Ambrosians Stand in Support of LGBTQ+ Community

On Monday, April 8, Sister Joan Lescinski, CSJ, PhD, president of St. Ambrose University, joined with SAU students, faculty and staff in helping SAU PRISM (Promoting Respect in Sexual Minorities) take a stand against anonymous messages targeting members of the LGBTQ+ campus community over the past week.

"We will always stand up against any acts that seek to hurt or marginalize any member of our campus community based on their race, religion, gender identity and/or sexual orientation," Sister Joan said. "The perpetrators of these cowardly acts do not represent the values that drive this university every day, and, in keeping with university policy and procedures, the responsible person or persons will face significant consequences for these actions."

Two incidents of anti-LGBTQ+ messaging follow several incidents of racist graffiti on campus in the past 10 days. The SAU Security Office in consultation with the Davenport Police Department is actively investigating each of these offenses.

"As I said a week ago, when hundreds of members of this community joined the Black Student Union in a moving show of campus unity, hate speech will not be tolerated at St. Ambrose University," Sister Joan said.

Sister Joan and others responded to a call to the campus community to join the PRISM organization and LGBTQ+ students to have a picture taken as a show of support for inclusion and condemnation of hate. Many in the picture wore T-shirts featuring pride colors made earlier in the day at an event led by Joseph Lappie, MFA, an associate professor and chair of the Art Department.

"This group of people came together decked out in rainbow to take a photo and take a stand against this hate being spread across campus," said PRISM executive board members Shannon Herrick and Erika Seabloom. "This is something SAU PRISM and Ambrose as a whole will not tolerate."