Fullerton students salsa into celebrating LGBTQIA2S+ History Month

Fullerton students salsa into celebrating LGBTQIA2S+ History Month Fullerton students salsa into celebrating LGBTQIA2S+ History Month 5th annual LGBTQIA2S+ History Month Kick-Off brought together queer and Latinx community through dance and arts and crafts. Jayden Kay Linayao, Staff Reporter October 12, 2026 Jayden Kay Linayao Queer Latin Dance OC instructor teaches attendees of the Fullerton College LGBTQIA2S+ Kick Off various Latin dances such as salsa, bachata, and merengue. Fullerton College’s LGBTQIA2S+ hosted the 5th annual LGBTQIA2S+ History Month Kick-Off in the Cruz Reynoso Courtyard on Oct. 7. Attendees had the chance to learn various styles of Latinx dance, craft felt quilts while learning about queer art history, and learn about local resources that support the LGBTQIA2S+ community. “A lot of times when we talk about like queer issues, it tends to be like very traumatic or very sad about things that are happening,” Ariel Gentalen, LGBTQIA2S+ resource program special projects manager and coordinator of the event, said. “I think it’s also very important to just, you know, do fun stuff like kind of right now where we’re doing just little quilts and stuff like that.” Story continues below advertisement Latino Heritage Month and LGBTQIA2S+ History Month share the month of October. In celebration of both, students glued together felt quilts and filled out stamp cards to receive freebies; attendees had the opportunity to learn Latin dance styles such as salsa, bachata, merengue and cumbia with Queer Latin Dance OC, and get tested with APAIT in their van. Participating booths handed out pride flags, program merch and candy. The most popular booths were the mental health and wellness centers, handing out flavored condoms. Other notable booths were the photography program’s printed photobooth and the LGBTQIA2S+ resource program’s tote bags and T-shirts. “Visibility is so important in a time where folks are trying to erase queer people,” Gentalen said. The LGBTQIA2S+ program hopes to bring more performances to the event in future years. Another similar event at the college is the Harvest Haunt where resources and clubs will be in attendance. “We’re not going anywhere, so we like to be loud, we like to celebrate and we really like to wave the flag to make sure folks know that this is the space for them and they’re welcome,” Gentalen said. Check the Fullerton College event calendar for more events celebrating LGBTQIA2S+ month. View Story Comments 0 Like This Story Share on Facebook Share on X Email this Story Print this Story Leave a Comment About the Contributor Jayden Kay Linayao, Staff Reporter Jayden Kay is a Journalism and American Sign Language major with dreams of transferring to NYU or USC to pursue her career in becoming a reporter. In her free time she likes to make slime and edit vlogs.