Natalie Toney saw a lot of people cry after watching a speech by Lt. Dan Choi over the Internet.  

“She said he had captured the attention of everyone,” Toney said. “Every single person. And there was not a dry eye in the room. So I went online, I Googled him, I listened to him, and I said ‘Oh yes. Definitely, we’re bringing this person.’”

Choi is scheduled to speak at Wichita State at 7 p.m. Tuesday in Hubbard Hall Room 208 to celebrate Anti-Hate and Respect Week on campus. Toney is the program director with the WSU Office of Multicultural Affairs.

Choi made national headlines in 2009 when he publicly announced he is gay. As a result, he was kicked out of the Army under “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,” a policy that forbade him to serve in Iraq. His effort contributed to repealing the policy in September 2011.

“It gives us the opportunity to learn from someone that’s been going through the most difficult process of getting rid of Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,” Steven Haneveld, president of That Gay Group, said. “Watching Lt. Choi is going to be a new and very moving experience. I think the LGBT community needs to hear what he has to say.”

For Toney, Anti-Hate and Respect Week is about inclusiveness.

“We all came together because we all see the same vision of bringing this person to talk about anti-hate and how we need to be inclusive on this campus and be more welcoming,” she said. “And not just for lesbians, gays, bisexuals and transgenders, but everyone, despite their background, their ethnicity, their sexual orientation, their ability, their disability. We all have human rights and we all deserve to feel comfortable in our own skin.”

The lecture and discussion is open to the general public and is free of charge. Toney said she expects the event to be enlightening.

“I think it’s important just because with any fight, there have always been people that have paved the way for the oppressed or the people that don’t have a voice,” Toney said. “And for some people, it just doesn’t click that I wouldn’t have these rights or have these freedoms if it weren’t for those that fought for me.”

The lieutenant will also be giving a workshop for faculty and staff at 3 p.m. Tuesday to discuss how WSU can be more inclusive for LGBT faculty, staff and students, especially for someone like Haneveld, who used to be uncomfortable with his sexual orientation.

“I used to be ashamed of who I am and who I was. Now that I’ve actually come out … I’m not ashamed. Watching him is going to be a life-changing experience because I can learn some new leadership skills. Because I don’t know how to handle every situation,” Haneveld said.

Of the 400 chairs available, Toney is hoping to fill every single one.

“We want to pack the house,” she said. “That’s our hope. I know that’s high hopes. But we are going to fill the room up.” 

The Office of Multicultural Affairs, the Student Activities Council, That Gay Group and other departments on campus sponsored bring Choi to WSU.