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Eric Alva: Courage Under Fire

When: Saturday January 17th, 2009 - 02:30 PM
Where: Central Library at Auditorium

On March, 21, 2003, Marine Sgt. Eric Alva, a San Antonian, became the first American wounded in the Iraq War. Leading a battalion in Bastra, he stepped on a landmine. The explosion hurled him ten feet, broke his right arm and required amputation of his leg. During months of rehabilitation, he was visited by President Bush and then Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld. He was awarded the Purple Heart.

He was also gay. “To be honest, each time I was commended on my courage, I couldn't help but remember how scared I was that I would be found out as gay and kicked out of the military,” Alva says.

He is no longer afraid and has become a renowned gay rights advocate. He has appeared on "The Oprah Winfrey Show," and his story profiled in People, The Advocate, Newsweek, USA Today, and The New York Times, among others.

In July 2007, Alva testified before Congress in hearings to discuss repeal of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,” which prohibits gays from openly serving in the U.S. military. He is currently the national spokesman for the Human Rights Campaign efforts to repeal the ban. Alva was named the 2008 Public Citizen of the Year by the National Association for Social Workers.

In association with Martin Luther King, Jr’s message of civil rights equality for all, Alva will discuss his experience as a Marine and advocate for equality in a special presentation in Central Library Auditorium, 2:30 p.m., Saturday, January 17, 2009.

Seating for this engagement is limited and available on a first-come, first-served basis. For more information contact Special Events, 207-2629.