Pizza, tunes, and rollerskating—what more could you ask for on a Friday night? Last week, our LGBTQ+ club Prism hosted their first Late Skate Night at Skate 2000 in Bridgeton. Local queer youth and their friends, families, and allies came out and skated the night away in support of each other and Prism Club.
“It was really nice to see all the kids there and they seemed so comfortable,” says Kari Vazquez, one of Prism Club's leaders. “It was also a great way for kids to meet each other. It was really my hope that youth from all over would come out and make connections and share their stories and make friends.”
The event was so popular that over 70 people of all ages attended; middle schoolers, high schoolers, college students, parents, community members, and local LGBTQ+ adults came out to show their support and join in on the fun! With the success of Skate Night, Prism Club is excited to continue hosting fun outings for the kids and their friends and families in the future.
If you would like to help fund future events for Prism Club, please send all donations to either @OperationSJ on Venmo. Donations will also support the creation of Prism Mag, an online digital magazine that will provide local LGBTQ+ youth a platform to share their creative work and opinions, as well as access critical information.
We are also officially welcoming all submissions for the upcoming launch of the Prism magazine!
Submissions can include: queer TV/film/book/music reviews or reaction videos; creative writing or artwork; commentary on queer politics or current events; sharing your own story; and more! All formats—writing, artwork, photography, video, etc.—are welcomed! We will also post submissions that wish to remain anonymous, as well as submissions from parents or family members of queer youth, or local LGBTQ+ adults, who wish to share their stories or advice. If you have something that you would like to submit we encourage you to send your work to prism@hopeloft.com and spread the word to your friends!