outspeaking: Historical and Current Queer college Activism By Matthew Pruitt
preface as I reflected on my experiences so far, I wanted to explore this topic to understand the origins of queer activism on college campuses. I also wanted to understand how to organize effectively, and how students continue to lead the charge nationwide. I would also like to thank everyone who was able to comment on my Digital zine project pitch and has offered advice throughout the semester. prior to beginning, I want to include a content warning: some of the newspaper articles and primary sources use outdated and queerphobic terminology.
preface (cont.) in this zine, I will argue that, based on historic and current examples, effective organizing around queer activism must incorporate progressive and bold tactics. it is also essential to understand the intersections of queer theory with other social movements.
NYU Student Protesting, 1971. Retrieved from https://www.globalcitizen.org/fr/content/stonewa ll-50-new-york-public-library/
Out from underground in 1966, a columbia university student in New York founded the first lgbtq+ student group called the student homophile league (SHL). this group received hateful and threatening responses from campus members and people across the country. despite the controversy at the time, its members continued their advocacy. Students at Cornell University founded their own shl chapter in 1968.
Source: Beemyn, Brett. (2003). “The Silence is Broken: A History of the First Lesbian, Gay, and Bisexual College Student Groups.� Journal of the History of Sexuality 12(2):205-223.
out from underground (cont.)
columbia student newspaper Article, i966. Retrived from https://twitter.com/Columbia/status/1142796975236165634
Shl promotional flyer, 1967. Retrieved from http://jimburroway.com/history/columbia-u-registers-nations-first-gay-studentgroup/
Speaking out loud following the stonewall riots in 1969, queer student leaders at cornell contemplated what the role of student activism should be.
these leaders ultimately decided to pursue a more progressive agenda inspired by the gay liberation movement. the group changed its name to the gay liberation front in the early 1970s and began taking more direct and aggressive action to achieve its objectives.
this decision modified the organization's initial incrementalist approach.
Source: (Beemyn, 2003)
speaking out loud (cont.)
cornell's gay liberation front poster, 1970s. derived from https://digital.library.cornell.edu/catalog/ss:550687
cornell's gay liberation front poster, 1972. derived from https://digital.library. cornell.edu/catalog/ss: 550685
demanding change as activists strive for bold progress on a systemic level, organizing strategies become crucial. According to merriAm-webster definitions, some strategies include: Protest: "A complaint, objection, or display of Boycott: "to engage in a unwillingness usually to concerted refusal to an idea or course of have dealings with (a action." person, a store, an organization, etc.) usually to express Strike: "to stop work in disapproval or to force order to force an acceptance of certain employer to comply with conditions." demands"
in my opinion, these organizing strategies are effective because they directly confront the problem and can attract attention to mobilize greater support.
Demanding change (Cont.) when the owner of the Ithaca bar "Morrie's" began acting bigoted towards Cornell's gLf members, they began to boycott against the bar. this boycott was able to take campus activism into its surrounding community.
Morrie's, the bar the cornell glf boycotted. Derived from https://pocketsights.com/tours/place/Sit-in-and-Boycott-at-Morrie’sBar-409-Eddy-St-October-1970-23867 SOURCE: matron, brenda. 2008. "40 years of gay student activism at cu is focus of exhibit." retrieved dec. 8, 2020 (https://news.cornell.edu/stories/2008/04/40years-gay-student-activism-focus-new-exhibition).
Coalition building establishing coalitions was important for cornell's glf organizing. establishing coalitions on college campuses unifies progressive student activists and causes and allows organizations to contribute to a larger discussion on social justice. in the case of Cornell's glf, they connected with student groups striving for anti-capitalism, anti-war, racial justice, and feminist movements (Beemyn, 2003).
Anti-war protest in Ithaca, ny. Derived from https://www.ithaca.com/news/we-wont-go-nearly-50-years-afteranti-war-demonstrations-rocked-cornell-members-of-student/article_db7d4dae6505-11e4-86a3-47b52dda7df2.html
Intersectionality in Queer Organizing
developed by kimberlĂŠ Crenshaw in the 1990s, intersectionality explains how different identities interact with one another under the oppressions of society. for example, it is more useful to discuss how the intersection of race and gender identity may form one's experiences rather than viewing them separately. intersectionality allows queer activists to approach their organizing from a more comprehensive and thought out perspective.
Source: crenshaw, kimberlĂŠ. 2016. "the urgency of intersectionality." retrieved dec. 8, 2020 (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=akOe5-UsQ2o).
intersectionality in queer organizing (Cont.) intersectionality has resurfaced in modern social justice topics, and queer student organizations continue to incorporate it into their organizing approaches (Mundy). and they should. for example, a 2017 study found that queer students of color were more likely to experience harassment than white students on campus (kulick, wernick, woodford and renn, 2017). I believe It is impossible to understand queer identity without connecting its intersections, so applying an intersectional approach to organizing will achieve the most effective outcomes.
sources; kulick, Alex, and Laura J. Wernick, Michael R. Woodford & Kristen Renn. (2017). "Heterosexism, Depression, and Campus Engagement Among LGBTQ College Students: Intersectional Differences and Opportunities for Healing" Journal of Homosexuality. 64:8,1125-1141. Mundy, Dean E. (2018). “Identity, Visibility, and Measurement: How University LGBTQ Centers Engage and Advocate for Today’s LGBTQ Student.” Journal of Public Interest Communication 2(2):239-263.
the current agenda in the context of college campuses today, queer student organizations continue to advocate for: 1. 2.
gender-inclusive admissions policies gender-neutral housing and antidiscrimination housing policies (both on and off-campus) 3. ensuring all student identification matches a student's gender identity 4. athletic, academic, and social antidiscrimination policies to protect queer people 5. comprehensive lgbtq+ healthcare services 5. general administration and community accountability 6. Improved educational series and platforms
queer student activism's accomplishments in 2019, baylor university students petitioned for the ncaa to hold the athletics department accountibile due to mistreatment of queer athletes
after smith college students organized for months, the university expanded its admissions policies to include trans and non-binary people in 2015. notre dame added sexual orientation and gender identity to its anti-discrimination policy in august 2020, after decades of student activism.
these were all achieved Through bold and aggressive organizing strategies. it is essential for student activists to continue making these meaningful impacts for queer people on college campuses.
sustaining the movement.
50th anniversary pride movement, 2019. Derived from https://abcnews.go.com/US/pride-celebrations-kick-off-major-citiescountry/story?id=64046167
after completing this zine, I realized that the current debate on radical vs. incremental Queer organizing has been an ongoing debate for at least half a century. However, the only way to get achieve our vision is to continue our progressive, Intersectional organizing to dismantle oppressive systems. we simply do not have time for incrementalism.
List of Resources Anderson, Melinda d. 2015. "the other student activists." retrieved dec. 8, 2020 (https://www.theatlantic.com /education/archive/2015/11/student-activism-historyinjustice/417129/) Barnard university. 2017. "College pride: A brief history of lgbtq life at Barnard." retrieved dec. 8, 2020 (https://barnard.edu/news/college-pride). Bauer-wolf, Jeremy. 2019. "Baylor student athletes appeal to ncaa." Retrieved dec. 8, 2020. (https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2019/08/07/gay-rightsactivists-ask-ncaa-intervene-baylors-lgbtq-policies). Beemyn, Brett. (2003). “The Silence is Broken: A History of the First Lesbian, Gay, and Bisexual College Student Groups.” Journal of the History of Sexuality 12(2):205-223. Blum, Stephen. 2019. "Four Queer Student Activists Explain How to Make Change on Campus." Retrieved dec. 8, 2020 (https://www.them.us/story/four-queer-student-activists). "boycott." Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriamwebster.com/dictionary/boycott. Accessed 8 dec. 2020. crenshaw, kimberlé. 2016. "the urgency of intersectionality." retrieved dec. 8, 2020 (https://www.youtube.com/watch? v=akOe5-UsQ2o).
List of Resources (cont.) Ferrarin, Gianna. 2018. "This student wants to expand resources for LGBTQ first-gen., low-income individuals at Penn" Retrieved dec. 8, 2020 (https://www.thedp.com/article /2018/03/lgbt-fgli-first-generation-low-income-studentsuniversity-penn-5b-upenn-philadelphia). kulick, Alex, and Laura J. Wernick, Michael R. Woodford & Kristen Renn. (2017). "Heterosexism, Depression, and Campus Engagement Among LGBTQ College Students: Intersectional Differences and Opportunities for Healing" Journal of Homosexuality. 64:8,1125-1141. Marple, Les, and Victoria Latchmore. (2005). “LGBTQ Activism: Small Town and Social Change.” Canadian Women’s Studies/Les Cahiers de la Femme 24(4):55-58. matron, brenda. 2008. "40 years of gay student activism at cu is focus of exhibit." retrieved dec. 8, 2020 (https://news.cornell.edu/stories/2008/04/40-years-gaystudent-activism-focus-new-exhibition). Mundy, Dean E. (2018). “Identity, Visibility, and Measurement: How University LGBTQ Centers Engage and Advocate for Today’s LGBTQ Student.” Journal of Public Interest Communication 2(2):239-263. piphen, morra. 2017. "activism for the college queer: a history of college activism for lgbtq rights and its modern application." retrieved dec. 8, 2020 (https://medium.com/queer-history-forthe-people/activism-for-the-college-queer-6426feb12ad).
List of Resources (cont.) "protest." Merriam-webster, https://www.merriamwebster.com/dictionary/protest. Accessed 8 Dec. 2020. Pryor, Jonathan T. (2020). “Queer Activist Leadership: An Exploration of Queer Leadership in Higher Education.” Journal of Diversity in Higher Education:1-13. Rankin, Susan, Jason C Garvey, and Antonio Duran. (2019). “A retrospective of LGBT issues on US college campuses: 1990-2020.” International Sociology 34(4):435-454. Renn, Kristen A. (2007). “LGBT Student Leaders and Queer Activists: Identities of Lesiban, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender, and Queer Identified College Leaders and Activists.” Journal of College Student Development 48(3):311-330. renn, kristen a. (2017). "LGBTQ STUDENTS ON CAMPUS: ISSUES AND OPPORTUNITIES FOR HIGHER EDUCATION LEADERS." retrieved dec. 8, 2020 (https://www.higheredtoday.org/2017/04/10/lgbtq-studentshigher-education/). "strike." Merriam-webster, https://www.merriamwebster.com/dictionary/strike. Accessed 8 dec. 2020. Tulane University. 2019. "Advocating for lgbtq health access." Retrieved dec. 8, 2020 (https://publichealth.tulane.edu /blog/advocating-for-lgbtq-health-access/)
List of Resources (cont.) weber, Shannon. "'“Womanhood does not reside in documentation”: Queer and feminist student activism for transgender women's inclusion at women's colleges." journal of lesbian studies, 20:1, 29-45. Zarcharias, Serena. 2020. "‘Overdue and necessary change’: student advocates react to changes in sexual and discriminatory harassment policy." Retrived dec. 8, 2020 (https://ndsmcobserver.com/2020/08/overdue-and-necessarychange-student-advocates-react-to-changes-in-sexual-anddiscriminatory-harassment-policy/).