Last week, Brock Pride began the new term with a general meeting, marking the return of this safe space for all 2SLGBTQ+ students at Brock.
Brock Pride held their first weekly meeting on Thursday, Sept. 14th, with the mission to “[create] a safe, social environment for students of diverse gender and sexual identities.” Meetings will continue to be hosted from 3 p.m to 5 p.m in Welsh Hall room 311 for the rest of the semester.
The club’s weekly meetings centre around activities that change week to week “such as games, painting and some discussions,” says Chance, president of Brock Pride.
Chance runs the club alongside executives Barbara, Sebastian, Kate and Yvette, and says they “have [their] roles, but [they] tend to just work together on most things so no one feels like they’re left alone with a specific task.”
Brock Pride’s ExperienceBU bio describes the club’s “warming atmosphere,” which gives members the chance to “create support networks and gain guidance in maintaining healthy relationships, coming out and other issues relevant to having a queer identity.”
Chance further describes Brock Pride as a “safe space” first and foremost. “Our activities aren’t always related to the idea of queerness because it is not the only part of our identities, and we really just wanted to build a community where people could be themselves and make friends.” It’s this sentiment that shows how members of Brock Pride are not limited by labels or definitions; they are all diverse individuals with a variety of backgrounds and passions.
In addition to weekly meetings, Brock Pride hosts a handful of smaller events like movie nights and a campfire. They also have plans to invite a drag queen to at least one event per semester. At the end of the year, they hope to have a rainbow prom, an event just like a typical prom but catered for 2SLGBTQ+ students: “Much of our community did not have a chance to be themselves at their formals growing up and we want to provide that opportunity,” says Chance.
Chance’s favourite part of Brock Pride is when they can “pull in queer students that don’t come to weekly meetings.” One notable example she provided was the Pride House event, hosted at Isaac’s Bar and Grill in June 2022.
Check out Brock Pride’s weekly meetings and keep an eye out for their events as the semester continues.
Students can join Brock Pride and find updates on ExperienceBU. Information can also be found on their Instagram page.