On March 30 of this year, the journal Inside Higher Education reported that, to date, there have been a record 238 anti-LGBTQ bills introduced in state legislatures across the country since January 1. These include the so-called “Don’t Say Gay” bill signed into law by Florida Governor Ron DeSantis on March 28 and Texas Governor Greg Abbot’s February directive that all minors undergoing gender transition be reported to the state. Thirteen states have also banned trans girls and women from participating in women’s sports, and a “ban the books” movement is sweeping the nation. These attacks on the LGBTQIA+ community are infuriating and heartbreaking. Those who have written this legislation do so only to curtail our freedom and spread hate wherever possible. Such laws do not protect families or morality, as their proponents claim, but rather lead to further oppression, persecution, and violence against LGBTQIA+ people. 

The Palomar College Pride Center and PC3H (Pride Center Committee to Combat Hate) hold solidarity with those who oppose hateful, dangerous, and ignorant bills like the “Don’t Say Gay” bill in Florida and the Anti-Trans directive in Texas. Homo- and trans-phobia have no place in our school systems, whether that be K-12 or higher education. 

We invite the Palomar Community to continue to educate themselves about LGBTQIA+ issues, whether on your own or by attending a Pride Center event or PC3H meeting. We continue to support all members of the LGBTQIA+ community and will persist in our goal of creating and maintaining safe places on campus for that community and our allies. We want to remind everyone that we are strong. We have fought and won countless legal battles, and strategies like these will not hold us down or push us back in the closet. LGBTQIA+ folks in Florida, Texas, and elsewhere, we support you. We will persist. In unity, 

Your Palomar Pride Center and PC3H Family