Warriors interested in joining a club are always welcomed by the members of Love Evolution to unite with the growing group. The organization aims to enhance their goal of raising awareness in the community regarding the acceptance of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer, Questioning, Intersex, Ally and Asexual (LGBTQIA) individuals.
The club was started by students who work together to raise awareness about the importance of accepting individuals—not by their sexual orientation—but instead by who they are as individuals.
Members of the club have been involved for most of their college experience. Some even began to involve themselves with the club in order to find a comfortable environment away from home.
“I wanted to be part of something while I am here in college,” Vice President Edgardo Beltran (senior, Psychology) said. “I was able to have the liberty of being who I was.”
Every year, the club hosts Pride week, in which a pride parade and drag show is conducted with the help of ASI. They also host a Rainbow Prom, which invites Warriors— and now high school students— to re-live a prom without the fear of being discriminated within the community.
Aside from these two events, this year Love Evolution is anticipating a blood drive in October. The blood drive is to raise awareness and debunk the commonly-held belief that homosexual men should not donate blood. The blood drive is aiming to allow the LGBTQIA community the opportunity to donate blood without being discriminated against.
“We want to show them that just because an individual is homosexual does not mean they have HIV,” Beltran said.
Also important is the club’s focus on spreading awareness about the right of an individual in choosing to disclose their preferred sexual orientation without fearing for their life.
Club members share a strong bond with each other that allows them to spend time together on and off campus. They attend events in and out of the Stanislaus county in order to become more involved with LGBTQIA communities nearby.
Love Evolution aims to remember those who have been removed from the fight for equality due to constant bullying by hosting days such as Transgender Day of Remembrance and the Day of Silence. These two days are devoted to acknowledging individuals that sadly took their lives.
Love Evolution accepts new members all year round. For those interested in becoming a part of the club, just attend a weekly Friday meeting held in the Lakeside Conference room at 3 p.m.
“We are here,” Beltran said. “We exist and we want everyone to be equal.“