EXCLUSIVE: USF holds ‘Pride Belongs to the People' event
The event documented 'the struggles, circumstances and demands of LGBTQ+ activists in Johannesburg, South Africa, Taiwan, India, Cuba, and New York.'
Pride-related photo exhibit topics included '‘Hand Job’ queer sex and disability activists at Taiwan Pride,' 'Dyke March,' and 'Drag March in New York.'
On February 8, The University of South Florida (USF) held a “Pride Belongs to the People” photo exhibition, documenting “the struggles, circumstances and demands of LGBTQ+ activists in Johannesburg, South Africa, Taiwan, India, Cuba, and New York.”
Campus Reform correspondent Alyssa Bianchi attended the event and obtained exclusive photos of the exhibits and proceedings.
Pride-related photo exhibit topics included “‘Hand Job’ queer sex and disability activists at Taiwan Pride,” “Dyke March,” and “Drag March in New York.”
Images of LGBTQ-related protests were on display at the event.
One photo depicts a woman at a protest holding up a sign that reads, “There are no queer suicides only queer murders.”
During the event, Dr. Daniel Conway, faculty member at the University of Westminster in the UK, lectured on the topic “Pride Belongs to the People: Exploring the Global Politics of Pride.”
A grant provided to USF by Florida Humanities, a subsidiary of the National Endowment for the Humanities, funded the event.
The mission of Florida Humanities is to “preserve, promote and share the history, literature, culture and personal stories that offer Floridians a better understanding of themselves, their communities and their state.”
Campus Reform’s Alyssa Bianchi observed that social distancing was enforced and masks were strongly encouraged at the event.
The USF event was billed as highlighting aspects of Pride that ”sit outside of the ‘mainstream’ of LGBT advocacy and Pride events,” viewed as “characterized by generous corporate funding, official state support,” and that are “homonormative.”
USF was recently implicated in the DeSantis administration’s efforts to gain information about the expenditures dedicated to critical race theory and diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives at Florida colleges and universities.
Bryan Griffin, press secretary for Gov. DeSantis, called the amount of spending dedicated to such efforts at USF and other schools an “extraordinary misuse of taxpayer dollars.”
USF, USF’s Department of Women and Gender studies, Dr. Daniel Conway, the University of Westminster, Florida Humanities, and the National Endowment for Humanities have not responded to comments requested by Campus Reform.
