Tacoma Community College Black Student Union (BSU) and Gays/Lesbians Accepting Diversity (GLAD) letter

The Black Student Union (BSU) is the club for Black students at TCC. It has been active for the most part continuously since its predecessor, the Obi Society, was formed in 1968. The Obi Society began using its name and BSU interchangeably in the early 1970s for some announcements, becoming OBI-BSU by the early 1980s, before simplifying to BSU later that decade.

Gays/Lesbians Accepting Diversity (GLAD) was, as far as can be determined, the second attempt by TCC students to form a LGBTQIA+ club. The first was the short-lived Gay Students Association in 1983. GLAD was formed in 1989 with the new Multi-Cultural Student Services Coordinator Jacqulyn Cockfield serving as their advisor. GLAD was from the beginning intersectional in nature, with its emphasis on diversity and its programming and advocacy overlap with the BSU thanks to President Walter Palmore, who served as a peer counselor and an officer in both GLAD and the BSU. GLAD seems to have disappeared after the 1989/90 academic year.

Sources: [ASTCC clubs ad], Collegiate Challenge 19: no [19] (April 29, 1983): 8, https://tccdigitalcollections.libraryhost.com/s/main/item/3077.

Deborah J. Ernst and Patricia J. McLean, "Lloyd rescinds veto," Collegiate Challenge 26: no. 3 (November 6, 1989): 1.

Linda M. Ferrell, "Black students file grievance, action pending: Grievance aims to impeach ASTCC Senate Presiding Officer Larry Townsend," Collegiate Challenge 19: no. 14 (March 4, 1983): 1, https://tccdigitalcollections.libraryhost.com/s/main/item/3072.

Chris Gurican, "BSU promotes student awareness," Collegiate Challenge 26: no. 2 (October 23, 1989): 1.

Shanna Kossman, "Gays/Lesbians accepting diversity," Collegiate Challenge (June 6, 1989): 9.

OBI-BSU, "Minority students seek petition for minority column," Collegiate Challenge 15: no. 6 (November 17, 1978): 2, https://tccdigitalcollections.libraryhost.com/s/main/item/2090.

Charlotte Truschka, "OBI-BSU promotes black awareness," Challenge (November 19, 1982): 3, https://tccdigitalcollections.libraryhost.com/s/main/item/3065.