By Gilles Collong, Teacher of French, SGIS Pride Educator
On Thursday 30 May, the Phoenix Club (LGBTQ club) attended the annual SGIS Pride Conference organised by the SGIS Pride Educators at ISZL. Around 85 students from 10 different international schools in Switzerland gathered to celebrate the Queer identity of students and educators, just in time for Pride Month.
This year’s theme was “Finding your voice”. We had the privilege to be in the company of the fantastic artist Dylan Holloway. Dylan made history as the first trans winner of a singing competition in the UK with his Project Icon victory. While Dylan's identity doesn't define his music, his experience transitioning does inspire it: “I have a few songs that talk about that journey.”
Dylan’s keynote opening was authentic, raw, honest, and an inspiration to the students and the staff present in the room. He then led a workshop with the students and a Q&A session with the staff. We were also fortunate to hear Dylan sing a few of his latest songs, including an incredible duet with his old self.
The whole day was a day of celebration, where students had the full sense of what authenticity means. We could all feel that we truly belonged to a united, open and empathetic community, made even more wonderful by the warm welcome from ISZL’s Deputy Director Maria Voutos and School Director Barry Dequanne.
One of our students described the experience as “impactful”, and said they “learnt a lot but it was also very fun”.
