Last October, Inje University queer community IQ went through a raw hatred and discriminatory action on the registration approval process. Still, watch them as they will continue their fight.
English Translation: 피웊
Translation review: 동치, Juyeon
Writer of the original text: 권태
Review and amendments to the original text: Miguel
Last October 25th, Inje University queer community IQ was subjected to aggressive and hateful comments while having an inquiry session on the representative meeting’s registration approval review about being recognized as a central club, making the club to be official. The comments full of blind hatred for LGBTQ+, “We have no idea what could happen inside when the club room is granted,” did not stop at the conference. When IQ posted the statement about hateful remarks during the central club registration approval process on the University’s anonymous community ‘Everytime,’ the hate spread to that community as well.
![White clipboard on the pink background. [Urgent] Petition of joint signature (individual and group) for the press conference, in bold, accusation of Inje University’s hatred against LGBTQ+. Inje University is highlighted in green. Continuing, student society is filled with the stereotype that all LGBTQ+ people are promiscuous. From the registration approval process to ‘Everytime,’ hateful remarks against LGBTQ+ spread. Join the petition. Human rights measurement should be implemented. (Resource: IQ Tistory blog https://injeiq.tistory.com/46)](https://static.wixstatic.com/media/d2fdb6_66a463364be7425d909f3241e3cacb73~mv2.png/v1/fill/w_980,h_980,al_c,q_90,usm_0.66_1.00_0.01,enc_auto/d2fdb6_66a463364be7425d909f3241e3cacb73~mv2.png)
The process of being recognized as a central club for the university club, especially queer community, is crucial. The recognition of the queer club as a center club means the LGBTQ+ community at the university is officially recognized as a ‘necessary place.’ Also, becoming a central club is one of the few ways that queer clubs can be provided with enough financial and spacial support so the club could continuously function as a shelter for LGBTQ+ people in the university. Above all, the sexual and gender minority community in the university, which is meaningful in its existence, needs space to continue its activities without any issues, and becoming a center club is one of the easiest ways to receive support for club rooms.
The process of being recognized as a central club for the university club, especially queer community, is crucial. The recognition of the queer club as a center club means the LGBTQ+ community at the university is officially recognized as a ‘necessary place.’
On the other hand, Inje University was not the only case where LGBTQ+ clubs experienced direct or indirect hatred in the process of approving the central club and failed at it. Hankuk University of Foreign Studies' LGBTQ+ club Outer Planet (from now on referred to as "HUFS Outer Planet") and Hanyang University Erica Campus’s queer club HYQueer (from now on referred to as "HYQueer") also experienced similar disgust. The cases of these two schools are common in that personal hatred by religious and related figures has flowed into the public debate. In the case of HUFS Outer Planet, on October 6, 2021, the deliberation of temporal registration approval of HUFS Outer Planet as a central club was rejected at a meeting of representatives of all clubs. In this process, the director of the religious club division threatened to withdraw the recommendation from the representative of another club who wrote the recommendation letter to HUFS Outer Planet. The director also contacted the HUFS Outer Planet management team, verbally abusing them, and all delegates of the same division unitedly opposed the club's registration approval. Although the club association of HUFS stipulated the right not to be discriminated against on the grounds of sexual and gender identity and orientation, they still allowed this hateful incident to happen. Due to the active response of HUFS Outer Planet and the active solidarity of other queer clubs and students at HUFS, the division director was expelled from the club association, but even a year later, the HUFS Outer Planet has not been recognized as a central club.
Meanwhile, HYQueer has to register for the central club over a total of four semesters from 2021 to 2022, but all four attempts have been let down. It is all the more regrettable that, despite being put on the agenda of the plenary session in all four shots, they did not get a majority of the votes in favor of the representatives in the plenary session. They faced such consequences despite various efforts such as holding several meetings with the club association to discuss a compromise in the confirmation process, receiving feedback from other club representatives, reflecting it in the presentation, and pleading to view them outside of discriminatory views and treat them as just a club. At this time, many religious clubs reportedly voted against the vote at the plenary session, and HYQueer also conveyed the opinion that it was closed because "it seemed like (the registration approval of the central club) was rejected due to personal discrimination."
As such, many queer clubs are struggling in the process of getting registration approval as a central club, but their activism has not stopped. They constantly visualize the injustice they experienced in the form of statements and press conferences, re-challenging the central club's approval process several times, and other queer clubs are also in solidarity with their experiences. At the press conference on the Inje University incident, Seoul National University's LGBTQ+ club QIS (hereinafter referred to as "QIS") and Pusan National University's LGBTQ+ club Qué Será made joint remarks, and QIS and others wrote their opinions on HUFS Outer Planet incident and delivered them to the HUFS Club Association. In addition to this, many clubs have joined these clubs under joint names, and nothing seems to stop their solidarity. We, who have lived a life in which existence itself is a struggle, cannot stop solidarity, as we had no choice but to unite stronger in response to numerous threats and disgust just by the fact that "we are here."
English Translation: 피웊
Translation review: 동치, Juyeon
Writer of the original text: 권태
Review and amendments to the original text: Miguel
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