For current college students, it is no surprise to learn that the COVID-19 pandemic greatly affected participation in on-campus, student-led clubs and activities. The University of Denver’s  Feminist Student Alliance (FSA) was no exception. Despite the setbacks, obstacles and odds that were stacked against it, FSA has managed to rally its strength and come back full-force after the pandemic. 

FSA is a “radically inclusive feminist group on campus [that advocates] for issues that affect women and trans individuals,” according to senior history and socio-legal studies student and FSA co-president Violet Butler.

However, this mission has not been easy to achieve over the past several years. Although FSA has been present on campus for years, its prominence and level of activity have waxed and waned. 

“FSA was started many years ago, and then it went defunct,” said Butler. “One of my friends restarted it about two years ago but unfortunately, everything was on Zoom, and it was very hard to keep up.”

FSA, like countless other college clubs, struggled with engagement throughout a time that was difficult for all students. As Butler described, due to the inability to hold in-person meetings, FSA began to struggle in the early days of their involvement.

“It was still very hard to advertise and get people that just show up to meetings,” Butler said. “As I’m sure many people are familiar with, you can have lots of people interested in the Involvement Fair, and not one of them will show up to a meeting.”

Things are looking up for FSA now that in-person events are back in full swing. Butler stated that FSA’s main goal, for now, is to begin repairing the alliance’s foundation by raising awareness of the club’s activities and increasing participation at events and meetings. From there, the club can begin holding larger events on major holidays such as International Women’s Day. She also mentioned that the club is seeking to hold more collaborative events and projects with other affinity groups around campus, as well as feminist groups in the wider Denver area. 

Once back at its full strength, FSA also aims to hold educational events centered around feminist issues, such as one held last year. FSA was able to invite representatives from a menstrual cup company to DU to give presentations on menstrual issues to event attendees. With a higher level of support, FSA hopes to hold even more of these events in the future.

For now, students can show their support for FSA and its mission by attending the alliance’s regular meetings, which occur every other Wednesday from 5:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. on the first floor of the Community Commons. 

For more information on FSA and its upcoming events, check out the alliance’s Crimson Connect and Instagram pages.