Special Edition Fall 2023: Opinion: Queer space and St. Kate’s
A St. Kate’s pride flag outside the gates. Credit: St. Catherine University
By M Yeager
How does a predominantly women’s college provide a space for queer people?
After the student demonstration on the steps of Derham Hall in April 2022, the search for a space for queer students at St. Kate’s gained significant momentum for the first time. A year and a half later on Oct. 4, the Queer Student Alliance hosted a grand opening of the space. As a primarily women’s college and a minority-serving institution, St. Kate’s can be seen as a haven for queer people.
Why is Queer Space Important?
The term “heterotopia” is used to describe certain spaces that deviate from the societal norm of what that space should be. They also often have numerous layers of meaning or hidden relationships to other spaces. Michel Foucault, a queer French philosopher, discusses the importance of heterotopic spaces, which he says, “[C]an be found within society, [and] are at the same time represented, challenged, and overturned: a sort of place that lies outside all places and yet is actually localizable.” Foucault offers examples of heterotopias, such as cemeteries, prisons and hospitals, which are all spaces that house society’s so-called “undesirable bodies.”
Heterotopias have the power to transform spaces to be used differently from their original purpose. Many queer spaces created in the past and in the present are heterotopias, which foster a sense of belonging for those within those spaces.
Queer History at SCU
Bringing Respect Into Discussions of Genuine Everyday Sexuality (BRIDGES) was an organization founded by the Human Sexuality Committee (HSC) at St. Kate’s in the fall of 1993. BRIDGES’s mission as stated in their constitution was to serve St. Kate’s and surrounding communities and “empower those who attend our workshops with education so that they are better able to make decisions for themselves regarding communication, relationships, responsibility and sexuality.” They provided interactive workshops regarding relationships and sexuality, specifically with a focus on HIV and AIDS.
HSC was a committee that was formed in the fall of 1978 and was composed of faculty, staff, students and community members. The rationale for the creation of this committee was to foster education surrounding sexuality: “Knowledge of and about human sexuality is integral to the development of a mature and responsible person. Since one cannot assume that this has been accomplished adequately in family or elementary or secondary school, St. Catherine’s as a Catholic college, inherits this need and concern and must seek effective means to promote personal self-understanding and education about sexuality.”
The committee offered programming and classes that focused on human sexuality and how it relates to ethics and morality. There were several series that were held: “The Nitty Gritty: Sexual Responsibility,” “Critical Issues in Sexuality: A Holistic Approach,” “Critical Issues in Sexuality: A Religious Perspective,” “Myths and Realities” and “Promise Her Anything, but Give Her the Truth.” Throughout this series, the committee discussed anatomy, physiology, fertility, infertility and contraception. Program attendees were not limited to those at St. Kate’s or in the Twin Cities area. There were several pastors, visiting professors and a rabbi who were included. In meeting minutes and post-programming surveys, many people said they were interested in learning more about queer sexuality.
An ad for WOW in The Wheel.
The predecessor of what we now know as QSA started as Women Oriented Women in 1990 as an unofficial club and was described as a “social and educational group dedicated to lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender issues” in their constitution and ads featured in various editions of The Wheel. The purpose of the club was to demystify queerness and provide educational opportunities for people to learn about queerness. The club also called upon the college’s belief that one should respect, recognize and understand diversity in its many forms. Attendance was confidential for WOW and later PRIDE meetings for safety reasons. Later in 2006, WOW changed its name to People Recognizing Identities, Differences, and Equality (PRIDE) to better reflect the inclusivity of the club.
Many of the events that were held by WOW, and later PRIDE, were open to students across the Associated Colleges of the Twin Cities campuses. One such event was an annual GLBTA student leadership retreat, which was put on by the ACTC colleges. The retreat was held for at least five years and had activities surrounding inclusive leadership. WOW and PRIDE held several queer proms, and in 2003, there was training offered for students who wanted to learn how to create safe spaces for queer people.
WOW faced pushback from those in the community. During the 1991-92 academic year, when the organization was first chartered, WOW was given a limited charter. A limited charter meant that the college recognized them as an official student organization, but they were not allowed to use the seal or name of the college in any of their promotional materials. In 1994, during National Coming Day, WOW drew pro-queer chalkings on the front steps of Derham and the administration had them removed. Shortly afterward, a new chalking policy was put in place which restricted who could chalk and what they could chalk.
In 1998, there was a series of articles and letters to the editor included in several editions of The Wheel that tackled the relationship between Catholicism, morality and queerness. This discussion spurred a community meeting to discuss how diversity and morality apply to Catholicism and answer the question of how one reconciles the beliefs of the Catholic Church with St. Kate’s serving a diverse population and being a Catholic institution.
Student Perspectives
Many queer students have agreed that St. Kate’s, as a predominantly women’s and minority-serving institution, is an important space for queer people. “It’s a challenge to the patriarchy,” said Fern Schiffer ‘25 (English). “I find that a college atmosphere specifically tailored to uplift those subjugated under patriarchy has been useful for myself and my queer friends to find a niche.”
The university’s social justice-oriented atmosphere has helped many queer people find themselves and what they want to do. “Learning queer theory in my Women’s Studies classes forced me to think critically about my gender presentation and sexual identity,” said Anna Garski ‘12 in “Colleagues,” a newsletter written by St. Kate’s faculty and staff. “It was only in an environment that was open and respectful of these differences that [...] I could fully accept myself and eventually identify as pansexual.”
The recent opening of the QSA space has also been beneficial for queer students. “The opening of the St. Kate’s QSA space has opened doors to building connections and having a place of comfort and support for myself and my other queer friends on campus,” said Jasmine Koch ‘25 (Public Health).
Some students believe that the university can strengthen and better recognize the queer community on campus. “I believe Saint Kates should teach more queer history,” said Soleil Thompson ‘25 (Philosophy). “especially pertaining to our journey as a campus.”
Schiffer argued for a stronger institutional community and recognition. “The messaging from the college itself hides the community. We are a campus that uplifts women against a misogynist world, and that’s in all of our branding. Why aren’t we taking that further? Why aren’t we a campus that uplifts queer people against a patriarchal, homophobic, transphobic world?”
With St. Kate’s being a historically women’s and minority-serving institution, it makes sense that there is such a large queer community on campus. Yet the significance of the large queer community is hidden or just chalked up to St. Kate’s being the “gay school.” While St. Kate's has made progress in providing a welcoming space for queer people, especially after the 2018 announcement that opened College for Women admissions to nonbinary and transgender students, there is still a ways to go in providing a more inclusive space.
