You can get your picture taken for the new Faces of Pride poster Tuesday and Wednesday at the LGBT Center
Students roaming Alden Library, Baker Center and Ellis Hall will soon see colorful posters depicting LGBT individuals and supporters of the LGBT community.
Faces of Pride is a longstanding tradition of the LGBT Center in an effort to increase community awareness and acceptance of the LGBT community.
On March 31 and April 1, from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m., staff will be photographing anyone who would like their picture taken in the LGBT Center.
Many pictures are still left over from last year, bringing the grand total of current pictures up to 130. Jesper Beckholt, education coordinator of the LGBT Center, anticipates that there will be a higher prominence of posters this year across campus than in years past.
“Honestly, if we end up making 10 posters instead of six it shouldn’t be a problem,” Beckholt said. “I think anyone who wants to be on the posters will be.”
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This year’s format differs slightly from the past Faces of Pride. Instead of just a headshot, participants are encouraged to hold up a white board explaining their sexuality or why they support the LGBT community in bright markers.
“I really like it because it enables people to talk about their identities rather than just one word like ‘lesbian’ or ‘transgender,’” said Nelly Herman, education coordinator of the LGBT Center. “I got to talk about how I like being queer and trans and poly because I get to define my own life; that’s something that just my picture wouldn’t say.”
Delfin Bautista, the director of the LGBT Center, said many community members and prominent figures have reached out to participate in Faces of Pride.
“It was cool to see the president and the first lady taking a picture saying … ‘We support all Bobcats.’ OUPD did something similar, they orchestrated their own pictures… The sign that they held said ‘we serve all,’” said Bautista. “It really is an opportunity not only to put a face on what our movement or community looks like, but it’s also a simple way of getting our message out of inclusivity of affirmation of all people.”
Beckholt hopes that the posters not only spread awareness to heterosexual community members, but that LGBT people see that the Athens community is accepting of all individuals.
“Before I started coming to the LGBT Center, I saw the posters and thought, ‘That’s cool.’ Even as a freshman, the general climate shows that there are people who are out and sharing that part of themselves with others,” Beckholt said. “A lot of times if there’s a face to something it makes something feel more human and more real.”
@rachel_hartwick
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