Cleveland celebrates LGBTQ+ Pride with the Pride in the CLE march and festival this Saturday afternoon, June 4, in Downtown Cleveland, finally back in person for the first time since 2019!

A group of JCU students, faculty and staff will be representing the University in the Pride march. If you would like to march with us, the group will gather around 11:00 am in Zone 3 of the parade Staging Area along Superior Avenue east of Public Square. Look for the John Carroll University banner!

As part of our University celebrations of Juneteenth, all students, faculty, and staff are invited to join the DEI Division for a Lunch and Learn event on campus on Tuesday, June 21 to learn more about the history of slavery, emancipation, and the 150+ year history of the celebration of Juneteenth as a holiday.

We will enjoy a casual meal while we watch and discuss a virtual tour of selected exhibits at the Smithsonian Museum of African-American History and Culture, narrated by Smithsonian Institution Secretary Lonnie G. Bunch III.

As part of our University celebrations of Juneteenth, a Tower Time "pop-up" celebration will be held on Wednesday, June 22 from 2:00-2:45 pm on the Dolan Science Center terrace facing Hamlin Quad (rain location: DSC Atrium).

In addition to the usual Tower Time beverage offerings, we will have red velvet cupcakes provided by Sweet Fix, a local Black-owned bakery. (Read more here about why red velvet cake is a traditional food item for Juneteenth.)

While registration is not required to participate in this event, your RSVP is helpful so we know how many cupcakes to order.

We take this opportunity to reflect, as part of our University celebrations of Juneteenth, on the ways that freedom is still denied to many. Please join the DEI Division for a breakfast event on Thursday, June 23 to discuss the documentary film 13th.

In this documentary, directed by award-winning filmmaker Ava DuVernay, scholars, activists and politicians analyze the criminalization of African Americans and the U.S. prison boom. The film's title comes from the Thirteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution, adopted in 1865, which abolished slavery throughout the United States and ended involuntary servitude except as a punishment for a crime.

Participants are encouraged to watch the documentary before attending this event. The film is available on Netflix, and DVD copies are available to borrow from Grasselli Library and all local public library systems. (A few clips from the film will be shown during the event for those who are unable to watch it beforehand. )

We are pleased to welcome Harry Hawkins, Director of the LGBT Center at Case Western Reserve University, on June 30 for a virtual professional development session on best practices in supporting university students with BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, and People of Color) and LGBTQ+ (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer/Questioning, and more) identities.

When we talk about the intersections of sexual orientation/gender identity with race, we must understand that the same "isms" that affect our society still apply in the LGBTQ community. The Black and Brown experience when we talk of "coming out" or providing resources must be seen through the lenses of how race interacts and affects BIPOC folx.

As a Mixed race, gay man from the South, Harry Hawkins lives and breathes the intersections in intersectionality. In this presentation, he will talk about best practices for LGBTQ folx on campus and ways to adequately meet those students in a way that affirms all of their identities.

Join fellow Blue Streaks and friends of JCU as author Michael Hollins '17 tells innovative stories to positively shift his audience's perspective on the way they view life’s misfortunes, agonies, and redirections. He is the founder of PLA (Purpose Leadership Academy), an organization that focuses on the holistic development of youth and young adults to become leaders by tailoring action plans to their strengths.