The Pennsylvania Student Equality Coalition Holds First-ever Statewide LGBTQ Youth Convention

HARRISBURG- The Pennsylvania Student Equality Coalition (PSEC) held its first convention August 5-7, 2011 in Harrisburg. The groundbreaking network of Pennsylvania LGBTQ youth met over three days to draft and adopt a constitution for statewide organizing as a youth-led LGBTQ movement. Over 30 Presidents and leaders of youth-led LGBTQ organizations from colleges, universities, and high schools across Pennsylvania were in attendance.

PSEC was founded this spring by Pennsylvania youth as the first and only youth-led statewide LGBTQ organization in the Commonwealth and the nation. Major inspiration for the PSEC Constitution came from the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) Constitution of 1962. The mission of PSEC has been affirmed as a coalition working towards social justice and to help lead the movement in Pennsylvania for local, state, and national safe schools legislation and policies.

PSEC is now organized in a statewide Coordinating Committee where all affiliate organizations have one voting member. Each of PSEC’s eight regions across the Commonwealth elect a PSEC leader to be on a State Committee for a one year term. The Coordinating Committee will meet in-person at least twice a year and the State Committee approximately five times a year. The Coordinating Committee will convene biweekly via teleconferencing.

The convention met all day Saturday at Harrisburg Area Community College (HACC) to review and edit the draft constitution. On Sunday morning the PSEC Constitution was unanimously adopted at HACC by the leaders present. PSEC met in a Coordinating Committee session immediately following. Resolutions were passed regarding safe schools legislation, organizing infrastructure, and to hold the first youth-led action conference on LGBTQ issues in Pennsylvania this fall. The conference is planned to take place in Philadelphia October 7-9, 2011 at the University of Pennsylvania and expected to attract hundreds of youth from across the Commonwealth.

PSEC is connected with over 70 youth-led LGBTQ organizations in Pennsylvania. For this convention youth delegates from across Pennsylvania traveled to Harrisburg from Erie, Scranton, Pittsburgh, Butler, Philadelphia - and over a dozen urban, suburban, and rural communities throughout the Commonwealth. Some of the founding members of the PSEC Coordinating Committee include:

The Art Institute of Pittsburgh: Pride Club
Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania: Gay Straight Alliance (GSA)
Edinboro University of Pennsylvania: Identity
Haverford College: Sexuality and Gender Alliance (SAGA)
Indiana University of Pennsylvania: Pride Alliance
Keystone College: Opposing Prejudice, Ending Negativity (OPEN)
Kutztown University of Pennsylvania: Allies
The Pennsylvania State University – Erie: Trigon
The Pennsylvania State University – Harrisburg: Capital Alliance
Temple University: Queer Student Union
The University of Pennsylvania: The Lambda Alliance

There are many ways to help support the work of PSEC. The PSEC Constitution and more information from the convention will be posted shortly on the PSEC website. Youth-led LGBTQ organizations interested in affiliation should visit the PSEC website to apply. To learn more about PSEC please visit www.pennsec.org.

Photos

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