Prism

The Pride Letter

The Pride Letter is a publication with contributions from Prism and the LGBT community at Northern Illinois University. Since 1977, the Pride Letter has been a place to be creative, share thoughts, and offer opinions on LGBT-related issues. We hope you'll give it a read!

You're invited to submit your work to the Pride Letter. This is your chance to let your voice be heard and to share your talent with the greater NIU Community! To see some examples of submissions, read past issues of the Pride Letter. Because we anticipate the volume of submissions to be high, we cannot guarantee a spot in every Pride Letter, due to limited room within the publication.

Browse the Archives

Select a year:

• September 2001 Pride Letter (PDF 1.1 MB)

  Editor: Karen Frost

  • Surviving an American Tragedy
  • Letter From Your President
  • Letter From Your Other President
  • Comics by Clown-Tears
  • 10 Advantages to Being a Gay Male
  • 10 Questions Most Commonly Asked of Lesbians and the Answers You'll Never Hear...
  • Letter From the Editor, Karen Frost
  • Emily's Poetry Corner

• October 2001 Pride Letter (PDF 1.7 MB)

  Editor: Karen Frost

  • Note: the cover of this issue is incorrectly labeled "September 2001."
  • Letter from the Editor
  • "Antinous and Hadrian: A Story of Tragedy, Triumph, Love, Sacrifice, and Mystery" by Christo Watson
  • "Gotta Dollar?" by Christo Watson
  • Humor Page
  • "Remembering Paul Cadmus" by Christo Watson
  • "Jay's Poetry Page" by Jay Paul Mayer
  • "History of the Rainbow Flag" by C.L. Liddell
  • The Pink Triangle

• February 2002 Pride Letter (PDF 1.5 MB)

  Editor: Jay Paul Mayer

  • Letter from the Editor
  • Letters from the Co-Presidents, Karen Frost and Christo Watson
  • "Innocence Sacrificed" by Jay Paul Mayer
  • "Hate Crimes" by Tony Emling
  • "Wall Flower (Panic-In Bloom)" by Rachael Wadsworth

• March 2002 Pride Letter (PDF 3.3 MB)

  Editor: Jay Paul Mayer

  • 2002 MBLGTACC Report
  • Prism Meetings and Dances
  • Prism Has a Library
  • Don't Ask, Don't Tell: A Mother Speaks Out
  • Tell Your Story

• May 2002 Pride Letter (PDF 4.6 MB)

  Editor: Jay Paul Mayer

  • Letter from the "Once and Future" Editor
  • Letter from the President
  • Margie's Goodbye
  • 72 Differences
  • When I Am Old I Shall Wear Purple

• September 2002 Pride Letter (PDF 1.9 MB)

  Editor: Jay Paul Mayer

  • Letter from the Editor
  • Letter from the Co-Presidents
  • From the Publicity Coordinator
  • Safe Zone
  • Queer Bucks
  • AIDS Walk
  • Love That Has No Name
  • Prism Suggestion Pages

• October 2002 Pride Letter (PDF 5.3 MB)

  Editors: Jay Paul Mayer, Robb Schuldt

  • Letter from the Co-President
  • Letter from the Assistant Editor
  • Gotta Dollar
  • On Love, Pain, Sex and Things Human
  • Coming Out Stories

• November 2002 Pride Letter (PDF 1.9 MB)

  Editors: Jay Paul Mayer, Robb Schuldt

  • Letter from the Editors
  • Pride Letter Past: "Four Gents"
  • Skott Freedman Biography
  • Beth Loffreda on the Tragedy in Laramie
  • Resource Center
  • Pride Letter Past: "In Vogue"
  • Pride Letter Past: "Hate Crimes"

• December 2002 - January 2003 Pride Letter (PDF 1.7 MB)

  Editors: Jay Paul Mayer, Robb Schuldt

  • Letter to the Editors
  • Gay Adoption
  • Safe Zone
  • Poetry Nook
  • Reverend Gregory Dell
  • The Two Towers Movie Review
  • Ask Ms. Thang
  • You Know You're From Chicago If...

• April 2005 Pride Letter (PDF 881 KB)

  Editor: Jay Wartenberg

  • "Letter from the Co-President, Andrea Drott"
  • "A Note from Prism" Co-Prez Lucy Andich
  • "Destroyed Innocence" by Lucy Andich
  • "A Note on Allies" by Margie Cook
  • "By Crickey! Now That's a Mascot!" by Emily M. Harper

• October 2005 Pride Letter (PDF 708 KB)

  Editor: Christopher Weaver

  • "Prism Co-Presidents' Beginning-of-the-Year Thoughts"
  • "Creatively Queer" by Andrea Drott
  • "Mocha & Latte" by Christopher Weaver
  • New LGBT Classes

• November 2005 Pride Letter (PDF 749 KB)

  Editor: Christopher Weaver

  • "A Mother" by Christopher Weaver
  • "Telling Our Stories" by Rachael Schneider
  • Hurricane Katrina Benefit
  • "Mocha & Latte" by Christopher Weaver

• April 2006 Pride Letter (PDF 1.1 MB)

  Editor: Christopher Weaver

  • "Fun Times at the Big Queer Conference" by Lucy Andich
  • "I just can't give you change" by Justin Difazzio
  • "The Eminence of Equality" by Hillary Kowalski
  • "Creatively Queer Qeek" by Andrea Drott
  • Photos from Community Gatherings
  • "It Is Midnight" by Justin Difazzio
  • "Nonsense Words" by Justin Difazzio
  • "Facts About Same-Sex Marriages" by Hillary Kowalski

• October 2006 Pride Letter (PDF 1.7 MB)

  Editor: Tyler Linder

  • "Letters from the Co-Presidents" by Philip Engleking and Anthony Robertson
  • "The 'Q' of LGBTQA" by
  • "Oil Pastel Piece" by An Anonymous Queer Man
  • "Gaymes" (Puzzles)
  • "The 10 Gen Y Queer Albums You Should Own" by Prior Walter
  • "Spiritually Connected" (A list of LGBTQ-friendly spiritual and religious centers)

• November 2006 Pride Letter (PDF 1.5 MB)

  Editor: Tyler Linder

  • Poetry by Various Authors
  • "Queer Controversy" by Anonymous
  • Charcoal Drawings by Hillary Kowalski
  • "Six Queer Movies All Gay Men Should Own" by Prior Walter
  • "The 10 Gen Y Queer Albums You Should Own" by Prior Walter

• March 2007 Pride Letter (PDF 1.1 MB)

  Editor: Tyler Linder

  • "An Honest Portrayal - Finally - of a Queer Character on Television," a review of Brothers and Sisters by Prior Walter
  • "Tolerance, Civility and Acceptance"
  • "First Kiss *" by Jeremias Musgraveyoung
  • Puzzles

• April 2007 Pride Letter (PDF 1.9 MB)

  Editor: Tyler Linder

  • A Presidential Letter by Philip Engleking
  • "Continuing Troubles with Queer Identity" by Prior Walter
  • "The Fallen Tree" by Jeremias Musgraveyoung
  • Upcoming Events
  • Gay Jam Sponsors

• October 2007 Pride Letter (PDF 1.9 MB)

  Editor: Tyler Linder

  • A Presidential Letter by Hillary Kowalski
  • LGBT History Month Calendar
  • Shakespeare Sonnet 20 Analysis by Amanda Mabillard
  • "Eternal Happiness" by Amanda Salinas
  • "Graduation Runway" by Timothy Nathan Lewis
  • "Gendering Gender" by Jeremias Musgraveyoung

• April 2008 Pride Letter (PDF 1.9 MB)

  • "Could You Ever Guess?" by Hillary Kowalski
  • "For the Children..." by Edwin Rivera
  • Barbara Kruger Pastiche by Andrew Williams
  • "Same-Sex Marriage Should Be Legalized" by Anonymous

• October 2008 Pride Letter (PDF 736 KB)

  Editor: Anneke Higgins

  • Letters from the Presidents, Curt Batterton and Edwin Rivera
  • "Evening News" by Curtis Valasek
  • The Women's Resource Center Treks to the Big City for Some Good Queer, Feminist Fun

• April 2009 Pride Letter (PDF 1.1 MB)

  Editor: Anneke Higgins

  • Letters from the Co-Presidents, Courtney Dickson and Edwin Rivera
  • "Many Workshops to Serve Many People" by Curtis Owen Valasek
  • "Just Hanging with a Former NFL Player..." by Ceci Benitez
  • Movie Review of "Milk" by Ryan Strong
  • "Tips for LGBT Allies" by Anneke Higgins
  • Letter from the Editor

• October 2009 Pride Letter (PDF 1.2 MB)

  Editor: Anneke Higgins

  • Letters from the Co-Presidents, Courtney Dickson and Edwin Rivera
  • Portrait of an Artist
  • Drag Night Pictures
  • Cloudy With a Chance of Gay
  • "From Memory," a poem by Ann Diamond

• November 2010 Pride Letter (PDF 1 MB)

  Editor: Marc Romero, Jr.

  • Prism Presidential Address
  • What's Up in the Community, Curtis?!
  • Meet Our 2010 Executive Board Members
  • People of Prism
  • Bruised by Galea Rain

• April 2011 Pride Letter (PDF 1.4 MB)

  Editor: Marc Romero, Jr.

  • Letters from the Co-Presidents, Ceci Benitez and Edwin Rivera
  • What's Up in the Community, Curtis?!
  • A Message from Prism Treasurer Ema Ulicevic
  • A Message from Marc Romero, Jr.
  • "Prehistoric Valentine" by Galea Rain
  • "There Once Was a Boy, There Once Was a Heart"
  • People of Prism (photos)

• October 2011 Pride Letter (PDF 1.1 MB)

  Editors: Tasha Sawver, Kyle Urbashich

  • Letter from the Editors, Tasha Sawver and Kyle Urbashich
  • Presidential Address by Sammi Johnson and Marc Romero
  • Meet Your 2011-2012 Executive Board
  • "Unequal Equality: THe Truth of Civil Unions" by Khalid Ismail
  • "By the Waterside" by Galea Rain
  • Advice from an Alumnus: Ceci Benitez (2011)

• November 2011 Pride Letter (PDF 786 KB)

  Editors: Tasha Sawver, Kyle Urbashich

  • Letter from the Editors, Tasha Sawver and Kyle Urbashich
  • Presidential Address by Sammi Johnson and Marc Romero
  • "Santorum's Jihad" by Khalid Ismail
  • "Gemstones" by Galea Rain
  • Poetry by Michael Sunderman
  • Advice from an Alumnus: Curtis Valasek (2011)

• February 2012 Pride Letter (PDF 882 KB)

  Editors: Tasha Sawver, Kyle Urbashich

  • Letter from the Editors, Tasha Sawver and Kyle Urbashich
  • Presidential Address by Marc Romero Jr.
  • Changes to the E-Board
  • "The Cubic Zircona of Marriages" (Comic by Bridget Harrington)
  • "Waiting for the Stars" by Galea Rain
  • Advice from an Alumnus: Edwin Rivera (2011)

• April 2012 Pride Letter (PDF 2.3 MB)

  Editor: Kyle Urbashich

  • Letter from the Editor, Kyle Urbashich
  • Presidential Address by Marc Romero Jr.
  • Changes to the E-Board
  • Poetry by Michael Sunderman
  • "The Privilege of Being Yourself..." by Kyle Urbashich
  • A Comic by Bridget Harrington

• Fall 2012 Pride Letter (PDF 444 KB)

  Editor: Kyle Urbashich

  • The Editor's Touch: See what's coming up for the Pride Letter and learn how to get your voice heard!
  • Hard at Work: Prism's Executive Board and committees have been hard at work planning some awesome events! Check out page 6 for some pictures from the Halloween Dance.
  • Comm-u-nity: Look inside to see some awesome artwork and poetry from LGBTQA students, and see what they have to say!

• Winter 2012-2013 Pride Letter (PDF 653 KB)

  Editor: Kyle Urbashich

  • Presidential Address by Marc Romero Jr.
  • Winning Hearts and Minds: Our very own Mike Theodore chimes in with advice on how to interact with our allies
  • Tales of a Teenage Drag Queen: Learn what it means to evolve as a fabulous drag queen!
  • "Waiting for You" by Bri Carroll
  • "Missing Pieces" by Deanna Aguilera
  • "Snow Angel" by Lizz Statler

• New!Spring 2013 Pride Letter (PDF 678 KB)

  Editor: Kyle Urbashich

  • A Final Letter from the Editor
  • An Open Letter from an Ally
  • How Prism Changed My Life
  • I Grow Tired: A Poem on Intersectionality
  • What I Learned from MBLGTACC: Reflecting On Our Experiences