Senior Leslie Ramirez was born and raised here in Glendale. As for school organizations, Leslie is the president of the GHS Pride Club, she is an ASB commissioner, and she is also part of our school’s orchestra. Leslie’s hobbies include reading, baking, playing the violin and the guitar, and hanging out with friends.

What does Pride Club mean to you?

What Pride Club means to me is building a community [that] I wish I would’ve had, [where I could say,] “Hey, it is okay to explore your options. It is okay to not know who you are [within] yourself. Or it is okay to just be an ally, like being able to support people that you know and love who are a part of the community, both inside and outside of school.”

Did you create this club? 

No, I didn’t, but I am building it back up.

What goes on during club meetings?

During club meetings, we’re trying to discuss putting [club members] into events that are outside of school, just so that people in the club can feel connected to each other. [I hope they are] able to work together [and] are more inclined to come, to talk to people, and meet others. 

We try to make it fun for them. We try to make jokes. We try to relate to them and try to be like, “Hey, this is a club where you have fun, but it’s also a place where you can join outside and [be involved in] activism.” 

What kind of events or projects have you done in the past? 

In the past, we have not done much, besides a Solidarity Week. This year, we were not able to join the other high schools, unfortunately, because of the community we have right now on campus. It’s better than before. However, there is still a lot of work that needs to be done. 

We want to make posters like [Crescenta Valley High School] does, but we know they’re gonna get torn down. We want to do the chalk [art that] they did, but ours is gonna get washed away. We have to find something that can say, “Hey, we are here,” in a way that they can’t tear us down. 

Leslie knows that there may be people who cannot join Pride Club, because of “all the negativity going on in our community itself.” They receive a lot of harassment online and a lot of backlash in general. But Leslie hopes that people may be able to accept and respect their club, even though they may not agree with their mission.

Pride Club is a safe space where people can be who they want to be. If you’d like to join, please email Ms. Castaneda at [email protected].