Student-activist and president of the Gay Straight Alliance at Bowie State University, Zenobia Fenrick. Photo courtesy of Zenobia Fenrick.

By Jaimee A. Swift

As the president of Bowie State University’s LGBTQ+ student organization, the Gay-Straight Alliance, Zenobia Fenrick (she/her/hers) is working to build a formidable Black queer consciousness on campus.

Zenobia Fenrick’s interview is a part of ‘Voices in Movement’ February 2020 theme, #MakingBlackQueerHistory: Black LGBTQ+ Women and Non-Binary Student Activism at HBCUs. To read the descriptor, please click here.

Zenobia Fenrick is on a mission to build Black queer consciousness and movement building at Bowie State University, a historically Black university located in Bowie, Maryland, which is also Fenrick’s hometown. A junior English major with a concentration in language and literature, Fenrick is the president of the Gay Straight Alliance, Bowie State’s LGBTQ+ student organization. The mission of the organization is to provide a safe space for the LGBTQIA community and allies by promoting inclusivity, love, learning, and friendship on and off campus.

Under Fenrick’s leadership, the Gay Straight Alliance has hosted events and seminars discussing the dangers of toxic masculinity, sexual education, health and awareness, and more.

Along with the Gay Straight Alliance, Bowie State is one of a handful of HBCUs to have a LGBTQ+ Resource Center––in fact, it is considered to be the first historically, Black university to have a LGBTQ+ center.

Fenrick is also a member of Raices, a Spanish-based organization that seeks to educate, empower and give back to the Bowie community and is on the planning committee of OtakuCon, an organization that emphasizes anime, gaming, cosplay, and geek culture on Bowie’s campus.

Fenrick spoke with me about the history of the Gay Straight Alliance; how she would like to see the organization grow in the future; what HBCUs can do to ensure LGBTQ+ representation and visibility; and Black Women Radicals that inspire her.

Do you mind speaking to the history of the Gay Straight Alliance at Bowie State University? How has being a part of Gay Straight Alliance made you feel more comfortable at Bowie State?

Zenobia Fenrick (ZF): “I want to say our alumni adviser, David Walker, was one of the creators of the Gay Straight Alliance. I believe the organization was started around 2010. The original name was actually called ‘Eyes Wide Shut’ because our alumni adviser felt like ‘Eyes Wide Shut’ was supposed to represent how a lot of people’s eyes are open but they are shut when it pertains to problems that concern that LGBTQIA students. Over time, we adapted the name to be Gay Straight Alliance. More than likely, we are going to change the name again, so it can be more inclusive because Gay Straight Alliance is excluding trans people and people who are questioning. When I got [to Bowie State] in fall 2017, I went to an organizational fair, found out about the Gay Straight Alliance, and I joined immediately. It was probably the first club I joined.”

“We are like a family and that is what we are trying to promote. We want people to feel comfortable and we want people to feel close to everyone in the organization.”

“When I joined the organization, I was able to meet people on the spectrum and in the community and it helped me feel very close to people. It was nice to break out of my shell and talk to people. Over the past few years, I have met so many great individuals and even this year, we have so many amazing people in this organization. We are like a family and that is what we are trying to promote. We want people to feel comfortable and we want people to feel close to everyone in the organization.”

What are some initiatives, campaigns, and events that are led by the Gay-Straight Alliance?

ZF: “What we are going to do this semester is something called ‘Gay-Pril’. Because Pride month is in June and we are not in school in June and May is typically reserved for finals, we are trying to have a Pride month on campus. The whole entire month of April, the Gay-Straight Alliance is going to have events geared toward educating, promoting, and celebrating LGBTQIA students. One of the things we are working on is in partnership with an organization called, Sharing Loving and Kindness (SLK), and that is a safe-sex carnival geared towards queer students. At this carnival, there would be several different stations that talk about protection and how to put on a strap-on––things you really wouldn’t see or learn about in heteronormative sexual education classes. This is something I am really trying to do and have. I’ve reached out to different LGBTQ+ student groups at Towson University, Morgan State University, Anne Arundel Community College, and other colleges in the area, so we can get a large influx of students at this event. That is one of the major things we are doing this semester and we are trying to push.”

“As far as representation on campus, we are going to be tabling a lot in our student center this semester so people can know we are here. We were really successful last semester in marching in our homecoming parade. Bowie State was actually able to take pictures of us in the parade. I think it was the first time in a couple of years they have ever actually publicized that the Gay Straight Alliance was a part of the homecoming parade.”

What are the difficulties and benefits of being queer at an HBCU?

ZF: “I would say in terms of the benefits of being queer at an HBCU, I have gotten to meet people who are a part of the community or who have identified themselves on the spectrum. When I first got here, I didn’t really know anyone who was LGBTQIA-identifying. As a queer woman on campus, there is a level of comfort that is created and that way you can interact with different types of people. In terms of some of the difficulties, I do find that, especially at HBCUs, there tends to be a toxic culture for LGBTQIA students, in terms of straight students and also the heteronormative culture and curriculum they have here. A lot of times, I find this within health classes. For example, I was taking a health course and our professor was unaware of what a dental dam was and what it could be used for. We were talking about how people who are same-sex loving will sometimes use that on their female partners. Our professor wasn’t aware of what that was and people were sort of making snarky comments about it. There is some hostility in a sense to LGBTQIA people on campus but I haven’t necessarily experienced it in its fullness. I think it is because I am female-presenting, so I have a privilege where people can’t see I am visibly queer, but I have friends who have experienced homophobic slurs written on their dorm rooms.”

What do you think Bowie State University and other HBCUs need to do in order to ensure LGBTQ+ rights on campus?

ZF: “One thing I think Bowie State should do––and I have been working with administration on this, alongside other members of the executive body of the Gay Straight Alliance––is to not tokenize LGBTQIA people. We have been on campus for a really long time––LGBTQIA people but also the Gay Straight Alliance––and it has only been recently that the administration now wants to partner with us because they are pushing this public relations campaign to seem more diverse. If we could really have the administration work with us, we really could help our queer students navigate the campus and most importantly, feel safe and that would be wonderful. That is really what I am trying to do––I want to create a safe space all over campus for queer students. I also want to make sure all of our classes including history and health, and discuss how queer people have contributed to these spaces, so the curriculum can cover all bases so that queer students feel included. I have been trying to push this with the administration because a lot of times the stuff we are being taught on this campus tends to be heteronormative, especially when it pertains to sexual education and sexual health courses.”

“How is this going to have a lasting impact when we’ve graduated from this campus?”

“We are also really concerned about how what we are doing now is going to last after we are gone. This is something I have been talking about with my vice president, Anthony, because we are trying to help Bowie State make all of these policy changes and to make it more inclusive of queer students, trans students, and just for everyone. How is this going to have a lasting impact when we’ve graduated from this campus?”

In the future, where would you like to see Bowie State and other HBCUs in terms of representing and supporting its LGBTQ+ students and alumni?

ZF: “I feel like a lot of administration thinks Bowie State is progressive and it has made a lot of progress but they have not done enough. I have not seen Bowie State’s so-called progressiveness. I would like to see more classes geared towards queer students. I know there have been talks of having LGBTQIA housing and that is one thing I can see Bowie State doing in the future.”

In your opinion, why is LGBTQ+ student representation and justice important at HBCUs?

ZF: “It is important because I feel like when the world hears LGBTQIA, they automatically think of the white community. It is important to know queer people of color and queer Black people experience things on different levels, so it is important to promote the same images and mantras of self-love, self-appreciation, and self-worth to queer people of color and Black queer people. A lot of times, especially in the media, we only see white queer people and white trans people. We are moving forward in our society in terms of a representation of people of color but it is important to promote self-love, self-worth, and self-appreciation for LGBTQ+ students of color because where else are we going to get it if not at our institutions that we paid to attend? That is why it is important.”

What does a ‘Black Woman Radical’ mean to you?

ZF: “Whenever I hear radical anything, I feel as if the connotation is that it is something way out there or something that is possibly unheard of. A Black Woman Radical to me is someone who is a very powerful figure that has a strong opinion about something but who is also an activist. I think that it is the most important point actually––they are an activist. It is someone who has a stance on something and fights for the community they claim to defend.”

Who are some Black Women Radicals who inspire you?

ZF: “Angela Davis is someone who inspires me because she was so vocal. That is probably one of the most influential Black Women Radicals I have learned about. My grandmother because she was a part of the Civil Rights Movement as it was progressing. She participated in marches and was an organizer. She is also an advocate for education.”

You can follow Zenobia Fenrick on Instagram @zenfenrick.

Eyes Wide Open: Zenobia Fenrick and The Making of A Black Queer Consciousness at Bowie State University