The Gender and Sexuality Equity Coalition is hosting an open house at the new BSS building – The Orion

The Coalition for Gender and Sexuality Justice held an open day at the new one on Thursday Building for the College of Behavioral and Social Sciences.

The GSEC is a student-led activist organization whose goal is to empower students. There are three programs within the coalition: the Women’s Program, the LGBTQIA+ Program and the Outreach Program.

Rainbow balloons and Pride flags hung everywhere in the new office. Students and faculty were welcomed into the room with snacks, free stickers and pins, and invited to a scavenger hunt with a prize.

The women’s program advocates for equal rights for all “female-identifying people in a male-dominated society,” as it says on its site Website. The program provides educational opportunities focused on the diverse experiences of women and aims to create a safe university environment for all women.

The LGBTQIA+ program is committed to providing queer and gender diverse education to maintain a safe campus community and strengthen spaces and educational awareness as stated in their program Website.

Cassandra Ramondo is the organization’s outreach coordinator. She leads the outreach program with a focus on marketing the women’s and LGBTQIA+ programs. The Outreach Program provides educational opportunities to support student innovation in public relations and social media.

The previous GSEC office was located in Meriam Libraryshare the space Multicultural and Gender Studies. Their previous space will now house the new Asian and Pacific Islander Council center.

“There were no windows, we were very enclosed and couldn’t be seen,” Ramondo said. “The students didn’t really know what GSEC was.”

Their new location is Room 102 in the Behavioral and Social Sciences Building. There are two offices with sliding doors and windows overlooking the creek. There is also a lounge area with sofas and outdoor seating.

“We will now be more open and visible,” Ramondo said. “We encourage everyone to come by, say hello and get to know us.”

GSEC has many products in its office that are often only provided by one other building on campus, the WellCat Health Center. You have articles like:

• pad
• Tampons
• condoms
• Fentanyl test strips
• Rubber dam
• Pregnancy tests

Cutline: In the new office lounge area there were two sofas with throw pillows. Photo taken by Beatrice Williams on October 3rd.

The organization is considered a non-profit organization and receives no funding as a club on campus. They receive the majority of their funding from Associated Students and fundraisers. It’s just on Day of giving that they can receive funding from donors.

Ramondo said they want to raise more funds for their organization to create and sell merchandise and host more fundraisers throughout the academic year.

“I want to strengthen our program and develop different events that interest many minorities.” Lizette Pilarsaid the women’s program coordinator.

“I am Mexican American. I want to do justice to the Latin-X community so they can find their space, especially women of color,” Pilar said. “The women’s program was overshadowed by the LGBTQIA+ program. “We wanted to create an equal position for both of us, so to speak,” she said.

The services the GSEC offers include:

• 3 semester internships in the Department of Multicultural and Gender Studies
• Training in activist skills and leadership development
• Legacy events
• Responsive community activism and assistance
• Free or low-cost menstrual and sexual health products
• Free referral services for campus and community resources

“Anyone can come in,” Pilar said. “Not everyone receives the same training. It’s a place where anyone can come and learn.”

Beatrice Williams can be reached at [email protected].