Music emanated from Sylvster’s Cafe on Friday, stirring up the gentle chill of the air, symbolizing the beginning of the autumnal season. Inside, an event celebrating those in the community symbolized the end of GSEC’s Queer Week. Attendees, dressed in their finest, had the luxury of wearing a costume or traditional prom attire.
Groups of three or four slowly trickled into the room, filling the dance floor that was flooded with hypnotic, colorful lights.
String lights circled the perimeter of the room, all mindfully placed with a Halloween theme. Decorations such as paper bats cluttered the walls. Seats created the outline of the dance floor, squeezed together to create a makeshift couch. Along the wall was a spread of fun-sized candy scattered about on the nylon tablecloth and small flyers for upcoming GSEC events on campus.
Tucked against the back wall was a bar with a prepared mocktail menu for the evening, but one stood out the most, the Bi-Berry. Two bartenders, also dressed to the nines, had their individual stations, filled with fizzy, fruity components.
Normally, GSEC organizes events as a team, but the LGBTQIA+ coordinator, Kenzi Teal, took on the leadership role to organize this event for students who may not have been able to experience their high school prom. Teal was unable to attend Queer Prom, but Program Director Autumn Garrison stepped in as announcer for the evening.
“It’s always a team effort at GSEC,” Garrison said.
The show featured a drag performer, Rio Rexxx, who competed in GSEC’s drag competition last semester. Dressed in a haunting clown costume, Rios had a face painted with dark red blood.
In her introduction, Garrison highlighted that she emerged from the creek. As she creepily made her way to the dance floor, the beginning of Michael Jackson’s “Thriller” sporadically played, insinuating the routine.
DJ Lino was helped out with the setup by KCSC Radio. Music blared through the speakers, and played a variety of genres such as Reggaeton, pop and house.
“I thought it was really important for me that the DJ not only played music in Spanish, but queer music in Spanish. I loved the representation as queer Latine person,” said Ismael Vazquez
This prom also featured a royalty court, all students, of course, including Rexxx. The court was organized in a series of categories, each representing a color of the rainbow.
A local photographer set up a booth in the back corner, brightening up the spooky mood in the room.
Hidden away in the furthest corner from the energy was the GSEC table, which featured flyers of their upcoming events and a variety of small, pocket-sized flags, including many branches of the LGBTQIA+ community.
Having a coalition on campus for queer voices is essential, and creating spaces for students to attend events where they feel safe is crucial in today’s climate.
“Events like Queer Prom are critical, they build community and create a sense of safety, and help provide relief from the hate and prejudice of the Trump administration,” Garrison said.
That night, Queer Prom showed how much students need spaces like this. Who knows, maybe there are more drag queens who call the creek home than we may have initially thought.
Marianne Akre can be reached at [email protected] or [email protected]
