Lucy Ade expressed her gratitude towards EIU Pride explaining the importance the Registered Student Organization, RSO, brought to her since Ade is a part of the LGBTQ+ community.

Ade explains how EIU Pride has helped her gather her identity as a transgender person.

“It’s probably one of the organizations that helped me gather my identity, and mostly it helped me find a place to start exploring my identity that I would feel comfortable enough to come out and start expressing my identity outside of pride,” Ade said.

Ade also explains that she was not the first transgender person to take on the role of vice president of EIU Pride. The RSO has been a support system for her and others on campus.

“I hope that it brought more LGBTQ+ students into student government and other leadership positions,” Ade said. “Just every community needs their voice and I’m happy that me being in these positions has helped gain the voices.”

Ade also explained that many people have gone to EIU Pride and have become great friends, and many have created those connections in Pride

“There’s a lot of people that met at pride, and then they went on to be really great friends afterwards, and I think that’s one of the best ways I think any student organization, especially one that based on an affinity group, is really great at is bringing students out who are part of that affinity group together and making those connections.” Ade said. “I also know that just like any [registered student organization] leadership position we have had new members join our executive board and those students gain new leadership positions and get to share their voice.”

Ade also talked about what events are coming up and that are hosted by EIU Pride. Pride has hosted some events that any Eastern student can get involved in.

“A lot of the funds that pride has used for their members come from the drag show, use it very much at the fundraiser event, and in the past, I’ve also donated a lot of money from the drag show to different organizations.” Ade said. “I think one of the other ones that I’m happy I got to help with and I’m happy that I’m continuing to help with is our second chance prom.”

The LGBTQ+ community has changed overtime according to Ade.

“I’m happy to see how much the EIU community has gained in acceptance,” Ade said. “I think that’s something that we should all be proud of. There’s still work to be done. Just like in the rest of the country and the rest of the world, there’s still work to be done. But the EIU community has gotten a lot more accepting of more than just the LGBTQ+ community of other communities.”

To get involved in EIU Pride or EIU’s LGBTQ+ community contact lgbtqa@eiu.edu.

Chandler Smith can be reached at 581-2812 or at cbsmith5@eiu.edu.