Bucky the Bronco celebrating at Rainbow Prom. **Photo by Dylan Ryu**

Purple light spilled across a checkered dance floor in Locatelli Student Activity Center this past Friday, casting a shimmering glow over a crowd of thrifted blazers, sequined mini dresses and neon mesh gloves. Lady Gaga’s “Disease” roared from the speakers as students twirled and laughed, lost in the rhythm of an 80s-themed dreamscape made real.

Rainbow Prom, an annual event hosted by the Santa Clara Community Action Program, marked the start of Pride Month on campus—but it felt like something more. The event was a vibrant celebration of queer identity, resistance, and joy at a time when those things feel increasingly under threat.

Students came decked out in full 80s flair, and it wasn’t just the clothes that glittered. Grace Davis ’25, who was crowned prom royalty alongside her girlfriend Sydney Shelby ’25, wore a sleek periwinkle latex dress she’d never dared wear before. “I never had the confidence—or the occasion—to wear it. This felt like the moment,” she said. “To dance in the middle of the stage with my girlfriend and a sparkly crown on my head—it just fills you with such a real sense of joy.”

For Davis, the night was more than just a crowning moment.

“I would say it’s especially important to celebrate the joys and to come together and have just a really great night with good food, good dancing, to feel like your fully authentic self, because there are fewer and fewer spaces where that can happen,” she said.

This year’s prom unfolded amidst increased federal pressure on LGBTQ+ inclusion, including executive orders limiting gender identity recognition and a broader rollback of diversity, equity and inclusion programs nationwide. In contrast, Locatelli was filled with rainbow lights, Whitney Houston ballads and unapologetic queer love.

Students on the dance floor. **Photo by Dylan Ryu**

“With everything going on—the anti-trans laws, the book bans, the attacks on drag shows—this feels powerful,” said one student, going only by Sam, still catching their breath from the dance floor. “We’re queer, and we’re here to stay.”

“Rainbow Prom is the epitome of what joy looks like for queer students,” said Tiago Moreno ’28, SCCAP’s marketing manager, reflecting on what events like this mean for the community.

“It’s a reminder to the people who are part of this community on campus that they are safe, that they are welcome, that they are celebrated, and that they should be celebrated,” he said. “Anyone who might choose to otherwise persecute queer people: It is a reminder that that is not welcome, that is not tolerated on this campus.”

Moreno touched upon new policies from the federal government; policies that he described as targeting the queer community. Nevertheless, this event was an opportunity, “What we are going to do is we are going to spend time together in joy and in happiness,” he said. “I couldn't think of any other better way to cap off the end of this year rather than celebrating queer pride and joy.”

“I went to a Catholic high school where you couldn’t even bring a same-sex date to prom,” said one senior. “Now, I’m here in a packed room with my community, dancing to Charlie XCX.”

“I came here to dance, but I also came here to be loud, to take up space, to feel free,” said a first-year student wearing a black iridescent dress.

As the night wore on, the students slowly began shuffling off the dancefloor, all the while still shouting lyrics with arms wrapped around each other. And as the final song began, the night ended not with a whisper, but a punchline.

“You’re so good at dancing,” one student shouted over the music.

“It’s because I’m gay,” the other replied, grinning as they twirled.