Local drag queens will strut through the University Auditorium as the Pride Student Union celebrates its 15th annual LGBTQ+ Welcome Assembly at 6 p.m. Thursday.
This is the first year Pride Student Union will have an official keynote speaker. Bamby Salcedo, a trans-identified Latin woman and activist from California, is set to speak and will be paid $3,000.
At the assembly, Pride Student Union will show all students what UF has to offer the LGBTQ+ community, said Carolyna Guillen, PSU internal vice president and UF microbiology and cell science junior.
She said she thinks the drag-queen show will be the biggest hit of the event because it will be the most entertaining and could help students connect to the community.
"We want to showcase that this is our community, but this is also our community on campus," the 20-year-old said.
Pride Student Union will point students to other clubs and organizations that fit what they’re looking for, Guillen said. The event’s theme is Ascension, which focuses on finding yourself and reaching your potential, Guillen said.
UF management master’s student Sebastian Wright said he has attended the celebration twice.
"I think that it’s important that people take part in this, no matter what community they are from, because it’s only for the bettering of each other," the 21-year-old said.
Wright said because gay marriage was recently legalized, he expects more people to attend the event.
"They are realizing that this is accepted, and they are welcomed by not only UF but the nation," he said. "And this event is a great opportunity to show that."
- She is a nationally and internationally recognized trans activist.
- She grew up with her mother in Guadalajara, Mexico.
- She worked at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles, where she spent eight years as the health education and HIV prevention services coordinator.
Information was found on bambysalcedo.com/#bio.
-ANSLEY PENTZ
