In the United States, Pride Month is celebrated during the month of June. LSU Shreveport is celebrating with the 4th Annual Pride Month event. The event is free for all attendees, and will provide catering and community fun. The event will be hosted by the LSUS Office of Diversity, Equity and Community Engagement and the new Queer Alliance at LSUS. Dr. Laura Meiki is the faculty sponsor of Queer Alliance, and she talks about why she thinks the event will be important.
Laura Meiki: I think it’s just important to have a place to come together with other people who you feel safe around. Because, especially in the Shreveport- Bossier, Northwest Louisiana - not everybody who is out or not out in the LGBTQ community feels safe. And so, to have a presence and a event on campus is saying ‘This is a safe space for you to come be yourself, meet other people like you, make some new friends. If you’re an ally, you know, you are welcome.
Queer Alliance (QA) is an LGBTQ student organization that assembled in the Spring 2024 Semester at LSUS. Dr. Meiki explains the beginning of the group.
Laura Meiki: I was teaching Race, Class and Gender this past semester, and one of my students came to talk to me about ‘You know, we don’t have an LGBTQ student organization on campus’ And I said ‘ Yeah, I noticed that. And I think that’s really important.’ We did some looking and we found that yes, there has been an organization, but it wasn’t currently active. So we reinvigorated it, came up with a new name, made a few changes to the constitution, and it’s off and running. We just got it up and running this summer. So this is our premier event that we’re doing with Queer Alliance, QA. There has been a presence of LGBTQ organizations here on campus, this is not the first one we’ve ever had. We’re just revitalizing right now, Student organizations sometimes need this little revitalization. I think, you know, that during Pride Month is a perfect time to: ‘Hey! Here we are!’ It’s important for a student who is just maybe coming out to just even themselves. To see that there are other people on campus who are welcoming to them, especially faculty and staff. This organization, I want to get faculty and staff who are allies and part of the LGBTQ+ community involved, because it is very important for young people who are maybe just developing their LGBTQ identity or coming to accept their own identity, to have mentors. To have people they feel safe around, and friends, and like minded people to talk to.
Each year, LGBTQ Pride Month honors the Stonewall Uprising. In 1969, the Stonewall Inn, a gay club in Greenwich, New York, was raided by police, sparking the decades long fight for LGBTQ rights. After almost 45 years, the community celebrates the accomplishments of the LGBTQ community. Dr. Meiki says the Pride event will give a space to students to celebrate together.
Laura Meiki: Pride Month especially is something that’s very important for people to feel comfortable, and seen, and celebrate all of the things that the LGBTQ community has achieved. We just want everyone to feel welcome to come to this event. I am just excited to see students happy to be together and having a good time and feeling comfortable around allies and friends in their community. I think that’s the thing that brings me the most joy. It’s just to see, you know, students and peers and community members coming together just to celebrate Pride, and having a nice evening together.
The event will be held in the LSUS University Center ballroom from 6 pm to 9 pm.
This is Alaina Atnip with Red River Radio.