Uni provides cotton candy, coloring for anxious pro-LGBTQ+ students.

Portland State University is taking a stand for its pro-LGBTQAI+ students by offering them cotton candy, coloring pages, and temporary tattoos to help ease their anxiety. This comes as anti-trans bills are being passed in legislatures across the country, limiting gender surgeries for children and cross-sex hormones and puberty blockers. President Stephen Percy has made it clear that there will be no criticism of trans ideology allowed on campus, and the university pledges to provide a safe space for all members of the LGBTQAI+ community.

To celebrate trans-identifying students, the Queer Resource Center will host a Trans and Gender Expansive Celebration and Community Hour every weekday from 12 p.m. to 1 p.m. for a week. Additionally, the center hosts a trans social space called T-time every Friday from 3 p.m. to 4 p.m.

While the university’s efforts to comfort pro-LGBTQAI+ students are commendable, former philosophy professor Peter Boghossian, who resigned from the university in 2021, visited campus to discuss whether children can consent to puberty blockers. Student activists attempted to disrupt his conversations with other students, and Boghossian tweeted a meme mocking the university’s offer of cotton candy, temporary tattoos, and coloring pages to students.

The Queer Resource Center sent out a memo warning about the “provocateurs” coming to campus and advising students to “ignore and disengage.” The memo encouraged people to come to the center to enjoy the treats and make crafts, and to wear masks as an act of community care when not eating or drinking.

While gender dysphoria diagnoses in children have nearly tripled from 2017 to 2021, and gender hormone treatments and surgeries have become trendy, young people who previously identified as transgender have also spoken out about regretting getting medical intervention. Portland State University is taking a step in the right direction by providing a safe space for its pro-LGBTQAI+ students.

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