Imagine being in high school and being told that you could not go to prom with the person you love. Unfortunately, this scenario occurs all too often within the LGBTQ community. As part of National Coming Out Week, Georgia Southern’s GSA is giving students around campus the opportunity to make up for not being able to take part in the right of passage that is high school prom.

” A lot of times during high school, we couldn’t really go with whom we wanted to or dress as we wanted to, so this is making up for that,” Darren Winters, a Georgia Southern sophomore, said.

The theme of Pride Prom is 90’s Throwback and it will be held in the Williams Center Multipurpose Room on Friday, Oct. 9 at 8 p.m. There is no fee to attend.

According to GSA’s Advocacy Chair, Jessie Martin, Pride Prom is “one of those events for the community, by the community”.

A Place for Anyone

For years, GSA has been providing a safe place for Eagles who label themselves as a member of the LGBTQ community.

Darren Winters said, “GSA was the place where I found my niche.”

Coming to school in the South in a town that is surrounded by cotton fields and Confederate flags can be pretty intimidating to someone who is part of the LGBTQ community. GSA strives to provide a sense of community for those who haven’t felt as though they were a part of a community before.

“It’s a safe space. If you’re not out to anyone on campus, you come and it is a safe place,” Shelby Moore, junior English major, said.

The Gay-Straight Alliance has given these students a chance to not only express themselves, but also feel safe while doing so.

What’s Your Prom Story? (Not So Picture Perfect Prom)

Shelby Moore, junior English major

“My brother is a year older and brought my childhood best friend to prom. Ten minutes in, my brothers dumps his date- my best friend. I sat at the table with her all night, and we got looks. Eight people came up to me the next week and asked if I was lesbian. I looked at them and said, ‘It’s none of your business.’”

Ethan Winters, junior psychology major

“Looking back on prom now is the most dysphoric thing. Even before I came out as trans, that wasn’t me, but what people wanted me to be. It makes me mad because I wish I had gone as myself. [I wore] what my mom wanted me to wear. It was so uncomfortable. I’m the complete opposite of that. Now, I get to go to Pride Prom as myself with my wonderful boyfriend and be really cute.”

Darren Winters, sophomore biology major

“I’m not really a big fan of dances. Senior year I realized what I was and [when asked about prom] I was like, ‘Fuck no!’ That’s how I felt about it. It was not a place to be yourself and I would have been ridiculed.”