Recognizing the LGBTQ community on campus
Unity Month, a time dedicated to inclusivity and support of the LGBTQ community, will be celebrated at St. Joe’s throughout October.
October has been recognized as LGBTQ history month since 1994.
At St. Joe’s, that tradition used to be celebrated through a week of inclusive programming known as Unity Week.
Unity Week was later renamed Unity Month when it was expanded to the entire month of October. It is an opportunity for all LGBTQ students at St. Joe’s to come together with their allies for educational and social events.
Here are a few ways to celebrate and learn during Unity Month.
Outfest
Philadelphia’s annual Outfest, a celebration of National Coming Out Day, will be held on Oct. 7. Outfest is the largest celebration of Coming Out Day in the country.
The main stage of the event will be on the block of 13th and Locust Streets, but the festival will span 12 blocks.
“Culturally Humble Care for LGBTQ Patients”
A lecture on LGBTQ-inclusive health care, “Culturally Humble Care for LGBTQ Patients,” will be held at 6:30 p.m. on the fifth floor of McShain Hall on Oct. 10.
The lecture will be given by Judd Flesch, Ph.D., the associate director of the LGBTQ health program at the University of Pennsylvania’s Perelman School of Medicine.
Speak Out
Unity Month’s annual Speak Out event will be held on Oct. 11 at 5:30 p.m. in The Perch.
During this event, LGBTQ students, faculty and staff are encouraged to share their stories and listen to the stories of others in the community.
Scoops for Thought
SJU Pride will host an ice cream social event called Scoops for Thought in the Center for Inclusion and Diversity (CID) on Oct. 17 at 6 p.m.
The event will feature a facilitated discussion on desirability politics and decolonizing beauty standards.
Scoops for Thought will be part of SJU Pride’s Mosaic meetings which focus on issues unique to LGBTQ people of color.
Unity Mass
An LGBTQ-affirming Unity Mass will be held on Oct. 21 at 7 p.m. in the Chapel of Saint Joseph with the Alliance, an organization of faculty and staff who support LGBTQ students on campus.
“Gender Revolution: A Journey with Katie Couric”
The documentary “Gender Revolution: A Journey with Katie Couric” will be screened at 6 p.m. in the CID on Oct. 24.
This film is about gender identity and its complex development in today’s world.
“State of the Nation”
David Ambrose ’15, author and alumnus of the St. Joe’s Writing Studies graduate program, will read from his book “State of the Nation” on Nov. 7 at 6:30 p.m. on the fifth floor of McShain Hall.
“State of the Nation” focuses on queer and questioning African-American youth in Norristown during the Atlanta child murders of the late 1970s and early ’80s.
The events throughout Unity Month can be an opportunity for all to learn about and connect with the LGBTQ community on our campus.
