Color, energy, and passion filled The Hood event space Sept. 26 as Families and Youth Innovations+ (FYI+) hosted its Platinum Oasis Pride Ball.
The Ball was hosted by drag queens Ivonna Bump and Khaotica with the help of several workers from FYI+. The event included food, drinks, performances, photos, and contests of various categories, with winners determined by a panel of judges. For many attendees, this wasn’t simply a party; it was a statement.
Jean Resendez, director of business development and communications at FYI+, felt strongly about the ball, deeming it highly important in the current political climate.
“People might think, ‘oh, it’s just a fun dance party,’ but to the people here, it means so much more. Because, I mean, how many other outlets are there, really?” Resendez said.
The lack of safe spaces for queer people, Resendez explained, makes events like this even more vital.
“I think when a lot of voices are being shut down or silenced, we’re just trying to build those voices up,” Resendez said.
Another passionate worker at FYI+, Chris Preciado, who works as the Outreach and Events Specialist, further discussed the vitality of this organization and the events it runs.
Preciado had seen the news of the Street Preachers who visited the New Mexico State University campus on Sept. 22 and 23.
“It’s important to find community in those moments and stand with the people who believe in a better, more positive future,” Preciado said. “It really is important to stand up against folks like that who were on campus essentially preaching hate. There’s nobody here preaching hate; everybody here is loving each other, loving our community. It’s an expression of love, right? The only thing those people were expressing was hatred of people who are different than them, but they want to preach freedom of speech as a reason for their bigotry. It’s very frustrating.”
For Preciado, that frustration only reinforces why events like the Pride Ball matter.
“They say existence is resistance, right?” Preciado said. “And I think putting on events like this is existing despite the circumstances. Almost in spite of the circumstances, and I think that’s important to do.”
Preciado was not the only person at the party who was affected by the protests on campus. NMSU Freshman Jenn Shrader attended the Pride Ball hoping to find a more welcoming community after the events.
“I was kind of upset by [the protests], because I have to walk by it to go home,” Shrader said. “I saw that there was gonna be this party, and I was like, I should really go. I would see people who are nicer, who aren’t hateful.”
Shrader said she appreciated the event, believing more students at NMSU should attend events like these, especially if they are in search of welcoming communities.
“It’s more of a safe space versus like a frat party or something,” Shrader said. “There’s food and drinks, and just a nice, warm environment.”
The 2025 Pride Ball was not all rainbows and sparkles, however. Behind the scenes, a lot of stress was brewing both in creating the event, and running it during its course. From seeing political disputes online to the DJ cancelling an hour before the event, the team at FYI+ put in countless hours of problem solving to present this event to the public. Zed Serna, the program supervisor for the event, spoke up about issues in obtaining funding.
“With all the recent executive orders, I lost half my funding. So we didn’t think we were gonna have my program anymore,” Serna said. “We were a little nervous and scared, you know? But we talked to all of our partners, we talked to people that we knew, and we were just like, you know what? We need to be there for our youth. We need to make sure that they know we’re here.”
Still, the FYI+ team persisted, showing resilience. Ivonna Bump, a drag queen, and one of the night’s esteemed performers stated she believed in the resilience of the queer community wholeheartedly.
“Not only do we need to see each other, but we also need to let everyone know, including each other, that now’s not the time to run or hide,” Bump said. “…I don’t want to say we’ve been through worse, but we’ve been through quite a bit. This is not something new, we’ve always been marginalized, and you can just continue to keep standing. There’s no other choice, I feel.”
Much like her co-host, drag queen Khaotica saw the Pride Ball and LGBTQ+ events as an opportunity to be loud in the face of oppression. While this Pride event was fun for the community, Khaotica wanted to remind everyone that it exists for a higher purpose than simply entertainment. Pride was made to be a form of resistance.
“That’s why we have Pride,” Khaotica said. “It’s usually ‘pride month’ for one month. Like, a month of the year? No. It’s always pride month, every single month, every single day, and every single time. We’ll never not be queer, and they’re never going to change that. I’m here, I’m queer, and I’m still not used to it, but we get there. So to that, I say it is important to have these events, to keep empowering people in our communities.”
