UNT withdrawas support for Denton Pride ahead of festival’s 10th year

The University of North Texas has backed out of plans to support Denton’s 10th annual LGBTQ+ Pride celebration, saying that the collaboration was arranged outside of the university’s proper channels and that participation would violate state law. 

Event flyers published earlier this month showed that the UNT Eagle Engagement Center, the office created after anti-DEI legislation resulted in the closure of the university’s Multicultural Center and Pride Alliance, was acting as a sponsor for a Pride-themed sidewalk chalk event and a vendor’s fair. Within a few weeks, UNT had been removed from the flyers. 

“The university has withdrawn its involvement in the PRIDENTON event. University processes were not followed, and it has been determined that UNT’s participation would violate state law. As a public institution, we strictly adhere to all state law,” a statement provided to the Observer by the university said. “UNT will continue to prioritize our values, our students and our people, while ensuring we follow the law.”

While a spokesperson for the university did not specify which law would be violated if UNT were to participate in Pride events, 2023’s Texas Senate Bill 17 has been a source of tension for public colleges across the state. The legislation required public universities to shutter their diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) offices and outlawed diversity training. Many university faculty members have expressed frustration that the law’s vague language resulted in sweeping, anti-DEI implementation across the board. 

The bill has resulted in professors leaving higher education, and just last month, Attorney General Ken Paxton launched an investigation into whether UNT was violating SB 17 by incorporating DEI initiatives into its curriculum. The investigation has resulted in at least one faculty member being fired. 

According to Anjelica Fraga Escalante, an organizer with PRIDENTON, this latest confusion over UNT’s involvement in Pride has also resulted in a university employee losing their job. The university did not respond to a request for verification. 

“From my understanding, all of the correct channels were used to get the approval [for the UNT office] to participate in the partnership,” Fraga Escalante told the Observer. “We’ve worked with UNT since the very beginning. This is our 10th Pride, and we’ve had an ongoing partnership with UNT since 2017, even in the wake of SB 17’s passing. So it was very sudden, and very disappointing.” 

By the time PRIDENTON organizers were made aware that there was an issue with UNT’s participation, the university had already received a refund for the Civic Center reservation meant for the vendor fair, Fraga Escalante said. The Pride events are scheduled to run throughout Pride Month in June.

She added that the dissolution of LGBTQ+ services at UNT has been “incredibly heartbreaking for the community” and has ramped up the demand other Denton organizations are seeing for pride events and LGBTQ+ outreach. With so many organizations and businesses willing to “take up the mantle,” Fraga Escalante said there is enough support for pride that UNT’s backing out “isn’t the end of the world.” 

Even as state legislators bear down on any semblance of diversity, Fraga Escalante says those are the types of events that people want. Throughout June, the PRIDENTON events aim to include people from “all walks of life,” so LGBTQ+ community members who identify as transgender, are immigrants, or are people of color will find programming that fits their experiences. 

What stands out to her is that Denton’s welcoming culture wouldn’t be possible without UNT’s decades-long participation in the community before SB 17.