A Message from the GSC
Originally Published on June 5, 2020
Dear community,
We first want to acknowledge that this message is coming later than anticipated. As a Black and Latinx led center, the past week has been exhausting and painful. Like so many of you, we are tired.
As we enter LGBTQIA Pride month, the last few days has made us reframe what Pride really means. We stand in solidarity with all Black people including Black Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer, Intersex, Asexual people experiencing and fighting against racism and anti-blackness.
Let's remember that Pride stemmed out of the anger, oppression, and trauma experienced through state sanctioned violence of LGBTQIA people. Black and Brown Trans women were on the frontlines of the Stonewall riots demanding respect and basic human rights. That riot became what we acknowledge now as Pride month in June and the beginning of the LGBTQIA Civil Rights Movement.
We honor Tony McCade, Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor, and George Floyd and the countless others who have had their lives taken at the hands of police brutality and state sanctioned violence. In the midst of all of the attacks on Black bodies, we are also outraged and heartbroken by the murder of Nina Pop and brutal assault of Iyana Dior in Minneapolis. Both Black Trans women whose stories have received much less attention on the national stage. If you can, please consider donating funds to Iyana for hospital bills, therapy, and other needs through Cash App at $IyannaDIO.
Racism and anti-blackness has a been a toxic disease also experienced within LGBTQIA communities. Not only are we navigating COVID-19, we are still trying to fight racism. We know that in order to create a more just world we need to educate ourselves on issues and actively show up. We support, acknowledge, and uplift all the Black folx and allies engaging in the dismantlement of institutional and interpersonal racism and white supremacy.
Here is a list of educational resources provided by the Consortium of Higher Education LGBT Resource Professionals:
- A Timeline of Events That Led to the 2020 'Fed Up'-rising
- Anti-Racism Resources
- A Racial Justice Reading List: Benefiting The NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund
- Donate to Local Bail Bonds across the Country.
- 97 Things White People Can Do for Racial Justice
With love and solidarity,