When applying for college, Anna Conner said Baylor University was a top choice for her. She grew up heavily in the church, but as a gay young woman, things proved complicated. The church wasnt accepting of the LGBTQ community.
Can I be gay and Christian? Will God love me? Am I going to hell? Theres always those questions, Conner said.
She began to feel disconnected from her church, she said. But when she saw Baylors beautiful campus and the people who worked and attended, she felt hope. Maybe if I came here, I could find some reconciliation and have my heart there (in the church) again, she thought.
Conner, from Houston and now a junior at Baylor, joined the club Gamma Alpha Upsilon, formerly known as the Sexuality Identity Forum, a LGBTQ student group on campus where she found community and solace. But the same feeling of nonacceptance she felt at her church growing up followed her to Baylor.
The private Baptist university has refused to recognize Gamma Alpha Upsilon, or GAY in Greek letters, as an official student group since its inception in 2011.