In her Kessler Award Lecture entitled “Global Violence, Sexual Politics,” famed feminist and queer scholar Judith Butler raises the question of “who counts as human.” Butler is interested in exploring the way in which different lives are valued. She argues that the struggles of gender and sexuality minorities can help us to understand current sociopolitical issues. Butler gave this talk only after the terrorist attack on September 11, 2001, but her augment seems topical still today. The Kesller Award, named after an endowment from David R. Kessler, is given each year by CLAGS to a scholar who is believed to have made a significant contribution to the field of Queer Studies. Butler was the 10th recipient of the award.