Members of the Elizabethtown College campus community gathered at noon on April 1 at to celebrate the beginning of celebrations for the third annual Etown Does Pride. The events planned for Etown Does Pride aim to bring visibility and awareness to members of the LGBTQ+ community as well as celebrate their bravery and achievements. 

The initiative was launched by the Office of Diversity, Equity and Belonging (DEB) and the Gender-Sexuality Alliance (GSA) three years ago and was led by Darcey Mills, the director of the DEB  and Samhar Almomani, a fourth-year public health major and the then-president of GSA. The intention behind celebrating pride in April is that most students are home over the summer, when Pride is generally celebrated, which means that members of the LGBTQ+ campus community are unable to celebrate together. Etown Does Pride gives them the opportunity to celebrate their identities with other members of Etown’s LGBTQ+ community. 

The month’s celebrations were kicked off with a flag raising event that included a slate of speakers and an opportunity to write messages of support for the LGBTQ+ community. The flags that are now raised in the BSC Concourse will remain there for the entirety of April, to increase the visibility of Etown’s diverse sexualities and gender identities. 

Speakers at the event shared their personal stories and experiences of being members of the LGBTQ+ community and included: Darcey Mills; third-year public health major and President of Student Assembly Brendan Guy; Assistant Director of Student Activities and Commuter Engagement Brooke Hollinger; and second-year biology major and Vice President of GSA Samhar Almomani. 

The diverse slate of speakers allowed members of the campus community to understand the many experiences that LGBTQ+ students, staff and faculty go through. Some speakers chose to discuss how their upbringing influenced who they were today, some talked about recent experiences that they have had and some urged attendees to keep working to ensure that Etown Does Pride and other Etown LGBTQ+ initiatives remain in place years from now.

Due to the rain, attendees were not able to chalk on the BSC patio messages of support, as had been the tradition in past Etown Does Pride kick-offs. However, attendees were able to stop by the GSA table at the BSC Concourse and write messages of support on sticky notes that will be displayed on the first floor of the BSC throughout the month of April.

“I am glad that we had such a great turnout,” second-year biology pre-med major and President of GSA Alysse Smith said.  “I think it is very important for students, staff and faculty to come together and share their experiences in order to be reminded that they are not alone and that the support systems they need exist around them.”

Smith understands the importance of ensuring that a club such as GSA remains active and works towards providing a safe space for Etown students. After being secretary of GSA last year, Smith decided to step up and take the role of president to ensure the continuity of the club. Smith has also worked towards securing a hardworking executive cabinet that is dedicated to helping LGBTQ+ students. 

Etown’s campus has undergone many changes in the past few years in terms of providing support for members of the LGBTQ+ community. Other than the institutionalization of Etown Does Pride, Etown has expanded the Stonewall LGBTQ+ housing community and implemented policy changes to create a safe space for LGBTQ+ students. However, speakers emphasized that these changes were not guaranteed. These changes occurred due to members of the community working together to establish those changes, which means that if those members were not there, the campus community may have never seen those positive steps towards LGBTQ+ visibility. 

“People at Etown move the campus towards more equity,” Smith said. “It was not guaranteed that we would celebrate Etown Does Pride this year, let alone even ever start celebrating it three years ago. These remarkable changes happened due to the hard work and diligence of not only GSA but the DEB Office and other members of the campus community.”

There are several events occurring this month, such as the Crafts & Conversation Rock Painting event on  at 4 p.m. on Wednesday, April 10 in the BSC Bird Cage and an event about LGBTQ+ identities in anime at 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday, April 16. in Nicarry 232. Members of the campus community are encouraged to check out upcoming Etown Does Pride here: https://shorturl.at/dixFX