As students across the Atlanta University Center plan graduation celebrations, some are still fighting for their identities to be part of the ceremony. Students at Morehouse College, Spelman College, and Clark Atlanta University say they are exploring ways to uplift one another as LGBTQ rights come under pressure across Georgia higher education.
Spelman is one of a handful of HBCUs to hold a lavender ceremony, a graduation event established at the University of Michigan in the late 1990s to recognize LGBTQ students. Spelman launched its version in 2023, and the women's college plans its fourth annual ceremony May 1. Howard University and Virginia State University are the two other HBCUs known to hold lavender ceremonies.
Briya Philip, a 2023 Spelman graduate now working in special education in Chicago, was part of the first ceremony for 16 students at the school. She said it was an affirming experience. "It was really special to be recognized at an institutional level, especially in a space that can sometimes feel very Christian and heteronormative," Philip said. "It felt really special to have that ceremony just for us."
At Morehouse and Clark Atlanta, LGBTQ students say they are pushing for similar recognition. Jordan Freeman, a graduating senior, described the effort as both advocacy and community-building in a political climate that feels hostile. The West End campuses that make up the AUC have historically been hubs for Black student activism, and the current push puts campus traditions squarely in that lineage.
