In her rhinestone heels, pink suit, red lipstick and passion for Constitutional law, Christina Lydon is Suffolk’s very own Elle Woods.
When she started Notorious, Lydon wasn’t just founding another student club—she was creating a movement. The group described themselves as an organization focused on constitutional law and civil rights advocacy that was born from a deep frustration with political division and a desire to turn fear into collective action.
Amidst the 2024 election cycle, Lydon and her peers in the political science and the legal studies department found themselves alarmed and scared of a potential second Trump administration. When Lydon started sharing these concerns, she found that these same feelings extended beyond the legal department.
“I had talked about it with some of my sorority sisters who aren’t in poli-sci or law, but they were like, this is so important,” said Lydon. With this, Lydon said she could not simply keep debate, protest and expression merely contained within the confines of the classroom.
The club is focused on action through the lens of judicial action and constitutional freedoms, this was reflected in the theme of the first meeting, “Rally with Red Lipstick.”
“I know that there’s a lot of students who want to get involved in activism, but might be scared to go attend a protest,” said Lydon. “And immediately the Tinker case came to mind because that is speech, that is activism. But it is the safest way for anyone to participate in speech and activism because it’s symbolic speech that’s nondisruptive.”
That symbolism carried over from history, too. As a full e-board of women, Lydon was sure to reference wartime feminism.
“Red lipstick was always used as a form of protest against the Nazis in Germany. And that’s why red lipstick was so popularized during the 1940s,” said Lydon. “Women in the U.S. Army would wear red lipstick as a symbol of being pro-Democracy, pro civil rights, anti-Nazi and all of the atrocities that they have committed against others. And so I thought red lipstick was one, super diva because we are the divas that make a difference.”
Lydon said Anastasia Beverly Hills Matte & Satin Lipstick were her own medium of protest.
Ayan Mohamed, secretary of Notorious, spent last summer interning in the United States District Court and witnessing the litigation of American Association of University Professors v. Rubio, sharing that the experience showed her the real-life impact of the Trump administration.
“Educators and students who are here on visas who feel scared to even share their opinions about what matters are important to them,” said Mohamed.
She said the First Amendment is the most important one to her, as without it, no other freedoms can come after it. With her experience, Mohamed said she is ready to share with the club the real impact of free speech and the power of advocating for students’ rights in the classroom, in public and, as she’s most excited about, in the courtroom.
Notorious emphasized being an inclusive space for “the girls, the gays and the theys.”
Lydon said there is an importance between the merger of women and LGBTQ+ individuals, as both groups are subjected to sex-based discrimination under the law as it is written. Lydon’s own research reflects this discrimination. She’s currently studying how abortion bans in certain states are tied to the loss of voting rights. Lydon explains that since women and other non-gender identifying individuals have the capacity of pregnancy, they have fewer rights when abortion becomes a legal dispute. She cites “red states” such as Oklahoma and Georgia where pregnant people have been prosecuted for miscarriages or abortions and then lost their right to vote because of felony laws.
The word diva is everywhere on Notorious’s Instagram and promotional emails.
“Being a diva means being your most fabulous and true self and expressing that in the most active, vocal and strong advocate for the things that you believe in (and) uplifting others,” said Lydon.
The club’s mission is clear: to create an educated, safe and empowered community of divas through advocacy and activism. Lydon credits fellow Suffolk student activists Ayan Mohamed, Camille LeVasseur-Hartgrove, Lindsey Salek and Joey Pisani as the driving forces who helped turn her vision for the club into reality.
Lydon said that as a country, “this is who we are, but not who we have to be.”
Notorious meets bi-weekly with more updates to come. For more information, follow Notorious on their Instagram @suffolknotorious
