02.03.2024
Last Saturday the newly formed Muncie Queer Alliance held its first public meeting at Kennedy Library. The event had an attendance of roughly 20 people. Their agenda included providing leadership and volunteer opportunities for members and giving updates on Indiana legislation, including that HB 1291 is now less likely to pass through committee in the Statehouse. Present at the meeting, too, was District 35 candidate Phil Gift. When asked about trans healthcare in Indiana and the threat of HB 1266, Gift told the Post-Democrat: “I would like to see trans healthcare accepted in Indiana and become the law of the land. When I see these really homophobic, transphobic types of things, it’s easy to get angry. But it’s not anger, it’s fear. It’s fear and it’s ignorance of many people that are not familiar with the trans community, or the LGBTQ community, at all. And so as a result they become disingenuous and try to legislate that which they fear, and they don’t make any real effort to understand it.”
The groups formation roots back to August, when many in the LGBTQ+ community were dissatisfied with Muncie Outreach. Accusations of racism and transphobia have been directed towards Executive Director Laura Janney, which were followed by a statement by Outreach. Many of the individuals affected do not want their stories public, due to fear of retaliation, although a wider consensus in Muncie’s Queer community appears to stand against the non-profit. SteVen Knipp, owner of SteVen Knipp Hair Studio, became vocal in August about his experience with intimidation from Janney, who told others he was “mentally ill” and rejected his sponsorship of and donations to Outreach. Knipp regards Janney’s actions as gatekeeping, trying to maintain her position above other members, and even white saviorism for wanting to be a voice for marginalized groups.
The divide between Muncie’s LGBTQ+ community and Outreach was at first an accruing split, and later appeared that MQA would have to be an obligatory replacement for the non-profit. Though the sentiment largely now is that while many are frustrated, there could be a loss of agency for the LGBTQ+ community if Outreach went away. Janney’s actions have been described as “manipulative” and “sowing division” in the community, though. MQA member Sam McCollum says most of the group has come to a similar conclusion about questioning leadership, although does not want Outreach to be done away with entirely.
Statement made by Outreach on August 25th
Another member Emily Johnson told the Post-Democrat: “We don’t want to see Muncie Outreach end, we think that their mission is so important, the work they do. All we want as Muncie Queer Alliance is to make sure all of the groups that want to serve our community can work together and put in our best.” MQA says the group has been trying to hold a meeting with Outreach since October, but the non-profit wanted a series of stipulations to be met. Stipulations include having the meeting recorded, having their legal defense present, and avoiding topics pertaining to the controversy. MQA says they’re still open to meeting with Outreach, but want it to be a more open discussion.
The statement from August was criticized by individuals such as SteVen Knipp and Muncie Pride Network creator Curtis Dorgan, for not confronting concerns directly enough and asking the community to stop writing negatively about the organization. From the statement: “For Muncie OUTreach to continue serving its mission, it is important that we be able to work with and learn from those who challenge us. It is equally important, however, that public messaging by or about the organization stays focused on the work we’re doing and the impact we hope to make in the community. Using social media and other public outlets to share frustrations regarding leadership and policies weakens the integrity of our organization in the eyes of the community, which puts our personnel, our partnerships, our funding, and most importantly our youth at risk.”