Despite the chill, a crowd of students gathered together last Thursday night to watch the annual “Celebration” ceremony on Wilson’s steps. This was the event’s 27th year and included performances by individual students, several Quad houses and a variety of acapella and student organizations.
“Celebration” was started in 1992 as a response to homophobic and transphobic chalkings on Smith campus. The event was originally titled “The Celebration of Sisterhood” to support lesbian and bisexual women, and the name has since been shortened to be more inclusive of all members of the LGBTQ community. “The planning for ‘Celebration’ began well in advance,” said Molly Abers, one of this year’s organizers. The committee started back in September and met weekly to ensure that the event would run smoothly. Any organization or house that wanted to participate sent in a video of their routine, and the committee worked to fit the performances together for the show. Historically, “Celebration” has seen all kinds of performances, from political and personal speeches to free head shavings and a student in a homemade vagina costume. 2018’s event followed tradition with a mix of both serious material and more lighthearted performances.
The night began with a cover of “Make You Feel My Love” by Kimani Freeman ’20, followed by Cai Sherley ’19, who performed three original songs called “Pride,” “Mourn” and “Harvest.” As each sang, a hush fell over the lawn, the night illuminated by candles as the flame was passed from student to student. The vigil part of “Celebration” is always started with a poem, which affirms that “love has no gender” and that “love is larger than indifference.” The organizers of the event then held a moment of silence to honor those who have suffered because of anti-LGBTQ violence.
The rest of the show had many fun moments: Crapapella poked fun at some of Taylor Swift’s more obnoxious songs, while Wilson house covered “I Will Survive” to lament the impending changes in their dining hall. There was a tribute dance to “the most tragic breakup of our time,” with four Pete Davidsons pining after their respective Ariana Grandes to a soundtrack of her music. Other performances included the Ukulele Club’s cheery rendition of the Beatles’ “Love Me Do,” the Vibes singing “I Wanna Dance With Somebody,” the Smithereens with Marvin Gaye’s “Let’s Get It On” and a spoof of “Lay All Your Love on Me” from the movie “Mamma Mia”. The Black Students Alliance, Celebrations Dance Company, SKDC and some houses went with elaborate skits and dances, ranging from tongue-in-cheek to the more risqué.
Comstock house recited a poem written by their house, talking about what love is in both the romantic and platonic sense. Jordan house also performed a poem, reminding listeners of the existence of asexual students and those in the community who haven’t come out yet. The Noteables did their own spin on “Same Love” by Macklemore, and the Smiffenpoofs reflected the more serious part of the event, the poignant lyrics of “Testimony” by Robbie Robertson ringing over the Quad: “Declare yourself, I will testify.”
Over the years, people have questioned why we need an event to celebrate LGBTQ life if Smith is already a “gay-friendly” campus. But despite Smith’s surface-level reputation as a haven for non-straight students, transphobia and homophobia still pervade both campus and the wider world. At the time of the first “Celebration” vigil in 1992, Massachusetts was one of only four states to guarantee civil rights protection for LGBTQ citizens. Much of the progress made since then is threatened to be undone as the Trump administration released its plans to redefine “sex” under Title IX, which was seen as a direct attempt to erase the existence of transgender individuals in the law.
This year’s organizers asked the audience to not just leave with a sense of community at “Celebration” but to carry the feeling into their everyday lives through direct action and support. So as long as oppressive legislation and rhetoric exists against marginalized people, “Celebration” will be a necessary and relevant event, even on a seemingly “progressive” campus such as Smith.
All merchandise profits for this year’s “Celebration” went to Safe Passage, a support center for survivors of domestic abuse.
