Celebration and Reflection: Pride Day 2021

 

Nazareth College joins in the celebration of Pride Month, celebrated each June as an opportunity to educate, increase awareness, and promote inclusion for the LGBTQ+ community. Our Nazareth community is dedicated to recognizing and valuing diversity in all its various forms and to recommitting ourselves to being equity-minded learners and leaders.  

Today, June 28, is Pride Day, commemorating the 1969 Stonewall riots in New York City and the start of the modern LGBTQ+ liberation movement. Today is a day of celebration and reflection; an opportunity for our entire community to affirm and support each other’s freedom to live authentically, to love who we love, and to be seen and valued for who we are and the unique gifts we share with the world. 

Progress has been made and our work continues. Celebrating Pride means raising awareness, challenging structural injustices, and emboldening action towards inclusiveness. 

Pride celebrations also serve as a reminder to renew our community’s commitment to ensuring equitable treatment regardless of gender identity, gender expression, sexual orientation and intersectionality. We are steadfast in this commitment at Nazareth to keep our active movement going to fulfill our goal of a supportive, diverse, equitable, and inclusive community. 

Steps toward our goal have included: 

• The creation of the Atlas Diversity Resource Center. Founded in 2019 within the Office of Diversity and Inclusive Excellence Education, the Center serves as a welcoming and safe space for members of our LGBTQ+ community and their allies. The Center sponsors regular programming and professional learning opportunities and supports several clubs and organizations. It also houses a variety of resources and is staffed each academic year by a knowledgeable graduate assistant.
  
• The Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Repository provides electronic access to resources in support of teaching and learning.
  
• The Chosen First Name and Preferred Pronoun Project, completed this past year in support of our LGBTQ+ community. Students can complete the Chosen Name form electronically through NazNet Self-Service.
  

Inclusivity requires intentionality in creating understanding, space, and mitigating barriers to belonging. We look forward to continuing our movement for a more just and equitable community and world. Driven by our collective commitment for an equity-minded campus, we believe Nazareth College can be ever learning and leading for our community and beyond.