The Chancellor’s Committee for the Status of LGBTQ+ People Celebrates Pride Month
The month of June is designated Pride Month to commemorate the anniversary of the Stonewall Rebellion in New York City on June 28, 1969. At a time when police raids on LGBTQ+ bars were common, the patrons at the Stonewall Inn and other bars fought back when the police became violent. Transgender activists, like Marsha P. Johnson and Sylvia Rivera, were at the forefront of the fight. The Stonewall Rebellion sparked national activism and is considered the catalyst for advocacy for LGBTQ+ rights in the United States.
Pride Month honors the diversity of LGBTQ+ people and provides opportunities for the community and our allies to come together. Chicago’s LGBTQ+ community held its first annual Gay Liberation March on June 27, 1970. This march, which came to be known as the Pride Parade, encouraged people to fight homophobia by coming out and raising awareness of the issues and injustices facing the community.
The coronavirus pandemic brought Chicago Pride festivities to a standstill in 2020 and 2021, but the following Pride events return in 2022:
- Andersonville Midsommarfest: June 10 – 12, 2022
- Chicago Pride Fest: June 18 – 19, 2022
- Pride in the Park: June 25 – 26, 2022
- Chicago Pride Parade: June 26, 2022
- South Side Pride: TBD
- Chicago Dyke March: TBD
- UIC GSC PRIDE Picnic: June 15, 2022 (11:30am-1:30pm) @ BSB Gazebo
- RSVP: https://go.uic.edu/PridePicnic ***RSVP is required for this event***
It is important to remember that, though things have gotten better, the LGBTQ+ community still faces violence and discrimination. Many states have pending legislation targeting LGBTQ+ people for discrimination, including prohibiting gender-affirming healthcare for transgender youth. Conversion therapy also remains legal in many parts of the United States.
Please visit Lambda Legal or Transgender Law Center to learn more.
Our committee encourages all UIC community members to learn more about LGBTQ+ persons. We reinforce our commitment to greater inclusion of LGBTQ+ individuals at UIC with the following resources:
- UIC Gender and Sexuality Center (GSC)
- The GSC promotes deeply engaged and life affirming thinking, learning, and action with students, faculty, staff, alumni, and community members. Through programs, initiatives, events, and workshops, the GSC creates a more inclusive campus and catalyzes positive social change in the world. Underlying the Center’s work is an understanding of intersecting identities and the multiple layers of diversity within LGBTQIA+ identities.
- All-Gender Restrooms
- UI Health LGBTQ+ Inclusive Care
- UIC Bias Reporting Tool: Bias Reporting & Prevention
For Allies: Navigating Allyship