USC expands LGBT center in response to 'misguided bills' across U.S., president says
University of Southern California President Carol Folt announced that the university has doubled the space of LGBTQ+ Student Center in Los Angeles.
'We want to offer at USC a wonderful sense of connection and community to combat the damage of those misguided bills,' Folt said at a virtual event to celebrate 'Pride Month.'
At a “Pride Month Kickoff” on June 2, University of Southern California President Carol Folt announced that the university has doubled the space of LGBTQ+ Student Center in Los Angeles.
What made doubling the space “very important” to Folt was what she claims are “misguided bills.” Presumably, she was referring to conservative legislation in other states like Florida, which have banned so-called “transgender” surgeries for minors and prevented taxpayer dollars from funding college Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) programs.
“We want to offer at USC a wonderful sense of connection and community to combat the damage of those misguided bills,” Folt said at the virtual event. “At the relaunch of the center, Trojans passed out stickers that read, ‘You belong at USC.’ And I want to say that again to everyone here — you belong at USC.”
”Bans on the provision of evidence-based medical care for adolescents and young adults, bathroom bills, bills excluding trans people from sports, and limiting support offered in schools through the ‘Don’t Say Gay’ bills have all created an environment where our patients and communities experience exclusion, chronic stress and fear about the future, even though we are lucky to live in a state where these rights are currently protected,’ said Laura Taylor, who leads the USC “Gender-Affirming Care Program.”
In addition to increasing the square footage of the LGBTQ+ Student Center, USC also renovated the building that houses the ONE Archives, which is “the largest repository of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer (LGBTQ) materials in the world.”
According to its web page, the LGBTQ+ Student Center is “a cultural advocacy center that provides support, education, advocacy, and community for undergrad & grad students at USC.”
“In carrying out its mission,” another statement says, “the LGBTQ+SC is committed to engaging in its pillars of support, education, advocacy, and community by programming across the multiple intersections of identities within the diverse LGBTQ+ community.”
The center’s programming includes a rainbow-decorated lounge and “Queer Book Club.” It also offers a “Queer Fandom Fanatics” club, which looks at pop culture using “a queer, intersectional lens.”
USC also makes identity-based housing available, which it calls “Living Learning Communities.” One space that students can apply to live in is called the “Rainbow Floor.”
Campus Reform contacted President Folt’s office and the LGBTQ+ Student Center for comment. This story will be updated accordingly.
