MELISSA MARTINEZ
STAFF WRITER

The Pride Center is hosting various events for “Gaypril,” dedicating the entire month of April to celebrating and supporting the LGBTQA community.

Various events will take place either in the Pride Center or elsewhere on campus to provide awareness of ways to support the LGBTQA community and information on becoming an ally.

The Pride Center hopes that in creating a month-long celebration, the message of its existence on campus will be presented.

“The Pride Center is an important place for both the LGBTQA community as well as allies. We offer a place of safety and acceptance for students, regardless of their race, ethnicity, gender or sexual orientation,” Brandon Torres, Communications Specialist at the Pride Center and occasional writer at “The Cougar Chronicle,” said.

In light of the recent controversial debate regarding sexuality in politics, officials of the Pride Center believe it is important to spread awareness as well as offer a safe zone and inform students of their opportunity to become an ally.

“Attending our events and giving your support to our community is the biggest step one could take in showing their ally-ship. Being an ally is more than just a vote; it’s being willing to support LGBTQ individuals, even when it may be inconvenient,” Torres said.

Each week will have a different theme to celebrate a sexual identity. The first week will be lesbian week, the second week will be gay week, the following week will be bisexual week and the concluding week will be transsexual week.

The Pride Center will be hosting an event every day of the month, some smaller in scale than others, including movie and television marathons, as well as educational tabling that is interactive and fun in the Library Plaza. The larger events include a drag competition for all students to participate in, as well as live interactive art and a campus-wide Pride Walk for all students to walk alongside the LGBTQ community and show their support.

“In our culture, there’s still an idea that it’s okay to bully and harass LGBTQ people. This month we’re going to assert ourselves on campus and show that we’re not a community that lies down and allows ourselves to be demonized. We want our community to know we’re present and here to stay,” Torres said.

For more information, please visit the Pride Center located in Commons 201.