Magdy Hurtado noticed it when she attended Gay Pride Parade in San Francisco. There were various stages with performers all around the event. She stumbled upon the “Latin” stage. Where “Latin papi’s” were gyrating to the music. It made her feel like her ethnicity in the LGBT community was marginalized.
“I didn’t see a ‘white’ stage,” she says.

Hurtado, 24, a shapely, outgoing Latina was looking for answers. She became an ethnic studies grad student to learn more about race and culture but she felt a void in her education; she needed more answers on people of color and their sexuality. So she went to the human sexuality department with questions about race and ethnicity. There, she was directed to ethnic studies. She went back and forth looking for answers, but neither had solid ones. It was as if they were exclusive to each other and here she was - a queer person of color. So she joined Queer People of Color (QPOC).

Isabel Milan, a former grad student, started QPOC at SF State almost two years ago. She discovered that UC Santa Barbara had a club for queer students of color. She decided it was time that SF State, in San Francisco, arguably the gay capital of the world, should have one too.

“People of color have always had a need to share our experiences,” says Marilyn Hollinquest, 27, the co-chair of QPOC.

The queer community is most commonly identified with the rainbow flag as a symbol of diversity and inclusiveness. But even in San Francisco, some racial issues in the community are overlooked.

QPOC is not the sole club on campus dedicated to the queer community. For example, Queer Alliance has many members along with an office/social space in the student union. There are also students of color in this organization, but there are differences between the two clubs.

Queer alliance is more of a social club whereas QPOC promotes political activism, community organizing through leadership, education, and event planning both on and off campus.

Hurtado sees qualities in both organizations.

“Both are necessary. Queer Alliance definitely provides community for students. Especially dealing with coming out,” says Hurtado.

But she still sees a strong need for activism in the queer community. QPOC has stood behind many political causes both on and off campus.

On May 1 they made their presence known during the immigrant rights protests and marched along with thousands of immigrant supporters.

On Dia de Virgen de Guadalupe, a day celebrated by many Latinos in the Catholic community, members of QPOC marched with a sign that read “We are your children too,” to remind the Latino community that they still wish to be included in these traditions, despite religious intolerance of the queer community.

Most recently however, QPOC took a strong stance against hate crimes at SF State. Last semester an openly gay professor in the ethnic studies department found someone had written “cock sucking” in big letters on his office sign under the title “Research Interests.” QPOC was so upset by it that they wrote a statement admonishing the act as malicious and intolerable.

“Given the unique position of San Francisco State University’s history of social activism and social change…we ask that there be a public support of GLBT students, faculty and staff,” their statement read.

The act went largely unnoticed by the campus community. Even the school newspaper dismissed it. As a result, QPOC organized Queer Awareness Week, an event that celebrated and promoted solidarity around LGBT issues on campus. It featured a film festival sponsored by the Asian American studies department, a research symposium that focuses on experiences of queer people of color sponsored by the RAZA studies department and a panel discussion about African American identity in the queer community.

Although the event helped bring the queer community together, there is still a level of indifference towards the community on campus. Hate crimes like the one mentioned are still overlooked when compared to other crimes on campus. For example, when Professor Antwi Akom, another ethnic studies professor had an altercation with the campus police, students and staff were in an uproar over it. The San Francisco Chronicle covered it and high profile lawyers got involved. Granted a physical altercation is more controversial than an anonymous scrawling on a door, but it is offensive and embarrassing nonetheless. For it not to merit any investigation or coverage whatsoever is sad.

QPOC knows that simply by addressing these issues, their cause is political and they aim to keep educating the campus through their activism. On April 20, they are having their second annual Expressions event in Jack Adams Hall, which will have queer focused spoken word, dance, theatre and art by people of color. The aim is to provide a social setting for queer people of color, both on and off campus.