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This week, the University of Maine has been filled with closet-free events promoting pride, support and acceptance for gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender students, as well as heterosexual members of the campus community.
So far, Coming Out Week appears to be a success, according to GLBT liaison to the Deans of Students and counselor education graduate student Matt Small.
“The people I’ve been seeing at the events this week are all new to me. They’re all new faces, which is important. It’s why we do this type of programming,” Small said.
The success of this week’s events will not be based on whether people begin coming out on campus.
“My hope is not that all of a sudden people will be running around saying, ‘I’m out of the closet!’ My hope is people get that much more comfortable with themselves than they had been before,” Small said.
Sunday’s event was a presentation of the play “Bent” by the School of Performing Arts. A discussion, led by Small, included standing-room-only participants of about 60 people.
On Monday night, author Abigail Garner, daughter of a heterosexual mother and a gay father and his partner, told an audience of approximately 70 people about her experiences growing up confused – not by her own sexuality or that of her parents – but confused by people around her telling her she should question homosexuality as if it were not normal.
Just five years-old when her father came out as gay, Garner explained that the only hard part about being from a gay family are the constant questions about how difficult it must have been for her to grow up in that environment.
Garner reads excerpts from her book “Families Like Mine: Children of Gay Parents Speak Out,” which includes interviews with more than 50 children who have either two mothers or two fathers. These are children who are “coming out every day,” regardless of their personal sexualities due to the relentless questioning from outside peers, teachers, family members and overall society, according to Garner.
“It’s been really exciting to see what’s going on here for Coming Out Week,” Garner said.
She encouraged audience members – whether they consider themselves part of the GLBT community – to visit the campus’ Rainbow Resource Center in Memorial Union.
“If it feels weird to go in [to the center] and like you’re looking around to see who’s watching you. That’s what it feels like to be in the GLBT community,” Garner said.
A heterosexual herself, Garner does not consider herself an ally to the GLBT community but rather a part of that community.
“Being an ally suggests you’re learning about GLBT issues, which is critical, but I don’t identify as that,” Garner said.
Her book was sold after the discussion. Part of the proceeds earned from the books that night went to the Rainbow Resource Center. The proceeds will be used to purchase new books for the center, according to Small.
President of Wilde Stein Alliance and fourth-year secondary English education major Jo Hafford was pleased with the turnout for Garner’s presentation.
“She’s a really unique voice that we don’t get to hear but is really very important,” Hafford said.
The film “Bi-sex’u-al” and a discussion led by director of Christian Education and Youth Ministry in Gorham Eric C. Smith was held Tuesday. About 20 people attended, including members from the Counseling Center and Dr. Robert Dana, dean of students, according to Small.
Another film “Family Fundamentals” about three conservative christian families’ experiences with having at least one gay member in their family was held Tuesday night. About 90 people attended.
The film’s narrator began the film by telling why he wanted to make this documentary:
“I wanted to find out what families thought when their kids represent the very element that will lead to the end of the human race,” referring to the overall christian belief that homosexuality is a sin in the eyes of God.
The film showcases a bishop who repeatedly writes letters to his gay son attempting to persuade him that he considered himself gay because of Satan’s doing. Also is an elderly mother of a lesbian daughter and a gay grandson, who fights within her religious group and political spectrum as well as holds support group meetings for parents who disagree with their childrens’ sexuality.
The film ended when the gay grandson was asked whether he felt loved by his grandmother, despite that she was very forthcoming with her feelings against homosexuality. He said he feels hated. The film ends with no conclusions, as it to be expected with serious issues that affect so many different people and their opposing viewpoints, according to Smith.
Hatred and religion are not two things that should be seen together, according to Smith.
“There is such a need for welcoming faiths and church communities that embrace all parts of people and don’t ask that they check a part of their identity at the door when they come in,” Smith said in an interview before the film.
Hammond Street Congregational United Church of Christ in Bangor is one local church that accepts homosexuals, according to Smith.
After such serious discussions at each of the first part of the week’s events, yesterday was a day to relax and enjoy music by local lesbian singer-songwriter Jessie Mallory.
“We wanted local talent, and she was the obvious choice,” Hafford said.
For anyone interested in GLBT issues, meeting other GLBT students or finding ways to become an ally on campus, Wilde Stein’s open house is at 7 p.m. tonight in the Multi-Purpose Room in Memorial Union.
“This is just an effort to make us more accessible to the community at large and prove that we are friendly people,” Hafford said.
Attendees will be able to meet Wilde Stein board members, learn of the program’s history, read information on their own and enjoy some free food, according to Hafford.
The open house also is expected to be an outlet for Wilde Stein to disprove a misconception people often have about the group:
“We’re not just for gay people,” Hafford said. “Our mission is to provide information on GLBT issues and sex education issues.”
The week’s events will culminate Friday with the annual Coming Out Week Dance at 9 p.m. in York Commons. A DJ equipped with a light show and a possible cash bar are two things the dance will showcase. Everyone is welcome – regardless of sexual orientation.
“It’s just to end things on a good note and not be so cerebral as other events have been this week,” Hafford said.
Gauging results from awareness week events can be a difficult task, because oftentimes the successes aren’t seen to the average person or even during the week’s events, according to Smith.
“A lot of the events this week don’t produce immediate results,” Smith said. “They produce results a week, month or even years from now.”
