by Samantha Faye King
We have come a long way since the infamous Stonewall riots of June 1969. All the way through the 60’s homosexual activity was not only looked down upon but completely illegal. This is what led to the need for safe spaces and eventual rise of activism. The first pride marches took place exactly one year after the Stone Wall riots on June 28th, 1970 in places such as Chicago, New York, and Los Angeles. Slowly but surely laws began to change, homosexuality became legal, and more and more states legalized gay marriage, and communities and safe spaces grew stronger and in abundance.
Despite all of this progress, it does not mean the fight is over. Prejudice and hate still lurk around the corners. June 12th, 2016 in Orlando, Florida the tragedy that is the Pule night club shooting took place. 49 were killed and 43 injured. As uncomfortable as it is, we can not let events like this be put to the side or forgotten. However, that does not mean be shaken by fear. We are here to fight for a world where people can express themselves freely without such fears.
Even where there is no physical oppression, mental oppression exists attaching guilt as well as a struggle of identity and self-acceptance to one’s sexuality. Many places, such as churches, fall into the habit of rejecting the LGBTQ community. Stripping them of a place of worship and implanting ideas of being unwanted and unforgivable. The mindset of ‘praying the gay away’ is a poisonous one that still runs rampant in today’s society, creating a bad reputation for both the LGBTQ community and the church itself. The stigma it’s created on members of the LGBTQ community continues to exist not only in the church and other places of worship, but outside as well.
In fact the 2015 national youth risk behavior survey showed that 34% of LGBTQ students were bullied on school property, 28% of LGBTQ students were bullied through electronic means, and 13% of LGBTQ students did not go to school because of safety concerns.
Luckily, just because it is common does not mean it is exclusive. Several anti bullying programs have been created such as the Trevor Project (thetrevorproject.org), a suicide hotline for LGBTQ youth. Another example is stopbullying.gov which advocated ways to address bullying in educational setting as well as encourages the creation of Gay-Straight Alliances.
More and more churches and other places of worship have also become openly accepting of the LGBTQ community and want to be a safe place for them. Below is a list of some examples of pro LGBTQ houses of worship within the Twin Cities area as found on the TCP website.
Minneapolis Places of Worship
Adath Jeshurun Congregation
All God’s Children (A Metropolitan Community Church)
Calvary Lutheran Church
Compassion of Christ Catholic
Dignity Twin Cities
First Unitarian Society of Minneapolis
First Universalist Church
Hennepin Avenue United Methodist Church
Judson Memorial Baptist Church
Lake Nokomis Lutheran Church
Lutheran Church of the Christ the Redeemer
Lynnhurst UCC Church
Minnesota Congregation for Humanistic Judaism
Oak Grove Presbyterian Church
Salem English Lutheran Church
Shir Tikvah Reform Jewish Congregation
Spirit of St. Stephen’s Catholic Community
St. Luke’s Episcopal Church
St. Marks Episcopal Cathedral
United Church of Christ
University Baptist Church
Westminster Presbyterian Church
St. Paul Places of Worship
Dayton Avenue Church
Fairmount Avenue United Methodist
Gloria Dei Lutheran Church
Mount Zion Temple
Pilgrim Lutheran Church
Unity Church – Unitarian
St. Paul’s Episcopal Church on-the-Hill
Greater Twin Cities
Spirit of Hope Catholic Church
Our Lady of Celestial Fire
Burnsville
Presbyterian Church of the Apostles
Golden Valley
Spirit of Hope United Methodist Church
Unity Christ Church of Golden Valley
Lakeville
Spirit of Joy Christian Church
Mahtomedi
White Bear Unitarian Universalist Church
Minnetonka
St Lukes Presbyterian Church
Roseville
North Como Presbyterian Church
St. Louis Park
Beth El Synagogue
It is the goal of ERA MN to fight for the equal rights of all, so hopefully these resources will be found useful in creating a safer and more accepting environment. We hope to see you at Twin Cities Pride Festival on June 23rd and 24th in Loring Park in Minneapolis where you can find us at the MN NOW booth (R98 – near Harmon Place).
