This past Thursday, NYU’s Queer Union hosted Queer Prom, an opportunity for LGBTQ+ students to be themselves and celebrate in community. At the starry night-themed event, Clive Davis Institute of Recorded Music alum SENAIDA played techno and pop beats, while attendees danced and took advantage of the photo booth. It was a night of inclusivity for many who did not attend a school dance in high school.

“I didn’t have a prom because of COVID-19, which at the time kind of sucked,” CAS junior Cecilia Méndez said. “Now in retrospect, it’s been three years, I’m kind of happy that I didn’t have a prom, and I’m so glad that my first prom and probably my only prom in my whole life will be a queer prom. Three years ago I wasn’t out as a lesbian, and now I am and I have a partner.

Inspired by Buzzfeed’s queer prom back in 2017, the organizer of the event CAS senior Isabella Herrera wanted to provide a prom for both seniors who didn’t get the chance to attend, and for queer people who didn’t get to be themselves at previous proms. 

“I know that a lot of people didn’t go to prom, even if they did have one, because they’re actually not allowed to go with a same-sex partner or they just don’t feel comfortable being in community with the people in their school, so I really wanted to make it happen here,” said Herrera.

For some, celebrating their identity back home was never an option, especially for CAS senior Miro Imas.

“It is really important to me because homosexuality is illegal in my country,” said Imas, who is originally from Transnistria but now lives in Russia. “Visibility is something that I value. It’s really important for me to be part of a queer community, especially in these dark times.”

Many students also took Queer Prom as a chance to dress up and express themselves. CAS sophomore Andrew Mazier, who helped organize the event on behalf of NYU clubs New Masculinities and SHADES, drew on the prom’s theme for his astrology outfit. He ironed embellishments on his clothes and sewed it as reinforcement, making horns out of tin foil and cutting up the ears from a bunny headband. CAS senior Pramath Pratap Misra chose to wear a sari to express his effeminate side while also paying homage to traditional Indian culture. 

“A lot of people have to struggle with their identity in terms of ‘are you Indian or are you gay?’” said Misra. “It does not have to be a choice because I’m both, so why should I hide it?’”

The event also featured acts from NYU students, including an R&B performance from musician Jordell, a sing-along with Tisch first-year Sarah J. Clarke and a drag performance by GLS senior Kahani, who also asked the audience to take part in a moment of silence.

“We must remember that queer oppression is intimately linked with capitalism and settler colonialism,” said Kahani. “I urge each and every one of you in your queer existence, your queer practice and advocacy, to act as a voice to protect those who haven’t had it. My heart hurts for our people and family in Palestine, Sudan, Congo, Haiti, Tibet, Kashmir, Armenia and everywhere else in the world where people are persecuted in an intersectional manner. I invite you all for one minute to hold a moment of silence for our queer family around the globe.”

As much as the evening was a time for fun, community and to meet new people, it was equally an act of political resistance and reclamation. 

“A lot of queer people will have feelings in high school of feeling outcasted or not authentic,” said Mazier. “You go to these typical high school proms and they’re just sort of like a celebration of heterosexuality, and then you come to this space and it’s a sort of subversion of that. We hear a lot of queer pain, laws that are being passed in state legislatures, so we get a lot of queer pain, trans pain, and I think this very physical display of joy is really important.”

Contact Briggs Négron at [email protected].