Pride Month at CMU
Dear Members of the Carnegie Mellon University Community:
As we move through June, I am warmed to see so many of you embracing and celebrating Pride Month in your own ways. Across our campus and throughout our city, people are coming together to uplift and support our LGBTQIA+ community. At Carnegie Mellon, we honor Pride Month and the long history of LGBTQIA+ identities fighting for their right to exist freely and openly. From the Daughters of Bilitis to the uprisings at Compton’s Cafeteria and the Stonewall Inn to the ongoing fight for equal rights and protections today, LGBTQIA+ identities have steadfastly demanded the full recognition of their humanity throughout history. Learn more about the legacies of Queer trailblazers who paved the way for Pride as we know it today here.
The Office of the Vice Provost for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion and Chief Diversity Officer, in collaboration with university leadership and partners, is proud to host and support events and activities this month that celebrate Pride and honor the legacy of Queer activism. This includes a special keynote event with Hugh Ryan, a writer, curator and historian. More details about this and other events across campus are on the VP for DEI & CDO website.
Keynote Speaker Hugh Ryan on June 28 from 1 - 2 p.m. streamed in Rangos and via Zoom
Ryan is the author of "The Women's House of Detention: A Queer History of a Forgotten Prison," the infamous facility that once dominated Greenwich Village. It is the story of one building: the people it caged, the neighborhood it changed, and the resistance it inspired. His first book, "When Brooklyn Was Queer," won a 2020 New York City Book Award, was a New York Times Editors' Choice in 2019, and was a finalist for the Randy Shilts and Lambda Literary Awards.
The ABCs of the LGBTQIA+ Lunch and Learn hosted by Vibrant Pittsburgh on June 15 at 12 p.m. via Zoom
This interactive session will focus on developing a better understanding of LGBTQIA+ identities and experiences through an intersectional lens; using respectful and inclusive language; understanding the role that you can play as an ally in supporting LGBTQIA+ people; and how you can help to create an inclusive environment for all.
LGBTQIA+ Faculty and Staff Alliance Social Event on June 21 from 12 - 1 p.m. in Connan Room, CUC
The LGBTQIA+ Faculty and Staff Alliance is hosting a lunch in celebration of Pride month. At this event, they will be collecting items for the Hugh Lane Wellness Foundation community pantry. Contact us via email for more information or to register.
Diversity & Inclusion Network Pride Luncheon on June 30 from 12 - 1 p.m. at The Center
The Center for Student Diversity and Inclusion invites you to share a meal with them in the Center. A conversation will be led by CMU's own Dr. Tim Haggerty, the director of the Humanities Scholars Program and adjunct professor in History.
I encourage and welcome every Tartan to join us in celebrating the LGBTQIA+ community and learning about the rich history of the many courageous trailblazers who gave so much for liberation. As we move through Pride month, I want to leave you with the words CMU alum Billy Porter (CFA ‘91) shared in his commencement keynote: “I am worthy. I am enough. Just as I am.”
We are all enough.
Happy Pride!
Sincerely,
Wanda Heading-Grant
Vice Provost for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion and Chief Diversity Officer
Distinguished Service Professor, Heinz College of Information Systems and Public Policy