Honoring LGBTQ+ History Month
A message from: Lorenley Báez, Associate Provost for Equity and Belonging
Dear Students,
Today, October 1, 2024, we commemorate the start of LGBTQ+ History Month. This dedicated month honors and celebrates the history and contributions of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, nonbinary, intersex, asexual, queer, genderqueer, and gender non-conforming (LGBTQIAGNC+) people. The celebration dates back to 1994 when high school teacher Rodney Wilson of Missouri advocated for a month when this community could be acknowledged and celebrated. Wilson was a proponent of education as a vehicle for learning and growth and promoting values of inclusion and belonging for all.
During this commemorative month, we also celebrate National Coming Out Day on October 11, 2024. National Coming Out Day is recognized as a day of visibility and celebration for the LGBTQIAGNC+ community. The day was enacted in 1988 by Jean O’Leary and Robert Eichberg to commemorate the one-year anniversary of the second National March on Washington for Lesbian and Gay Rights. While the original intention was to counter the legal and social marginalization present during the AIDS epidemic, these same forces still compel many LGBTQIAGNC+ people to live hidden lives. National Coming Out Day has increasingly become a day for uplifting LGBTQIAGNC+ joy, reflecting on personal journeys, and celebrating LGBTQIAGNC+ cultural contributions.
As we embark upon this month, I invite all of us to reflect upon the societal structures that systematically oppress individuals identifying as part of the LGBTQIAGNC+ community. Specifically, we must address gender discrimination, racial marginalization and minoritization of queer people, health and wellness disparities, and the binary structures that persistently hinder physical safety and psychological well-being, hamper holistic support, and perpetuate othering. Moreover, I want to call attention to the critical importance of transgender, genderqueer, gender non-conforming, and nonbinary individuals and the escalating concern within this community for their overall well-being, health, and safety. These communities have been targets of ongoing and rising discrimination in the United States and globally.
Further, I encourage all of us to reflect upon the meaning of inclusion and belonging and to strive for the collective goal of liberating all oppressed people. The aspiration for our broader community is to cultivate spaces where we can come together to honor both the legacy and the active contributions of the LGBTQIAGNC+ community in ways that acknowledge our collective humanity and diverse identities.
To kick off the month, I would like to invite you to the First Annual LGBTQ+ History Month Mixer on Tuesday, October 8, 2024, from 1:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m. in the University Center at the Social Justice Hub, Room 514. This will be an opportunity to connect with each other and celebrate this community at The New School. Light refreshments and appetizers will be served.
You may also visit the LGBTQ+ History Month website for the full list of events, community resources, and student organizations on campus. If you have any questions, please reach out to me at baezl@newschool.edu. I look forward to celebrating this month with you!