TCU faculty petition accuses university of silence in wake of attacks on LGBTQ class
A TCU instructor who became a target of conservative attacks this summer over his course on drag culture says the university failed to put its foot down in defense of LGBTQ people.
His name, and those of more than 200 other TCU faculty, are on a petition demanding the private university declare its “unequivocal” support for LGBTQ students and employees, as well as for the study of LGBTQ history, culture and theory as a “vital component of our academic mission.” The petition letter also calls on the president and provost to develop an “actionable plan for LGBTQ inclusion” by the end of spring semester.
Nino Testa, an assistant professor who teaches the course, “The Queer Art of Drag,” said several faculty members led the petition drive and sent the letter to the administration on Wednesday, which was National Coming Out Day.
In July, Testa’s course was targeted by a Texas GOP fundraiser to entice donors to give money in the name of fighting “sexually explicit” classes, particularly one with Christian roots. Conservative opponents sought to shame TCU, which had vetted and approved the curriculum. (The course was not “sexually explicit.”)
Testa himself was harassed repeatedly, the petition says; one threat prompted TCU police to instruct him to leave campus.
“For weeks,” the petition says, “the university, the department, and the faculty member received hateful and bigoted phone calls and emails. There was also an overwhelming amount of anti-queer social media discourse about the class, which included hateful and bigoted commentary against the faculty member and TCU, including on a TCU parent Facebook page.”
But university leadership has resisted requests to publicly denounce the attacks and make a “statement of values” surrounding the inclusion of LGBTQ people, the petition alleges.
“There is a need for the university to make statements supporting the LGBTQ community during difficult times,” Testa said in an interview. “There was either no response, or ‘it’s not in the best interest of the university.’”
When asked to comment on the petition this week, a TCU spokesperson said in an emailed statement to the Star-Telegram: “The university has and continues to build an inclusive community where all are welcomed and supported. Inclusion is a hallmark of our culture.”
Drag-related events have increasingly become a target of small but vocal groups in North Texas and elsewhere, leading to protests and sometimes clashes stoked by the broader “anti-woke” conservative crusade. Activists have succeeded in pressuring business owners, local elected leaders and state lawmakers to scrutinize drag events, often under a banner of protecting children from sexuality content.
Johnathan Gooch, the communication director for the LGBTQ advocacy group Equality Texas, told the Star-Telegram previously there’s a long history of drag performances in Texas.
“And I think that’s why we need to have these types of classes,” like Testa’s at TCU, “because so many people don’t know about its history or don’t realize the deep ties with the LGBTQ community and the way drag shows have created safe spaces for the queer community for a long time.”
Testa’s class has been offered since at least 2021. Its syllabus says drag has a “rich history of challenging dominant norms and systems of oppression; building queer community; and cultivating experiences of queer joy in a hostile world.”
This story was originally published October 13, 2023 at 5:52 PM.