“Straights and gays!” shouts a face from the front of a classroom crammed with 40 students on “GSA Thursday.” They are all members or allies of the LGBTQ+ community. 

The room is loud as they catch up with each other. The signature GSA playlist plays music from gay, bisexual and transgender musicians. There is laughter, hugging and somewhat-controlled chaos.  

GSA is a student-led organization that aims to create a safe space for LGBTQ+ students. It focuses on current issues in that community, its members’ personal experiences and other related topics. 

The group’s faculty sponsor, Jeremy Fulk, said GSA is so inclusive that the phrase “Straights and gays!” is used to ask for its members’ attention. It meets every Thursday from 3:35 p.m. to 4:15 p.m. in Fulk’s room. 

GSA is run by co-presidents senior Grace Lowell and sophomore Isabella Dudley-Flores, who is also the managing editor for The Bear Witness.  

Fulk said he joined the school’s chapter of GSA because he strongly believes in social equality, supports marginalized communities and knows that LGBTQ+ individuals tend to have challenging adolescent experiences. 

Sophomore Ruhee Chitambar is also on GSA’s leadership team, and she acts as GSA’s officer. Her main duty is to fill in for one of the co-presidents when they are absent. She also assists in coming up with meeting ideas. 

The organization has informational meetings where anybody can create presentations about any LGBTQ+ topic like a celebrity, film or television show. Chitambar said last year, the GSA had a few “chill” discussion meetings where members either did a craft or talked about a new LGBTQ+ artist’s music release. 

Chitambar said she initially joined the GSA because Lowell is one of her best friends, but now, she genuinely enjoys the club for what it is.  

“Since I’ve joined, it’s been really fun to go to meetings and learn about different things that have made me a better ally, as well as get to know some people in my school that I otherwise wouldn’t have ever talked to,” said Chitambar. 

One of the members of GSA is freshman Jojo Luth. She said she initially joined the club because her sister was its vice president in 2018, and she wanted to make new friends. Like Chitambar, Luth enjoys the club and says it is “a lot of fun.” 

If anybody wishes to join GSA, they can message @cambridgehsgsa on Instagram or email [email protected].