Today: Mar 28, 2024

Latinx and LGBTQ figures celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month

Jackson VolenecReporter

The Multicultural Center hosted a Latinx LGTBQ+ bingo game on Monday, Oct. 2 at the SAGE Center to educate students about important figures that have influence that reach beyond the queer community they have emerged from.

“The event was to celebrate and learn about notable Latinx people who identify within the LGBTQ+ community. We wanted to do something fun and engaging that will also teach students about some people they may not have heard of therwise,” said graduate intern Marlena Oliveri of the Sage Center.

This is one of the several events that are related to Hispanic Heritage month
at Southern, which started Sept. 15 and ends Oct. 15. There are also several other events at Southern that are related to celebrate and honor all aspects of Hispanic culture within the Southern community.

“I wanted to have an event that speaks to the intersectionality of identities, so people that are in the Latinx community and the LBGTQ, and the impact that both of these communities have had on everything,” said Oliveri.

There have been other recent events that have celebrated Hispanic Heritage Month on campus including a panel discussion, where members of the Hispanic Latinx community can share their experiences with their culture and community on Monday, Oct. 7. They also discussed social issues and common misconceptions that negatively affect them as a group.

Future events include a National Latinx AIDS Awareness Day, which is on Tuesday, Oct. 15. There will be an open forum sponsored by the health center that will address issues that impact the Latinx community.

During the event, several students had recognized some of the more familiar names that were mentioned during the game, although most that were mentioned were unknown to the students playing.

“I came here to learn more about like, all these different types of people and how they weren’t judged or lessened just because of who they were,” said communication disorders major, Olivia Courtemanche, a freshman.

During the event, several students had recognized some of the more familiar names that were mentioned during the game, although most that were mentioned were unknown to the students playing.

Throughout the game, over 20 different impactful Latinx members of the LGBTQ+ community were mentioned, each given detailed descriptions of who they were and what their impact was. People such as transgender activists, gay entertainers in the film and music industries, as well as men who led the charge on HIV awareness.

“Bingo is a fun event; it gets people engaged,” said Oliveri. “People listen when people play, because people want to win, but it makes them pay attention to the topic.”

Winners of the bingo game received a prize and were contacted via email after the event to find out what they received.

Events like bingo and others during National Hispanic Heritage Month are all working towards the objective of celebrating the diversity and multiple cultures on campus, as well as how several people associate themselves with more than one cultural group.

“It is important to bring light to intersectionality, because no one person is one thing,” Oliveri said. “Events like this help bring exposure to things like that.”

Photo Credit: Izzy Manzo

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published.

Latest from Blog

Don't Miss

School of Business opens new building

Jaylen Carr – Editor-in-Chief From two-time Grammy winner Jeff Baxter to Gov.

Photo Gallery: Students move into the dorms for the fall

Luke Gadson– Sports Editor Jaylen Carr- Editor-in-Chief