By Madlima Leben, Editorial Assistant
“Don’t ask what love can make or do! Look at the colors of the world.” I read aloud from Rumi’s poem “All Rivers At Once,” perched on a blue bench as the fleeting, spring sun beat down on my face. I had never done anything like this before. No book clubs, no pride parades, nothing. I went from being in the closet to sitting outside on a patch of grass— reading work from 13th century poet Rumi— with people I’ve met just 10 minutes ago, some sitting on the bench, some on the grass, and some on blankets provided by Dr. Paul Nauert. It all felt surreal.
Queer Poets Society is a weekly poetry session open to all students that meets every week. This event is facilitated by both Dr. Paul Nauert a history professor at EOU and Dr. Dustin Ellis, who teaches history and political science and is their “latest experiment to continue to create spaces for queer community.” As queer faculty mentors, they wanted to “cultivate solidarity with fellow queer faculty staff and allies.”
Before attending Queer Poet Society, I was quietly afraid that if I engaged in a queer visibility activity on campus I would somehow incur the fate of someone shameful, like falling victim to a riot, a rumor, or an exclusion beyond my own comfort. Not everyone has grown up feeling as though they could find unconditional acceptance. Yet, somehow those concerns or categories didn’t fall upon me at this moment. I felt like I was stretching my legs after years of stiff recluse. I felt like I was whole. I was real.
“The riverwater moving in all rivers at once. The truth that lives in Shams’ face,” I concluded, looking up from the paper I was reading from.
People blurted out their thoughts as they fluttered in the air, captured by another and grounded in intellectual conversation. Sam Hannigan, ASEOU Senator, read this exact line from Rumi’s poem, “Music Master”: “You would rather throw stones at a mirror? I am your mirror, and here are the stones.”
“I don’t think there’s any expectation you have to be queer, or LGBTQ+, or anything to show up. You just have to like poetry,” Dr. Dustin Ellis said. “It’s a good, very informal, low stakes discussion… just kind of helping build community with people. Let’s just relax a minute and read a poem. You know, enjoy the sunshine.”
Dr. Dustin Ellis and Dr. Paul Nauert started Queer Poets Society out of a small book club held in the GSRC Student Advocates for Gender Equality’s (SAGE) office space. That small book club was held in the winter. It felt appropriate for the two professors to move the club’s activities to the outdoors, and “get out of the closet”, Dustin said.
Nauert said that Ellis and he are still in the process of figuring out how to market and fully define Queer Poets Society. Nauert said that it has been quite easy to grow and facilitate the group thanks to Eastern Oregon University being a small and community-engaged institution. However, they are hoping to grow Queer Poets Society’s attendance rates.
Ellis and Nauert aimed to make Queer Poets Society easily accessible compared to their previous book club. In this way, students wouldn’t need to prepare or pre-read in order to join the festivities. According to Ellis, accessibility was a paramount goal in order to successfully organize Queer Poets Society.
Hannigan, a regular attendee of Queer Poets Society, said that it is not only enjoyable because of the discussion, but the safe space it provides for anyone who cares to join.
“There are people who are in positions of power that, you know, whether they are intentional about it or not… are advocating for anti-queer legislature. You know, I’m pretty cis-hetero, but I have a lot of friends who are not in that easy category. I feel for them,” Hannigan said, “I want them to be safe too. You know, just like, we’re all people, and it would be easier to move forward if we could do that together.”
Ellis’ and Nauert’s goals are to increase visibility for queer people on campus and in the La Grande community at large. Any student is welcome to join Queer Poets Society sessions, as new poems are introduced every Thursday from 3:00 to 4:00 p.m. in the Quad— the concrete centerpiece between Hoke, Loso, Ackerman, and Badgley. No pre-reading or registering is required. Students and faculty alike are encouraged to bring poem suggestions for group discussion.
“Queerness is everywhere around us at the university. Let’s make it more visible”, Nauert said.
