Letter of Support for El Centro and Casa Zapata from Alum(na)

Casa Zapata and El Centro were my first home. As a queer, GNC, Haitian-American, I had been welcomed so warmly and so easily within the community. Some of my best memories centered around El Centro, the programming, the staff, and Elvira. It helped facilitate my coming out and gave me a sense of belonging. I spent all-nighters there with some of the best people. I recognize that there weren’t many students who looked like me or with the same background there consistently, but the friends I invited who did look like me often returned, laughing right along side me, feeling just as I did. I know El Centro is working on having the right conversations — they’ve never shied away from critical and difficult discussions. Just from my 5 years there, it has progressed immensely in its mission and vision. I’m excited to see the new spaces it will create.