Around twenty students from Salem’s Open Up club walked in Winston-Salem’s Pride Parade for Salem College this October. After meeting on the stairs of Main Hall an hour before the start of the parade, they walked downtown in a flurry of rainbow colored clothing.
The day before the parade, Open Up sponsored a paint your own t-shirt event, where they provided students with paint and plain white shirts for a small fee. Students painted everything from flags to slogans. For example, Junior Milo Wright painted young troll girl saying “Smash gender roles” on her shirt.
Open Up walked in the second half of the parade after the floats. As they walked, students sang Salem’s traditional Big/Little song, but replaced a few words, singing “We love you Pride!” instead.
If you’re interested in walking with Open Up in the parade next year or just getting involved with the club in general, be sure to check out their Facebook page or contact Open Up’s Co-Presidents, Elis Herman and Melissa Upton.
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