As soon as the Claremont-famous Quegger Instagram account announced its impending Friday night bash, anticipation spread through the air on Scripps’ campus. This Quegger — a traditional kegger party with a queer twist — promised to be one for the books.
This Scripps College tradition began in pre-COVID-19 times, but during the years of quarantine and social distancing, Scripps nightlife came to a screeching halt and Queggers quickly faded into history. In the past few years, however, the Scripps party scene has been making a vibrant revival, complete with two consecutive years of 1C-plus-guest Mardi Gras parties and Halloween ragers.
The Quegger is now the next event to make its resurgence. With around two per semester over the past two years, the party typically draws approximately 200 attendees from across the 5Cs.
This Quegger, in particular, was themed for “The L-Word,” a long-time Showtime series featuring the lives and loves of a group of lesbians and bisexuals in Los Angeles. Many students were longtime fans of the show and felt that the theme cultivated a safe environment for self-expression. The distinct early 2000s vibe has also been making a comeback this year, and attendees were not shy about rocking their low-rise jeans and babydoll camis.
As the night unfolded, more and more people took to the dance floor in celebration. The speaker began to experience some technical difficulties, but remarkably, people stayed.
Part of why people frequent these events, as attendee Aria Pines PO ’27 described, is because they flip the otherwise patriarchal, frat-centric idea of a kegger on its head. The stereotype of a kegger calls to mind a frat party, with shirtless guys playing dice in the grass. While there is nothing wrong with this kind of event, it isn’t for everyone.
“A lot of the parties at the 5Cs are centered around straight hookups, and I think that the Quegger is centered around community and fun, and [hookups aren’t] the point of it,” Pines said. “I love dancing, I love queer people, and I think that that’s what the party scene should be about; I think we need more of this.”
One might assume that in a liberal arts environment such as the 5Cs, a space created for queer people wouldn’t be unusual — but some students remarked that outside of Scripps, these spaces can be harder to find than one might think.
“I feel very lucky to be going to my second one this year. I think it’s a really fun time to be able to go to a function at Scripps. I feel like outside of the Queggers [the queer community] doesn’t really manifest super organically,” Mira Chenok, PO ’27 said.
Outside of the Queer Resource Centers at the other schools, events that cater to queer students are less common. When asked whether they felt the same level of support at the other 5Cs as they do at Scripps, student responses were mixed.
“I don’t see a lot of schools besides Scripps hosting these groups,” Dessa LaFont PO ’29 said. “It is specifically made by queer people for queer people, and so it makes me feel seen in another way that Pomona doesn’t really. And that’s part of the reason I come up to Scripps so often, I feel very accepted here.”
While queer spaces certainly exist beyond just Scripps College, some students remarked that they can be harder to find. The biggest takeaway from the night seemed to be the emphasis on building an uplifting community, where the queer community can celebrate, not commiserate.
“I love how we are able to bring queer people into a space and just be together in a really positive way. I feel like a lot of the time, the community between queer people is kind of just wallowing, almost, about bad things that are happening, and I love how positive the Quegger is,” Pines said.
While the Quegger did a great job of fostering community, Scripps still has a long way to go to get back to the spirit of pre-pandemic nightlife. Upperclassmen often pass on legends about campus culture before COVID-19. However, with increasing attendance at the Motley Coffeehouse parties and events, in addition to the creation of the Scripps 1C Event Planning Committee last year, the Scripps community is back.
“Out of the 5Cs, Scripps is definitely the one with the least party rep, and to my experience, that has been proven true … But the Quegger [was] lit last semester, and this semester so far, there’s been a couple of really good functions,” Ruby Costa SC ’29 said.
In this way, Quegger reclaims the typical party scene — one that is not built for queer voices. Regardless of whether you’re queer or not, the Quegger is a comfortable space for everyone to exist without fear of being judged. Not everyone who attends a Quegger is queer, and not everyone who is queer attends a Quegger.
“I don’t feel threatened by [straight male attendees] at all, I feel like a lot of people here understand the vibe, and understand when they’re coming to,” LaFont said. “If anyone homophobic came, I think I would not be okay with that, but so far in my experiences, everyone who comes here is really an ally, or they’re gay.”
The Quegger is a chance for everyone to let their hair down and enjoy a night with a like-minded community.
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