management processes.
CONCENTRATION AREA COURSES
1. LGBT 3000 - Queer Theory (UMD)
2. LGBT 3151 - Queer Cinema in International Perspective (UMD)
3. SOC 3980 - Special topics: LGBTQ Social Movements Through Film
4. SOC 1120 - Social Issues: Transgender Lives
5. SOC 3350 - Race, Racisms, Racialization
6. THTR 3150 - Topics in Theatre History: Queer Identities on Stage, Then and Now
INTERNSHIPS
University of Minnesota Duluth
SEXUALITY AND GENDER EQUITY INITIATIVES
Facilitated and coordinated events and programming for student organizations on campus, including two student leader retreats.
Collaborated with coordinator of the office to create an official student organization on campus for queer and trans students of color.
Hamline University
SEXUALITIES AND GENDER DIVERSITY PROGRAMS
Understand the role and responsibilities of the Sexualities and Gender Diversity Programs Director.
Help in the creation, development, and facilitation of events and programs surrounding sexualities and gender diversity on campus.
Communicate with students, student organizations, faculty and staff, and the broader community to collaborate on inclusive and diverse programs and events.
Foster space and create programming for queer and trans students of
Coretta Scott King
“It doesn't matter how strong your opinions are. If you don't use your power for positive change, you are, indeed, part of the problem.”
