Beth Watkins, manager of exhibition, interpretation, and visitor experience at the Spurlock Museum, discusses several exhibits relating to the Champaign-Urbana LGBTQ+ community. The first exhibit, In Her Closet, focused on drag costuming and highlighted local drag queens. One national queen who provided her outfits was Sasha Velour, a CU local and previous winner of RuPaul's Drag Race. The next exhibit discussed was Sewn in Memory, which displayed AIDS quilt panels from Central Illinois.
Christopher Jones, a graduate of the studio art MFA program and research professor in the College of Fine and Applied Arts, discusses the intersection of queer and disabled communities. He cofounded the Cripistemology and the Arts creative research lab, which serves as a gathering place for disabled students.
Khalia matriculated as an undergraduate student at the University of Illinois in 2021. Originally from Chicago, IL, Khalia recounts what it was like moving to Wheaton, IL, at age seven and attending a predominantly white school as a young Black girl. Later she discusses her decision to attend the University of Illinois, the development of her political identity and personal interests, and how her identities as a revolutionary queer, Black person have shaped her community building experiences at the University and in other spaces.
L.C. arrived at the University of Illinois in 2013 as a librarian and enrolled in the PhD program for information science in 2020. In this interview, he explains what it was like growing up in Grovetown, Georgia, shares his educational journey, and discusses his placemaking experiences as a Black transmasculine student and staff member at the University of Illinois.
Nyx Melancon is a rising senior studying English and creative writing. In the interview, they discuss the challenges of navigating the social lanscape on campus as a Black nonbinary transmasc lesbian. He also highlights the intersectional events he has organized as an intern at the Gender and Sexuality Resource Center, including a Revolutionary Voices open mic and the Black Queer Afropunk Takeover.
Robyn Deterding, former director of campus recreation and current adjunct instructor, discusses her work in creating an inclusive campus environment through gender-neutral bathrooms and locker rooms and inclusion statements. She also discusses her child's transition.
Dr. Shaciarra Hamilton, a Clinical Counselor at the University's Counseling Center, grew up in rural Mississippi, attended Grambling State University in Louisiana for undergrad, and moved to Urbana-Champaign during the covid-19 pandemic after completing her doctorate in psychology. In the interview, she discusses the need for more inclusive spaces for BIPOC queer people and describes her experience with building community in town.
Sreelakshmi Suresh, a graduate of the entomology Master's degree program, discusses their time at the University as a student and community builder. Suresh founded and served as president of F.U.S.E., which stands for Foraging Unity, Solidarity, and Equity for QTPOC (queer and transgender people of color). Suresh mentions that they feel they have two separate identities on campus: one as a graduate student and the other as a queer person. They wanted to create a community for queer people of color, which they felt was previously lacking, to help others who may feel isolated on campus.
