Cerritos College’s LGBTQ program attended the Models of Pride event at the Los Angeles LGBT Center on Oct. 20 as part of the program’s OUTober events lineup.
The event featured Bretman Rock as the keynote speaker and honored him with the 2024 Model of Pride award.
He spoke about tapping into his creative potential, how he does self care and how he deals with creative blocks. He also shared with the audience how, in many indigenous cultures, trans and gender-nonconforming people were well-respected and even worshiped in the community.
Rock said, “My one wish, my actual one wish, is for all of you to find your light. For all of you to find your power because you will find a community that sees that and I’m not saying they’ll worship you like back in the day but they will respect you and they will welcome you and you’re valid.”
Jas Reyes, a student at Cerritos College, said Rock’s interview was a highlight for her from the event.
She said, “It was really cool to see someone like me on stage, like a queer Asian, answering all these questions that I also had questions about like how my family relationships play into my identity.”
Reyes is secretary of Cerritos College’s S.A.F.E Club, which meets on the first Tuesday of every month at noon and allows a safe space for the LGBT+ community to discuss challenges and build community.
She said, “Everyone was so welcoming and it was like I knew people before I actually introduced myself. Everyone just kind of understood each other at a point so I thought that was really refreshing.”
The event held three sessions of workshops throughout the day where students could learn about the LGBT+ community and participate in activities that allowed them to express themselves and meet others their age in the community.
A few of the educational workshops included “Queer and Here: How to start a GSA,” “Drag artistry” and “Embracing Authenticity: Navigating Coming Out with Confidence.”
The interactive workshops included an exclusive audience Q&A session with TMZ’s Harvey Levin – as well as line dancing, plant pot painting, voice training and more.
The main stage was hosted by influencer, Ruba who brought his contagious personality into the crowd for audience Q&A’s.
A student was presented with the Youth Pride Award for all the community work they have done especially within their school.
This was followed by social media influencer, Vincint, who was given the Model of Pride Artist award and performed his song, “Take Me Home.”
The event also had booths set up throughout the center from different organizations and resources available to the community – as well as smaller activities such as friendship bracelet making and tarot card readings.
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Trans Lounge, a community group within the LGBT center, offers workshops and support groups for the “trans and gender expansive community.”
Avery Espinoza, a program specialist with the organization, said, “The importance of these event is to be out and to be proud and to be kind of a beacon of hope. Especially for the younger generations, it’s very important for us to be visible and for us to just be there for them.”
The students were provided with a free lunch from every table with healthy options that accommodated special diets.
Models of Pride is an annual event and the LGBTQ program hopes to return again next year.
The program will continue their OUTober events through the end of the month. They will hold “OUTober cosmic coaching” on Oct. 29 and a Pride scavenger hunt on Oct. 31.
To learn more about the event and what services and resources that Cerritos College offers to the LGBTQ Community, visit the Equity Center located in the Santa Barbara Building.
