Every Friday afternoon, you can hear the echoes of many voices, see large rainbow flags draped over the door and feel the electric atmosphere coming from the 500 hall. Northwood students have recently created a LGBT+ club that is the first of its kind at Northwood named PRIDE: People Rallying in Defense of Equality.
“A lot of students deal with serious things in their home life, especially LGBT+ students,” junior Eliza Griffin said. “A lot have difficulties with their sexuality and gender and don’t have good home lives because their parents don’t know how to deal with it. They need some- where at school to figure it all out.”
There are many identities included on the scale, but the most talked about are LGBTQIA, which are defined as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer and questioning, intersex and asexual. The club centers around spreading awareness of gender differences and supporting equality. Students find support and comfort that they may not always feel outside of the club.
“There is a large population at Northwood that experiences conflicts,” junior Coltrane Pschorr said. “Not everyone needs help, but a lot of people actually do and, at the very least, need a place where they can be with people like them. Northwood needs this club for it to be a safe place for people experiencing some sort of harassment.”
Junior Jean Berry came out this semester as transgender and feels like the club helped him through the process.
“Before I came out, that was the only place that people didn’t misgender me,” Berry said. “It was really nice to actually be supported in a space at school. It has really helped in the coming out process because of all the support there.”
There are 2.7 million young adults identifying as on the LGBT+ spectrum and the number is increasing. A recent survey created by the Human Rights Campaign found that four in 10 LGBT+ youth say that the community they are living in does not accept who they are. They also found that 26 percent of LGBT+ adolescents say that they are having issues in school and that the prevalent issues they experience are not being accepted by family. Social worker and adviser to the club Rachel Norris believes that feeling accepted is a large factor in student growth.
“I think the more the kids can see that there are other kids having the same questions or going through the same thing, you do feel more accepted and connected to your school,” Norris said. “That’s one of the biggest predictors if a student is going to graduate high school; it’s a protective factor and it is really important.”
PRIDE meets twice a week: Mondays during Plus 1 and Fridays after school. Students who are looking for advice and support can attend the Monday meetings during Plus 1. On Fridays, the group meets to discuss potential issues in the LGBT+ community and have a period of time to talk within smaller groups about their lives. They have made posters that will inform Northwood about the club and the purpose of it. Many believe educating their peers creates a safer and more accepting environment.
“I think that as the generations are chang- ing, [people] are more tolerant,” Norris said. “People are realizing there are many types of people that make up this earth. There are all shades of grey. We really need a club that speaks to issues surrounding the LGBT community.”
– By Skyler Waugh