Camille Stallings

UKGSA CLUB
Topic: UKGSA Club and its purpose
Thesis: Essentially I am here today to explain what the GSA club is, what it is not, and why we
all should work to be more open minded about gender and sexual orientation.

I. Introduction
A. Main Points
1. What is not GSA
2. What is GSA
3. Why we all should work to be open minded and understanding towards
members of LGBTQ (even if we dont necessarily support it)
B. Completed Introduction
LGBTQ. What came to mind when I said those letters? For many of you it was probably
something along the lines of gay people or the gay lesbian community, but what a lot
of us tend to not realize is that is it is much more than just the gay and lesbians. LGBTQ
also includes around 50 more letters as a part of the acronym, some being: Bisexual,
Transgender, Questioning, Pansexual, Intersex, Ally, and Asexual. Allynow that is a
familiar word, but youre probably not quite sure how that could be a sexual orientation.
Well upon my research according to Sam Killermann from the TV show, Its Pronounced
Metrosexual, I found that an Ally is anyone who is supportive of the LGBTQ community,
even if they are just straight. The idea of straight allies leads me to the main focus of this
paper, which is the GSA club, or more specifically known as the Gay Straight Alliance
Club. Which is basically a club that is created to provide a safe and supportive
environment for members of LGBTQ. Essentially I am here today to explain to you what
the GSA club is, what it is not, and why we all should work to be open minded about
gender and sexual orientation.

Transition: Now that I have gone over what LGBTQ and GSA stand for, I am going to explain to
you what GSA is and more importantly what is it not.
II. First Point: What GSA is not
A. The misconceptions of LGBTQ

a. A common misconception about LGBTQ and GSA is that they lack diversity
(in tastes, styles, views, etc.)
b. People tend to group entire community or each category within, together as
one.
B. Misconceptions of GSA
a. People who are not a part of the club tend to believe it is only for the basic gay
or lesbian individual.
b. The club works not only to celebrate diversity but encourages it.
c. Most common misconception about GSA: that it really isnt for straight people,
regardless of the name.
I. If youre in the club youre not really straight
II. Even the person interviewed thought in high school that people in the
club were just waiting to come out if they said they were straight.
d. People in the GSA club thought other person interviewed was straight and
elected him as president anyways
f. Shows that GSA really is accepting of all people whose sexuality is important
to them

Transition: Since we now understand what it is not, Im going to help you all understand what
GSA is.
III. Second Point: What GSA is: what their goals are and how they achieve them
A. Facts that show the positive impact of GSA
a. According to the GLSEN Research Brief on Gay-Straight Alliances, Students
in schools with GSAs are less likely to hear homophobic remarks in school on a
daily basis (57% compared to 78%) and more likely to feel safe in school than
those without (76% compared to 69%).
b. The a new study done by the Family Acceptance Project, found that students
having access to a gay-straight alliance (GSA) club at school were less likely to
experience depression and more likely to have higher self-esteem.
B. How GSA makes the above listed positive changes

a. Providing a safe and supportive space that members can count on to discuss
(1) Their personal struggles with gender and sexuality,
(2) The issues with gender and sexuality all over the world, and lastly to
(3) Work for a world free of discrimination, misconception, and
harassment of those in the LGBTQ community
b. GSA plans to achieve the goal of creating a world free of discrimination by:
(1) instilling confidence in its members through the environment where
they can meet people who share their views and struggles.
(2) This confidence thus empowers them to
a. Educate others about LGBTQ and most importantly
b. Advocate for positive change toward equality in their schools
and any other communities they are a part of.
C. Artifact:
a. Collage of pictures from the Gayla, or Gay prom
(1.) GSAs around the country hold for students.
(2.) Shows their values in making everyone feel equal in providing a
comfortable and accepting opportunity for the members of LGBTQ to
participate in prom.
Transition: Now that we understand the diversity of this community its important to remember to
stop making assumptions about those with a sexual orientation different from your own.
IV. Third Point: Open-mindedness to all
A. Dont assume everyone is: Different
a. Just because someone choosing to go through life with different preferences
than you in one aspect, that doesnt make them different from you in every
aspect.
B. Dont assume everyone is: The Same
a. On the flip side, just because someones sexual orientation is the same as
another persons, doesnt mean everything about them is the same
C. Closing statement of this topic and transition to conclusion:
a. That being said, a persons sexuality can be extremely important to that
person, it does not entirely define who that person is as a whole.

V. Conclusion
A. Restatement of Main Points
1. What is not GSA
2. What is GSA

3. Why we all should work to be open minded and understanding towards

members of LGBTQ.
B. Completed Conclusion
GSA Cleary is a club that is open to everyone, and is thus full of such a variety of
different types of people. The club is making great strides toward a world with more
equality and open-mindedness through its supportive environments guiding young people
today to accept themselves and spread the acceptance of others throughout all of their
communities.