LGBT Community at CSUSB

By Angelice Romero |Staff Writer|

The lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender, otherwise known as LGBT, community on the CSUSB campus is hiding in the shadows when they should be a strong and open community.

This campus is relatively big, and although this is a commuter school, I believe the LGBT community should be more out there and make their voices heard.

“I would like to see more LGBT couples on campus,” said Gabriela Sandoval, the Graduate Assistant in the Pride Center, a safe haven for all kinds of students.

Not seeing LGBT couples walking around on campus holding hands and showing public displays of affection is surprising and a bit heart breaking. This campus is lacking unity in the LGBT community and students are not as open and out in public as I would imagine.

Walking around campus I haven’t seen a pride flag anywhere except in the pride center.

At Buffalo State College and University of Hawaii, campuses which I have attended, students have the flag hanging in the dorm windows, on their cars or on their backpacks. They are out in public with their significant other and this brings an overwhelming unity to the campus.

Donna Guevara, who has been at CSUSB for four years, said the community in the Pride Center is great, but she is interested in spreading awareness.

“We have a long way to go to be recognized on campus,” said Guevara.

The Pride Center is definitely doing their part to bring unity and respect, but it can only change if other students try to be unified as well.

I have been to quite a few campuses and CSUSB’s Pride Center is the biggest in size I have seen thus far.

Yet when I walked into the Pride Center recently, I noticed there were only a small amount of people in that big room. I was told only 10 percent of the LGBT students actually go to the Pride Center.

Since I transferred to CSUSB I have yet to see or hear of any hate crimes on campus, until I talked to  Sandoval. She indicated that there has been a form of “hate crime” against the Pride Center since she has been here at this school.

“A group I will keep anonymous, posted a letter on our dorm with bible scriptures. It was poorly written so we edited it and posted it on a board so people could respond to the letter. But that is the only hate crime I have seen,” said Sandoval.

This incident went slightly unnoticed by some of the LGBT students. I spoke with Jack Monet, a junior at CSUSB and he said, “I actually haven’t heard of any hate crimes. Sometimes people will say rude comments but you grow a thick skin to it.”

This is what I find troubling, people should be supporting each other and feel comfortable enough to be out and proud.

Unity is what makes a group thrive and the unified front on this campus is definitely lacking. I implore all LGBT students to become a united and flaunt their positive attributes so that their attitude will spread like wildfire allowing all the other students to be proud as well.