Several former military members in the audience added to the discussion.
A “G.I. Cafe” panel recently explored the topic of military life for women pre- and post-DADT at Women & Children First Books. The discussion was facilitated by Willa Taylor as a part of the The Female Warrior Program, in cooperation with The Goodman Theater, where she is Director of Education and Community Engagement, and the Illinois Humanities Council’s Public Square. Taylor was a petty officer first class, communications technician, in the Navy and a keynote speaker at the 2011 City of Chicago’s Salute to LGBT Veterans at Daley Plaza in 2011. On the panel were Tracy Baim, publisher of Windy City Media Group and author of The Half Life of Sgt. Jen Hunter; Jean Albright, a retired 20-year Air Force career veteran, former board member of the Servicemembers Legal Defense Network and member of the Chicago chapter of the American Veterans for Equal Rights; and Emily Siefken, an organizer, performance artist and Navy veteran who served for 10 years.