LGBT Club
Comes “Out
and About”
Andie Aguirre, Arts Editor
Andrea_Aguirre@csumb.edu
May 1, 2008
Next semester, a club called “Out and
About” will be joining CSU Monterey
Bay’s (CSUMB) campus for Lesbian, Gay,
Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT) students
and whoever wants to join in support.
“Out and About” was originally part of
a political science project for student Anna
Calvillo, a Teledramatic Arts and Technology
senior, in which she wanted to create an outlet
for the LGBT community by reactivating a
former LGBT club and having film festival
events to show movies that deal with LGBT
issues. She worked with professor Gerald
Shenk to help turn her vision into a reality.
Calvillo feels that the gay community is
underrepresented at CSUMB and said that
she “wanted to connect with other people
on campus, so I’m sure other students are
feeling the same way.”
Although she will be graduating this
month, Calvillo hopes to bring the club to
the forefront so other students can become
aware of it and help carry the torch for
future semesters.
The first film festival event took place on
April 11 where students gathered to discuss
the potential club and any ideas for it. After
the discussion, they watched the film “But
I’m a Cheerleader,” a satirical comedy about
a cheerleader who gets sent to a reparative
therapy camp to be “cured” of her lesbianism.
The second film festival took place on April
24 with another open forum and afterward
they watched “Monster” starring Charlize
Theron and Christina Ricci. This format
would be similar to how a club meeting would
be conducted once the club gets going.
Cavillo stated that at club meetings the
group would also try to dig deeper into LGBT
issues and watch more serious documentaries
in hopes of sparking discussion.
One student planning on becoming
active in the club is Liberal Studies junior
Christina Mothen, who has plans to become
and officer of the club once it gets going.
Mothen says that some of the challenges
with getting the club going again is trying
to put up flyers around campus. Some of
the flyers that she put up at the Student
Center and in building 45 for April’s
LGBT film events were taken down.
Another challenge that this budding club
is facing is trying to get involvement from
the students. Calvillo said that sometimes
people might be interested in joining a club
like “Out and About,” but sometimes might
be a little apprehensive with having their
names linked to it because they are not
ready to come out.
However, Calvillo said she wants students
to know that the club will be a place to
provide the LGBT community of CSUMB
with “a place where we won’t fear to be
ourselves, so we can openly express our
identity with others and to not think that we
will be judged and looked at differently.”
Members from “Out and About” will
have an informational table set up at the
“Our World- Peace Park” event in the quad
on May 3 from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.