APRIL 2024 VOL. 1 • ISSUE 4 VISIT US ONLINE AT: OUTFAU.COM INSTAGRAM: @OUTFAU PAGE 4
2 OUTFAU | APRIL 2024 OutFAU newspaper is a part of J&J Media Group. You should not presume the sexual orientation or gender identity of any featured individuals solely based on their names, appearance, or inclusion within this publication. Any opinions shared within stories, columns, graphics, or letters to the editor should not be assumed to represent the opinions of OutFAU or its publisher. Any stories or content, either in print or online, and also including any articles that are featured in conjunction with any media partners, are protected under federal copyright and intellectual property laws, and this ownership is carefully and jealously guarded by this media group. Nothing that is published may be reprinted, either in whole or in part, without first receiving written consent from Publisher, Jason Parsley. OutFAU is owned by Jason Parsley and Justin Wyse, and is represented legally by Russell Cormican. As a private corporation, J&J Media Group reserves the right to enforce its own standards regarding the suitability of advertising copy, illustrations, and photographs. Copyright © 2024 J&J Media Group. I am a Queer Millennial Here’s My Journey Through Gender Fluidity Subscribe to our newsletter! Executive Editor MARY RASURA Assistant Editor KENNY RUFF Designer CRAIG TUGGLE Contributors KAYLA BARNES • LEWIS DE BERRY XIMENA DIPIETRO Advisors MICHAEL KORETZKY • JASON PARSLEY BRENDON LIES • AURORA DOMINGUEZ Sales & Marketing FOR AD PLACEMENT, CALL 954-514-7095 OR EMAIL [email protected] FIRST COPY IS FREE, EACH ADDITIONAL IS 50 CENTS OUT FAU APRIL 2024 VOL. 1 • ISSUE 4 This publication is solely the expression of the author and/or publisher and it is not an official publication of Florida Atlantic University, nor is it in any way intended to express any policies or opinions of Florida Atlantic University, or its personnel. Last month, in our cover story “Fred Fejes: a Trailblazing FAU Professor”, Derek Vaughn’s name was CORRECTION: misspelled in the print version, but was corrected for the online version. We regret the error. Spot an error? Let us know at [email protected] T he language in LGBTQIA+ community has grown so rapidly over the last couple of years that I often feel ignorant. I graduated high school back in 2011 and the closest thing I experienced to any queer or gender expression was the emo and scene kids. I found that a high percentage of the alternative scene was bi – including myself. Wearing eyeliner, nail polish, dye in our hair, and wearing skin-tight clothes (all things I did at home behind closed doors) was normal and expected. Although ridiculed and bullied by most outside groups I found comfort and friends who didn’t care about being my awkward, femme queer self even if I didn’t have the words for it. After graduation I went to college and went to work, trying hard to keep up with social media. I was never popular, so I usually just went on for memes and vines. When I turned 25 I started to hear more about the argument between sex and gender. For a while, I was adamant about there being only four genders: male, female, intersex and transsexual. When people challenged this it brought up a lot of personal issues, since I experienced my cousin’s transition, which solidified my belief. Unable to see myself as a woman, I knew that there was no way I was “transsexual,” yet I always felt soft, pretty, effeminate and womanly. Raised in a Colombian household where “machismo” was the norm I worked so hard to hide my softer, more emotional side. Trying to maintain this idea that I was a normal straight guy pushed me to be physically fit and forced me to be emotionally repressed since “boys don’t cry” was exhausting. Even now I struggle with this idea of what it is to be a man and whether or not I am fulfilling my role as an emotionless provider. It wasn’t until about three years ago at age 27 that I started to look into the ideas/theories of gender fluidity and expression, finding a lot of myself in these experiences. The more I researched – the more I began to question my entire existence, relating more and more to this idea of being fluid in my gender expression. Realizing that my emo/scene days were the closest I was to feeling pretty and womanly was interesting, putting on makeup and doing my nails. Although this does not define womanhood, I remember sitting with my mom and sisters while they did their nails and makeup, I would be brushing their hair just having a kiki and bonding. Going out with eyeliner and a little ChapStick boosted my confidence like nothing else. I recall my mother telling me that a little lipstick and a strong walk will take you far. Knowing that I was this macho bro walking around like no one could touch me – yet I felt pretty – was wild. I hated how much joy girly things brought me but loved how confident and strong I felt. I now identify as a gender-fluid cis male, which sounds a bit confusing, so I’ll explain. I was born a biological male who looks and expresses mostly male, but also confident and comfortable with my femininity and ability to express it. The more I look into gender and sex the more I realize that it’s nice to have titles and categories for yourself, but it also limits what it means to be a “man” or a “woman.” As I explore who I am, and how others present I’ve come to a simple realization, we as humans are all multifaceted beings with masculine and feminine energies. I implore anyone who reads this to strengthen your connection and understanding of these energies within yourself and explore your identity; you can always go back to who you were told to be. Andrew Zerrato is a 30-year-old FAU student. Andrew Zerrato. PERSONAL ESSAY BY ANDREW ZERRATO
Queer History and its Radical Origins N eoliberalism. According to Logan McGraw, that’s what is wrong with the current LGBTQ+ rights movements. McGraw, a history major, included this in her presentation on “Queer History and its Radical Origins.” “Neoliberalism is very surface level. It doesn’t actually identify the root of the problems of the issues that people face,” McGraw said. “It serves only the people who benefit from capitalism and not the people who are actually affected by the issues.” One main sentiment from McGraw permeated through this first section: in U.S. history, queer activism often broke laws and pushed boundaries, and was therefore rooted in radical and revolutionary thinking. Activist Sylvia Rivera, who co-founded Street Transvestite Action Revolutionaries with Marsha P. Johnson in 1970, had similar critiques. Rivera renamed the organization Street Transgender Action Revolutionaries in 2001. During pride of that year, she stated in an interview that the LGBTQ+ movement has “become so capitalist” and like a “big smoke screen.” “We do not owe the straight community a damn thing, so why should we be giving them our money?” She went on to say straight people “still really don’t accept the community for what they are, but they want that almighty dollar of ours.” McGraw, who is a lead organizer at Solidarity, told the audience at the start of the presentation it’s impossible to cover all queer history in one meeting. McGraw, who is also pursuing a minor in museums, archives and public history, is well aware that history “is not static, but an everevolving process that requires nuance and critical thinking.” Her two-hour presentation took attendees through some key 20th-century LGBTQ+ movements in the U.S. — including the Homophile Movement, the Stonewall Riots and Rebellion, Street Transvestite Action Revolutionaries, and activism during the AIDS Epidemic. (Note: terms like homophile and transvestite are not commonly used in activism today and are often considered offensive.) McGraw’s anti-neoliberalism critiques also bubbled up during the last section, titled “The Smokescreen.” Presentation by Solidarity at FAU Logan McGraw after her two-hour queer history presentation. Photo courtesy of Kayla Barnes. BY KAYLA BARNES She listed issues with the mainstream show “RuPaul’s Drag Race,” arguing it’s too expensive, toxic towards POC artists, and waited too long to allow trans artists onto the show. After prefacing that RuPaul has done good for the queer community and worked hard to achieve what she has, McGraw asked, “Is [‘RuPaul’s Drag Race’] even the counterculture bombshell it once was?” She then denounced the involvement of police and corporations in Pride month; the complacency of allies and activists following the legalization of gay marriage; and the queer people who uphold sexist, transphobic, and/or racist ideals. Some audience members expressed their agreement with her ideas by calling out things like “literally” and “thank you.” The room, however, got quiet when a photo of Nex Benedict appeared on the screen. Benedict, who reportedly used he/they pronouns, was beaten by classmates in the school bathroom on Feb. 7, and died by suicide the day after. McGraw used Benedict’s story to bolster the claim that bullying and anti-queer legislation are having severe impacts on queer children. The room maintained its somber tone as McGraw presented a project entitled “Queering the Map.” According to their Instagram account, the project is a “community-generated counter-mapping platform for digitally archiving LGBTQ2IA+ experience in relation to physical space.” The infographic showed several anonymous stories about queer love and identity pinned on a map of Gaza Strip. “My biggest regret is not kissing this one guy. He died two days back,” one entry read. “He died in the bombing. I think a big part of me died too. And soon I will be dead. To younus, I will kiss you in heaven.” McGraw claimed Zionist people – who believe in the development and protection of a Jewish nation – are weaponizing the violence queer people face around the world to justify the violence inflicted on Palestinian people. The presentation concluded with a list of ways she believes people can “combat the neoliberal idea of pride and queer liberation.” Her proposals are as follows: Do mutual aid; be unapologetically queer; read and educate yourself; stand up for queer people; and remember that activism must be cemented in revolutionary thought. WE DO NOT OWE THE STRAIGHT COMMUNITY A DAMN THING, SO WHY SHOULD WE BE GIVING THEM OUR MONEY? SYLVIA RIVERA ACTIVIST
4 OUTFAU | APRIL 2024 Dismantling DEI Photos inside the Center for IDEAs as the university has slowly dismantled its existence. When the DEI programs of the University of Florida, and University of North Florida were shut down this semester, they were met with student resistance and protests. When FAU’s Center for Inclusion, Diversity Education, and Advocacy (IDEAs) and its DEI programs were quietly dismantled, it was met with a whimper. It just closed up shop and its employees moved elsewhere in the university, as OutFAU reported back in January. Now the university has announced it will begin reviewing all of its diversity, equity and inclusion related expenditures as well as to make sure all general courses comply with the new state regulations. Meanwhile, a community of students and faculty are now coming together to discuss the state’s attacks on education. An event is planned for April 15. Maxx Fenning noted the timing of FAU’s anti-DEI crusade and its limited resources as two factors that perhaps kept students from organizing as they did on other campuses. Fenning is a former FAU student, current UF student, and also the executive director of PRISM, an organization focused on LGBTQ+ youth in South Florida. At UF, for instance, Fenning said there was “an organized movement bubbling up.” But at FAU, while he called the students’ groups “amazing,” he doesn’t believe they have the “same scale and scope to feel empowered.” He also noted that the Youth Action Fund played a significant role in those protests on other campuses. According to its website, the Youth Action Fund “is a collective of Gen-Z activists fighting against the far-right culture war raging throughout Florida.” The organization doles out money to young activists to assist in turning their ideas into action. “So I think that’s also a major component is that there were resources in place to really make a moment like that happen,” he said. FAU appeared to be one of the first, if not the first, to begin dismantling its DEI initiatives. “So I think that folks weren’t really paying as much attention,” Fenning said about the timing. “It wasn’t as much as in the public eye, especially for students.” As far as OutFAU can tell, there were no announcements, either, when the Center for IDEAs was closed down last summer. The Center was housed on the second floor of the Student Union on the Boca Raton campus. Fenning is disheartened over the closing. “We know that marginalized people, especially multiple marginalized people, already have greater barriers — to first of all getting into college in the first place — but then continuing and maintaining that education. There [are] so many obstacles throughout that process. Socioeconomic obstacles. Discrimination on campus. It’s so many different things,” Fenning said. “That’s kind of why these offices are so important. It’s because they sort of mitigate that harm, and they provide the support for when those issues do arise for folks who are facing discrimination, or any sort of marginalization or oppression throughout their academic career. So, yeah, tearing that down and eliminating those resources is really damaging for those folks, who are already struggling.” Ironically, FAU also has a long history of diversity, being the first university in the state to welcome all students, regardless of race, according to a university produced video on the FAU YouTube channel titled “The History of FAU in Two Minutes.” “FAU opened its doors to all students at a time when many southern schools were closed to Black students,” the video states. One year ago this month, a coalition of student groups who support DEI came together to form the FAU Action Coalition, where they protested against the state’s proposed Draconian measures. OutFAU asked one of the student organizers of that protest why no follow-ups, or other initiatives were ever planned, and was told other issues took priority. Kim Blandon participated in the planning of several of the protests on university campuses last year, including FAU. “We burnt out, kind of in May. So what we’re doing is that we were talking to the Board of Governors; we were talking to everyone behind the scenes; we were able to talk to all the presidents privately,” they said. “The issue that we faced is that nobody wanted to act in July [...] we were waiting to see what happened for the legislative session.” Blandon, who identifies as two-spirit, recently left SAVE, a prominent LGBTQ+ rights organization in Miami-Dade, and is now a digital organizer. Even though no major actions have taken place at FAU yet, as mentioned above, an event will take place on April 15 under the Social Science (SO) building from 12-2 p.m. The Florida Atlantic Solidarity Network will celebrate the diversity of the FAU community and demand that FAU retain its commitments to diversity, equity inclusion, democratic governance and academic freedom. The Erasure of LGBTQ+ Programs in Florida Universities BY MARY RASURA
Q ueer activism at FAU has a long and storied history dating back to at least 1971. Fred Fejes, 73, the former queer studies professor at FAU and now an emeritus, detailed the early efforts of gay activists in a column for OutFAU in our February issue. The first recorded gay activist was Joel Starkey. He launched a newsletter, Southern Gay Liberator; placed ads in the student newspaper; ran for the student senate; and attempted to become an official student club but was denied by FAU. As a student senator, he helped pass a resolution saying that no portion of student activity fees could be used by any FAU organization that discriminates on the basis of race, religion, gender or sexual orientation. A few years later, after Starkey left, another gay activist Mark Silber, filled the void. He wrote a personal essay in the student newspaper at the time, the Atlantic Sun, declaring “I am a gay person. A ‘queer,’ a ‘faggot,’ a ‘pervert.’ But I am not ashamed of what I am.” That was 1975. Silber succeeded in launching FAU’s first official gay club, FAU Gay Academic Union. Their club was, in fact, more inclusive than most similar ones around the country by actively recruiting feminists to join their cause. The group also published two newsletters, Liberation! and Florida Gay Liberation News. They launched the first ever gay pride celebration in Palm Beach County. When the club got word that the Boca Raton police were entrapping gay men at the beach they went before the city’s Community Relations Board where they complained. The board opened an investigation and the controversy generated favorable news coverage in local media outlets. While the investigation closed without taking any action, it still had an impact. Queer Activism at FAU Goes Back Decades APRIL2024 | OUTFAU 5 The closing of the Center for IDEAs though was just one example of how the state has targeted DEI programs. The Women and Gender Equity Resource Center was quietly changed to the Women’s Resource and Community Connection (WRCC). The queer books inside the Center were moved to another student government office and tucked away. FAU Media Relations is still working on a request from OutFAU to provide additional insight on the name change and if anything else about the WRCC has changed. So it’s unclear why IDEAs had to go while WRCC got to remain. Gov. Ron DeSantis, with his allies in the legislature, have waged a culture war against higher education over the last few years, specifically targeting any and all initiatives, focused on DEI. Another example that exemplifies the absurdity of the current state of affairs in Florida and at FAU, is the school’s web page on “diversity” which now says “page not found.” At the end of 2022 the DeSantis administration demanded each public university compile and report back to the state every DEI-related expenditure by Jan. 13, 2023, according to a memo from the state. Twelve institutions reported spending about $34.5 million in total, according to a 35-page document released by the Florida Department of Education. According to the report, FAU spent $904,025.84 on DEI-related programs with $642,775.84 coming from the state. Those expenses include the costs of the professors who teach DEI-related courses like HUM 2471 Racism and Anti-Racism. For example, one expense listed is a director for the Center for Women, Gender, and Sexuality Studies at a cost of $15,600. The bulk of the funds though was spent on the Center with a budget of $422,453 with $300,953 coming from the state. According to students who used the facility, there were faculty members focused on the LGBTQ+ community and race. But the loss of the Center stings the most. “The lack of human interaction is the biggest loss I suffer from the Center being gone,” Paige Allen, who graduated from FAU last December, previously told OutFAU. “I found people who were like me and had experiences I related to at the Center, and now they are scattered. There are fewer places for marginalized students to gather that are not student-led.” Now over the course of the spring semester the university has slowly stripped away the identity of the former Center for IDEAs. One room within the Center is now dedicated to meditation. When OutFAU reported on this back in January, Joshua Glanzer had this to say about the Center’s future: “The physical space formerly housing the Center for IDEAs is used as a general gathering space for students, many of whom previously attended programs and services offered by the Center and the student organizations who were advised by Center staff,” he explained. “We have installed student workstations with free printing and student staff facilitate divisional Transfer Student Success Initiatives, including the Transfer Action Program and the Johnson Scholarship Program for First Generation Transfer Students. Finally, we have hosted the Let’s Talk program facilitated by Counseling and Psychological Services (CAPS).” Unlike other universities, though, FAU got a head start on dismantling its DEI programs. The sweeping anti-DEI changes weren’t announced at UF, UNF, Florida State University and Florida A&M University until February and March. According to the Independent Florida Alligator, 13 full-time DEI positions at UF were eliminated, including the chief diversity officer and another 15 administrative appointments for faculty were ended. Recently the university sent an email to all students addressing DEI, specifically the Florida Board of Governors Regulation 9.016 which bans any funds being used to advocate for diversity, equity, and inclusion or promote or engage in political or social activism. The regulation defines DEI as such: “‘Diversity, Equity or Inclusion’ or ‘DEI’ is any program, campus activity, or policy that classifies individuals on the basis of race, color, sex, national origin, gender identity, or sexual orientation and promotes differential or preferential treatment of individuals on the basis of such classification.” Fred Fejes, 73, the former queer studies professor at FAU and now an emeritus, finds the email to be very vague. “What is left out is any discussion of the criteria used in the review. Thus can I teach a course on LGBTQ history? I would assume the response would be, ‘But of course. The LGBT experience is an important part of the American story,’’ Fejes said. “But do I have to teach it only as a story of bright and shiny America progress, focusing on ‘great persons/ great moments’ in LGBT history?” Fejes isn’t even sure he’d be able to teach homophobia under these new rules being implemented. “Can I teach how homophobia was used throughout history to cruelly suppress expressions of LGBTQ identity,” he said. “Can I also talk about great homophobes in history and great homophobic campaigns? Can I talk about homophobic institutions? Can I talk about how homophobia was and still is a part of the many understandings of sexuality, and is alive and well in many spaces in American society?” The email left a lot to the imagination. Additionally, the university is currently conducting a thorough review of all general education courses for compliance and is developing a process through which programs that may involve expenditures subject to review under the new Board of Governors’ Regulation are appropriately vetted by the institution. Any required re-allocation of resources under the new regulation will be accomplished thoughtfully and effectively. As such, any funds previously reported as DEl-related expenses will be utilized for over-arching student and faculty initiatives. OutFAU reached out to FAU media relations for additional information, such as why student groups are not affected, but did not receive a response in time for publication. Diverse student groups appear to be protected — for now. But that could always change. But even if student organizations aren’t targeted, they have many other obligations — like classes. Geanny Joseph Ruiz, a former director at the Center for IDEAs who left in 2021, explains Photo submitted by Fred Fejes. CONTINUE READING ON THE NEXT PAGE “THESE ARE STUDENTS WHO ARE ALREADY HAVING TO DEAL WITH HURDLES AND ISSUES THAT LGBT YOUNG PEOPLE TRADITIONALLY FACE. NOW THEY HAVE TO ALSO BE SADDLED WITH THE CHORE OF PUTTING ON PROGRAMS AND CREATING SAFE SPACES FOR OTHER QUEER STUDENTS TO GATHER.” GEANNY JOSEPH RUIZ FORMER DIRECTOR OF THE CENTER
Mourning the Loss of the Center for IDEAs “It’s really awful to actively see what Ron DeSantis is doing to diversity and inclusion efforts all across Florida. The LGBTQ+ resource center is where I met some amazing people and made great memories. It feels like we’re moving backwards. All of the initiatives that were put in place to help the LGBTQ+ community feel safer and more at ease are disappearing right before our eyes. Something has to be done to put us back on the right track.” Guylandsky Jean-Gilles, 2018 - 2020, Communication Studies “The lavender coffee hours were some of my favorite activities to do on campus. I felt more connected to my peers in that little space than I did anywhere else on campus. These spaces allowed students to share important details and experiences with each other that they’re not able to share with most other people. It lessened the isolating feeling that often comes with queer identities.” Ashby Santoro, 2019 - 2022, Biology and Health Science “It was just like a really nice space. [Director Geanny Joseph Ruiz] was like just making sure everybody feels comfortable. And to think the whole Center of IDEAs is gone. I don’t even know how to explain this. It’s so heartbreaking. That this department is no longer going to be available. It’s so sad that everything kind of crumbled apart because I know how hard the former director worked to get that place going, especially the LGBTQ corner.” Mariana Ribeiro, 2019 - 2022, Elementary education “I used it as well when I attended FAU. This is what complacency looks like. The gay community is not nearly as riled up as they should be about DeSantis, as too many are just way too ‘busy’ partying it up on cruises and [on Wilton Drive]. Sad that the younger population will have to go through all of this nonsense my generation went through all over again.” Michael Mittanck, 2016 - 2018, Bachelor of Science and Masters in Exercise Science and Health Promotion. While the Center for IDEAs may have ended as a big operation with a big budget. It started more humbling. One of those founding members was Emily Cohen and its first name was the LGBTQ Resource Center. Cohen, at the time, was an undergrad student majoring in psychology and seeking a certificate in women’s and gender studies. She now owns Hornet Designs, a full service graphic design and digital marketing company, with her wife. Cohen, along with a handful of other students, felt there was a need for a dedicated space on campus for the LGBTQ+ population. It opened in late 2010. Once the Center was up and running she applied to be the director once she graduated and got the position where she was for three and a half years. “We worked really hard to build that Center. I wanted to be a part of something growing and getting bigger,” she said. “But also to bring more queer and trans involvement on campus and programming. We had a great group of students that were really involved.” A big part of her job was providing mentorship to students. “It was also a safe place for young queer folks to come and talk to somebody who wasn’t going to treat it like a therapy session,” she recalls. “Who was going to just sit down and have a conversation with them like an old friend. And that is really, really what they needed.” At that time, the original space was a small office located near the student health offices and the Office for Multicultural Affairs. “It was super small,” she said. “The Center was always full.” But as time went on the university continued to block programs that could have been impactful but were deemed too controversial. Cohen remembers when she tried to bring a well known trans man, who was also a sex worker, to campus to speak to the students. “At the time, he was somebody that a lot of the students felt like they could connect with about being trans and learning more about who you are, and being able to express your sexuality once you’ve had an opportunity to be authentic,” Cohen said. Beyond that there were just constant logistical challenges. The students who knew about the Center, like those who were connected to the LGBTQ+ club at the time, would visit often, but reaching new students was harder than Cohen anticipated. “It was so many steps to get a flyer made for something. By the time I could get through the steps, it would be three days away from an event,” she said. “But there was no real support or trying to really create those spaces.” Founding Member Reflects on Center’s Beginning 6 OUTFAU | APRIL 2024 why it’s so important to have university backed DEI initiatives versus just relying on student groups. “These are students who are already having to deal with hurdles and issues that LGBT young people traditionally face. Now they have to also be saddled with the chore of putting on programs and creating safe spaces for other queer students to gather,” said Ruiz, who is now the Senior Manager for Safe and Healthy Schools for Equality Florida. “That can be burdensome and difficult, especially if you’re a younger student who may not know how to navigate and may not know what resources you have, as well. Students may not have as much resources. So just more responsibility for students who are already dealing with a whole lot of responsibility.” FAU has two main LGBTQ+ focused clubs, Lavender Alliance and BLISSS (BIPOC LGBTQIA+ Individuals Seeking Safe Spaces). Both have been very active this semester, hosting multiple social events each month. Additionally, Ruiz noted that having a program, or office, or center, backed by the university sends a strong message of inclusivity. “I think as professionals, there are a variety of things that we have to consider to make sure the program is inclusive — to make sure that we are promoting these events on a platform so that all types of students can attend,” Ruiz said. “So when the program is run by the University — one, it sends a message to students that this is something that the university values. FAU has historically touted itself as the most diverse school in the state of Florida, but in practice, what does that look like? So trained professionals actually providing spaces, fostering safe spaces for students. That’s a prime example of them walking the walk, and so it’s a great way to send a message to students.” Rudy Molinet, an adjunct professor in the College of Business, explained how the antiDEI efforts have impacted his classes. Molinet, a gay man, has been teaching at the school for over five years and recently became the chair of the board at Holy Cross Health. Recently, though, his job at FAU has “changed a lot.” “One of the things I teach my students is about emotional intelligence, about their EQ, emotional intelligence quotient, because that soft skill is very much in demand,” he said. “That [module] had a DEI component that I can’t use anymore.” Another example: “I held a seminar last year — a panel discussion on serving underserved communities — and I had to be very mindful of how I presented the material.” Molinet noted the forward-thinking approach of his department. “Most people think [of the] College of Business as stodgy and not progressive,” he said. But that’s not the case for his department. “Our leadership is very in tune with what the students need in the real world.” Molinet won’t be deterred from telling the truth. “I’m not going to stop talking about health disparities in health care based on people’s race. It is what it is,” he said. “It’s a fact — there are documented studies that we have to talk about. So how do I train healthcare leaders in providing care to, and making sure their health system provides the right care, and not have these kinds of conversations about LGBTQ, about African American women? I’m going to always speak the truth.” Molinet believes as long as he sticks to the facts and does not offer up his opinion, he won’t run afoul of the new anti-DEI laws. “For me, that kind of is counterintuitive to what education is supposed to be about, right?,” he said. “We should be having these courageous conversations with our students about what are the issues of the day. This law is really limiting the ability to do that without getting in trouble.” CONTINUED FROM THE PREVIOUS PAGE “I’M NOT GOING TO STOP TALKING ABOUT HEALTH DISPARITIES IN HEALTH CARE BASED ON PEOPLE’S RACE. IT’S A FACT — THERE ARE DOCUMENTED STUDIES THAT WE HAVE TO TALK ABOUT. I’M GOING TO ALWAYS SPEAK THE TRUTH.” RUDY MOLINET ADJUNCT PROFESSOR
APRIL2024 | OUTFAU 7 Q ueer theater made its way to FAU in March through Theater Lab’s annual New Play Festival, where new works are premiered before they are produced. At this year’s festival, “La Paloma’’ by Andie Arthur and “Harold & Babs” by D. A. Mindell offered two different conceptualizations on queer resistance in a time of increasing bigotry — particularly here in Florida. A thanks must be given here to the Fair Play Initiative and the Our Fund Foundation, a South Florida LGBTQ philanthropic organization, for providing the funding that made these plays possible. “La Paloma” is a historical drama focusing on the actual La Paloma queer club that existed in Dade County which was raided by the KKK in 1937, described by the playwright as a sort of “Stonewall before Stonewall.” In a story about a close knit community, its oppression, and its resistance and resilience, there are a number of striking parallels to our present-day situation and thus should serve as a source for inspiration for our struggle for our liberation. It must be remembered that the first pride was a riot, and this history cannot be forgotten. “Harold & Babs” is a comedy about a couple in 1950’s Maryland, who switch their identities once they realize they are both transgender. While firmly a comedy, the play speaks seriously about the trans experience, parenthood, and Communism. At a time when trans and queer people are being persecuted, it was comforting to experience a performance that affirmed our experiences as trans people with all the comfort of a sitcom while still imagining a future where we can choose to live free from the confines of imposed ideas about family and gender. These stories of queer resistance, both deeply political and personal, are necessary in times like these. Theater has always been part of our history, from Aristophanes to “Rent,” and it allows us to portray ourselves in ways that are often denied to us. Ultimately, the lesson from these stories for us, the queer community, is that we have to stand by each other as friends, as spouses, and as family. New Queer Plays Showcased at FAU BY XIMENA DIPIETRO AND LEWIS DE BERRY D.A. Mindell. Courtesy of Theatre Lab. WE’RE LOOKING FOR WRITERS, PHOTOGRAPHERS, AND DESIGNERS! EMAIL [email protected] VISIT US ONLINE OUTFAU.COM FOLLOW US ON INSTAGRAM @OUTFAU