Gay and lesbian student group seeking lounge on campus

Members of Eastern's gay and lesbian community are hard at work petitioning and fundraising to bring a student lounge on campus. The space, designated the Alphabet Lounge, is envisioned as a welcoming and socializing center open to all, said Samantha Ratcliffe and Farah Ardeshir, two students on the Alphabet Lounge Committee.

The lounge would serve as a place where people could learn about lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender issues.

The idea for the Alphabet Lounge came about when Ratcliffe, a sophomore occupational therapy major from Nicholasville, and Ardeshir, a sophomore political science major from Berea, were asked to design an activism project in their women and gender studies class last fall.

"The purpose of the Alphabet Lounge is to have a space that encompasses the gay and lesbian communities' needs not fully being met by the Multicultural Center," Ardeshir said. "We have a vast culture and we need to be recognized on Eastern's campus."

The Lounge draws its name from the lengthy acronym LGBTQQI, which stands for lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans, queer, questioning, and intersex.

"This space is open and created for all students," Ratcliffe said. "It would be run by trained student workers and would be open as a relaxing environment where students could come, read, study, and hang out."

Eastern administration is working with Alphabet Lounge Committee members to find the space needed for the Alphabet Lounge. The committee hopes to find space in Powell Student Center, much like that designated for Older, Wiser Learners (OWLS), the university's nontraditional student group.

The committee hopes the lounge will serve to connect and strengthen the gay and lesbian communities on campus and reduce negative dialogue and attitudes directed toward gay and lesbian issues.

Members of the committee said they are trying to prove that not only would the Lounge reduce prejudice toward Eastern's gay and lesbian community, but it would also serve to demonstrate the activity of the gay and lesbian community on campus.

Although the project's future is still very much up in the air, Alphabet Lounge representatives said they are planning to meet with members of the Student Government Association in the future to possibly get the petition passed within the Student Senate.

"Perhaps the passing of the Alphabet Lounge petition and the creation of the Lounge will inspire other students to stand up for their beliefs and possibly take activism into their own hands," Ratcliffe said.

To date, the petition has collected more than 500 signatures and the group has raised hundreds of dollars through fundraising efforts including bake sales.

Alphabet Lounge Committee members said they are still in need of more student volunteers who wish to support gay and lesbian issues on campus. They also need more signatures and student testimonies of negative language that gay or lesbian students have faced at Eastern to help document the need for such a meeting place.

Committee members said everyone would be welcome in the lounge, but only under the condition they use appropriate language, be respectful of everyone's sexuality, gender and sex when in the space.