Now featuring: Pride Club!

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Angel Trinh, Editor In Chief

Pride club is a newly formed club that offers a safe place for all LGBT+ students and their allies every Thursday after school in room 025. Co-presidents Emma Jewell and Olive Paz created the club because former clubs that aimed to provide this support hadn’t survived, making East the only LPS high school without a confidential space for LGBT+ students to express themselves and discuss or address the transphobia or bullying issues within the school. The sponsors, Mrs. Moore and Mr. Flowerday, have acted as strong advocates for the club, but the support isn’t limited to these two teachers. Jewell express her thanks for all the faculty support that the club has received. “Many members of the staff have been incredibly supportive, and I am very grateful for that.”

Aside from the main goal being the creation of a space where all LGBT+ students can feel comfortable and safe, Jewell also hopes to increase awareness with East. “As a queer student, I’ve often felt separated or isolated from my peers… I think a lot of people don’t realize that there are many LGBT+ students at East. I want people to know that we exist–and that includes the teachers.”

Posters from around the school have been put up to inform others about the difficulties that queer individuals can encounter in an unwelcoming community. Jewell hopes the displayed statistics will educate the student body about various LGBT+ identities and issues. “Intolerance is the result of ignorance, and the only way we can truly increase acceptance of LGBT+ students at EHS is to educate the East High community. Ideally, Pride Club will be able to combat prejudice with education.”