217 Today: Champaign Urbana queer community seeks specific spaces

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Vendor tents set up for the 2023 pride parade in Urbana on September 30, 2023.
  • Photo: Reginald Hardwick/IPM News

Monday, October 2, 2023

Today’s headlines: 

  • Decatur Public Schools is breaking ground on a new school building that’s being named after one of Illinois’ Tuskegee Airmen.
  • Large crowds gathered in downtown Urbana during Champaign-Urbana’s annual pride parade on Saturday.
  • The Champaign County Community Coalition hosted the first Black Mental Health and Wellness Conference at Parkland College on Saturday.
  • The Fighting Illini football team lost to the Purdue Boilermakers Saturday night 44 to 19.

In today’s deep dive, we’ll learn more about how some members of the LGBTQ community in Champaign-Urbana are trying to revive the community’s lost queer spaces.

Reporting today contributed by Emily Hays, Piper Pascarella, Stephanie Mosqueda, Colin Hislope and Owen Henderson.

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Farrah Anderson

Farrah Anderson is a 2024 graduate of the University of Illinois. At Illinois Public Media, Anderson works as a general assignment reporter focusing on police and investigative stories.