Susan Frawley (transcript)
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Title
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Susan Frawley (transcript)
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Description
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This oral history is an interview collected for the Preserving Chico State Voices for Change Project with Susan Frawley. Susan Frawley is a professor of LGBTQ+ history in the Multicultural and Gender Studies Department at California State University, Chico. She also is a longtime member of the queer community and volunteers with both the Gender and Sexuality Equity Coalition (GSEC) and Pride Club on campus.
In this interview there are many different topics addressed including what the GSEC is and what services it provides, the history of LGBTQ+ and women's rights activism on campus, the 2024 election, and the relationship between the activism on campus and the surrounding community.
The interview goes in depth on the relationship between the university and the community, especially on how the more conservative beliefs in the surrounding area have affected the ability of GSEC to be active in the community. Frawley also talks about the history of GSEC at Chico State from its humble beginnings as a Women's Center, to its most prevalent in the early 2000’s with its numerous events, to where it is at now and where it stands today and moving forward. The Penis Registry put on by GSEC, then known as the Women's Center, was a topic that some time was spent on as well and how it may have affected the campus-wide acceptance of the work that the Women's Center was doing at the time.
The past is not the only thing talked about though, the 2024 landmark election is also addressed frequently, and what its possible effects are for the queer community and women in the future. Over the course of the interview there are lots of meaningful anecdotes both about GSEC but also Susan Frawley’s personal life, with many messages of hope, resilience, strength, and community. Everything about the experience of being queer over so many turbulent times including the saddening AIDS epidemic, the fight for marriage and social equality in the 2000s-2010s, and now our present day issues. Ending with messages of optimism and hope for the future for women and the LGBTQ+ community alike, as well as how we can change for the better, youth activism is emphasized as an important step moving forward. This oral history is a gathering of a very impactful voice on our campus and provides such a look into activism on campus.
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Interviewee
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Susan Frawley
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Date Created
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October 24, 2024
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Document Format
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pdf
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File size
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414 KB
