The Economic Development Collaborative (EDC) would like to recognize Pride Month. Observed annually in June, Pride Month is a time to uplift and celebrate the the LGBTQ+ community. EDC is committed to supporting LGBTQ+ innovators and entrepreneurs and strives to provide equitable access to inclusive services year-round.
The EDC is proud to support our community by providing professional technical assistance through our Small Business Development Center.
It’s that time of the year again where members of the LGBTQ+ community and their allies celebrate Pride, a month-long series of festivals, proclamation and flag raising ceremonies, socials and other community-centric gatherings held in cities, counties, and states across our nation.
But what does Pride mean in the age of equality? It wasn’t too long ago that our community faced the daily bombardment of homophobic and discriminatory assaults on our civil liberties. And yes, it was fueled by hate and ignorance. Hate caused by the fear of the unknown. History has taught us that people fear what they don’t understand, and we’ve witnessed that injustice play out in our lifetime.
In honor of Pride Month, Oxnard College became Ventura County’s first higher-education institution to raise the LGBTQ+ Progress Pride flag over its campus. The flag-raising ceremony took place on June 1 and was in collaboration with the Diversity Collective, Ventura County’s LGBTQ Oxnard chapter. The flag will fly through June.
“If America stands for anything, it stands for the ideal of liberty and justice for all,” shared Luis Sanchez, president of Oxnard College. “Oxnard College welcomes students from all backgrounds and identities, and we proudly raise the Pride flag above our campus as a symbol of our commitment to equality for all human beings and a celebration of our LGBTQ+ community.”
