Due to state policy that bans diversity, equity and inclusion offices, programs and training, Texas’ public universities have seen a decrease in available resources for LGBTQ students. For husbands Justin and Jon Culpepper, the matter hits close to home. They knew they had to act.
Pride Frisco, the Texas-based LGBTQ resource center founded by the Culpeppers, is working to fill the void and help improve student well-being and belonging with a campaign to bus college students to their annual festival on Oct. 6 at Frisco’s Toyota Stadium. The event will offer numerous rich resources and of course, community, at a time when college students need it most.
The annual Pride Frisco Festival celebrates the LGBTQ community across the Dallas suburb and all of the Dallas Fort Worth metropolitan area. Past speakers include Sara Cunningham, founder of Free Mom Hugs, Mandy Giles, founder of Parents of Trans Youth and more.
This year, GLAAD award-winning Journalist Nico Lang, singer Raymond Salgado and more join the festival lineup. Additionally, valuable resources provided by GLAAD, the Human Rights Campaign, ACLU Texas, Equality Texas and numerous local organizations like Finn’s Place, a trans advocacy organization, HELP Center, an LGBTQ clinic based in North Texas, the North Texas LGBT Chamber, and many others will be at the annual festival.
For generations, college campuses have served as a new home for students who looked for a community and classmates they could relate to. It was through DEI programs that students from marginalized communities felt safe to come together and find the necessary resources to live a healthy and fulfilling college life on campus and beyond. Services like mental health counseling and therapy, trans and nonbinary support groups, resources for gender marker changes and community events celebrating the LGBTQ community were provided through these efforts.
As Senate Bill 17 goes into effect, these resources are now gone. The shuttering of these offices has had a profound impact on queer students’ safety and well-being on campus.
“The erasure of DEI programs at public universities in Texas is a dangerous setback for LGBTQ students. For many in the community, college is one of the first spaces where they can express themselves, openly love, and come into their identities,” Sarah Kate Ellis, GLAAD President and CEO said. “Pride Frisco’s initiative in ensuring that the resources once accepted on campus are not only provided at its annual festival but also offered to students, is an inspiring example of the many efforts LGBTQ Texans have prioritized in taking care of their community.”
The campaign to bus students to Pride Frisco’s Festival is a response to the lack of safety provided for LGBTQ Texans, Jon Culpepper said.
“Our pride festival provides the best resources available to LGBTQIA+ people, especially college students who have seen essential programs and resources on campus dismantled as a direct consequence of harmful anti-DEI and anti-LGBTQ legislative actions in Texas and beyond,” Jon Culpepper said. “This campaign provides an opportunity for the community to support our younger generation in a direct and impactful way by sending them to Pride.”
The LGBTQ community in North Texas and beyond has an opportunity to come together and ensure college students feel less alone, access the resources they need, and connect with a loving support network that is here for them.
To donate to Pride Frisco’s efforts to provide transportation for college students, please click the link here.