The LGBTQ+ Center on the Pullman campus is celebrating its 30th anniversary with a public reception and drag show on Friday, Feb. 7.
The 30th Anniversary Reception, from 1–3 p.m. in the Terrell Library Atrium, is free and open to all. Speakers will share information about the center’s history and mission, and participants can view an exhibit featuring a historical timeline of LGBTQ+ student activism at WSU.
“People will have an opportunity to go into the archives and see first-hand some documents and photos showing student activism through the decades,” said Josie Cohen-Rodriguez, LGBTQ+ student life and community coordinator.
The 30th Anniversary Drag Show Celebration will take place 5–8 p.m. in the Compton Union Building (CUB) Junior Ballroom and tickets are required to attend. Cohen-Rodriguez said this drag show will be unlike any others that have occurred in Pullman.
“Our partner Tabikat Productions is bringing drag queens who performed here in 1994, the first year our center was funded,” Cohen-Rodriquez said. “They will share with the audience what it was like to be a performer during that time, as well as dance for us.”
Despite opposition, students persisted
Securing funding for the center, and then a physical location in the CUB in 1995, followed years of frustration for LGBTQ+ students and their allies. In 1970, 18 months after the Stonewall Riots in New York City, the WSU Association for Women Students (AWS) hosted the first-ever discussion of homosexuality on campus, a two-panelist forum in the CUB Ballroom titled “Homosexual Dilemma.” A year later, the Gay Alliance (GA) student organization earned recognition from the Associated Students of Washington State University (ASWSU) and grew to 40 members by 1972.
Any progress made by the LGBTQ+ community was constantly challenged, however, as attempts were made by some students to remove the ASWSU senators who voted to recognize GA, and in 1975 over 2,000 students signed a petition to remove the group’s funding. That attempt was unsuccessful, but opposition to GA’s recognition persisted until 1979, when a petition to pull its recognition finally passed. Losing recognition was a big blow to GA, but it did not deter students from continuing to meet, organize, and advocate for a student center.
What has been striking to me in looking at the archived records is how it was student activism that made the center possible. It is a story that was not previously evident before.
Josie Cohen-Rodriguez
LGBTQ+ student life and community coordinator
Washington State University
“What has been striking to me in looking at the archived records is how it was student activism that made the center possible,” Cohen-Rodriguez said. “It is a story that was not previously evident before.”
It was not until 1994, when Ernestine Madison was hired as vice provost for human relations and resources, that students gained the support of the administration to create what was then called the Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, and Allies Center. It was one of the first centers of its kind and today, it is the oldest university-based LGBTQ+ center in Washington. When the center was established, student advocates quickly organized a new group called the Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual Association, which earned ASWSU recognition a year later.
Leading the way
Since its creation, Cohen-Rodriguez said staff and students have worked tirelessly to establish the LGBTQ+ Center as a leading advocacy and support center, both on campus and across the state. Among its signature programs are the Q*Hort Orientation program, InQueery Symposium, and Lavender Graduation, which it has hosted every year since 1998.
Cohen-Rodriguez is looking forward to the next 30 years for the center. She is focused on maintaining its student-centered and student-driven approach and strengthening its coalitions across the state. It is a critical time for the WSU community to pause and recognize how far WSU has come in its support of LGBTQ+ students.
“The 30th anniversary is a huge thing for WSU to be proud of,” Cohen-Rodriguez said. “Between our LGBTQ+ student clubs, gender inclusive housing, culturally responsive curriculum, and co-curricular activities, WSU is viewed by many schools as leaders in this area.”
