New PLS Citizens Manual explores LGBTQ+ history in East Lansing
June 10, 2025 - Karessa Weir
When Sterling Bentley was considering attending Michigan State, he did his research and was surprised to discover the mid-sized Midwestern town of East Lansing was the first city in the U.S. to prohibit discrimination in hiring based on sexual orientation.
It sealed his desire to be a Spartan and eventually led to his enrollment in MSU PLS Professor Sarah Reckhow’s Civic Education and Local Democracy course this past spring.
Bentley, a PhD student in Social Work, is one of the authors of the class web publication titled East Lansing Citizen’s Manual.
“We were aiming to fill the gaps of traditional civics education. There is already so much put on teachers that it is dang near impossible for them to cover it all,” Bentley said.
Reckhow’s previous class had created a similar Lansing Citizen’s Manual, also aimed at increasing interest and engagement in civics and local government with younger people. This year, the MSU students worked with students at East Lansing High School to focus on four areas of East Lansing – history, local government, how to get involved and youth.
Bentley was among the four students focused on the history of East Lansing, which is then divided into Notable Figures, the Founding of the City & History of MSU, Race and Housing and LGBTQ+ History.
It was a natural fit for Bentley to work on the LGBTQ+ History as it fits well with his doctoral research into civic engagement especially with trans people. While he was the only doctoral student in the class, he enjoyed working with people of different ages and academic levels.
“This course has expanded my horizons in many ways,” he said. “I loved the community engaged portion that leads to a tangible tool. As an academic, that is what I want my courses to do – create ways to benefit communities immediately.”
The LGBTQ+ History section follows the story of the Michigan State Gay Liberation Movement,the first LGBTQ+ student group in Michigan and one of the oldest in the country. In 1972, a member of the movement had been fired from their campus job for being gay, leading to faculty and activists to propose an amendment to the East Lansing’s city code to prohibit discrimination in hiring based on “affectional or sexual preference.”
Bentley quoted Councilwoman Mary Sharp, an MSU alum, who pushed the proposal to approval with her statement: “This isn’t about promoting a lifestyle. This is about protecting people from being punished for who they are.”
The Michigan State Gay Liberation Movement is still alive today as the Alliance of Queer and Ally Students.
The LGBTQ+ History section also includes the work of Rachel Crandall-Crocker, a transgender woman, MSU alum and longtime activist, who created the Transgender Day of Visibility in 2009– now an internationally recognized celebration.
“It means so much to me that our community – which has had our histories erased, burned and rewritten for us – can present the history of our own existence,” he said.
Finally, the section includes community resources and local events of interest to LGBTQ+ people and allies.
Overall, Bentley is hopeful that the website will show local youth how they can get involved in causes they care about, how to become more media literate and increase their knowledge – and pride – of their hometown.
“It is so important to highlight the pride and joy and resistance. And how empowering is it for a young trans kid to discover this history and be proud of where they are from,” Bentley said.