TCU Daily Skiff Friday, March 26, 2004
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Homophobia hits home
Atmosphere on campus not accepting of gays, some say

By Andy Donovan

Senior Amber Ferguson says she still gets weird looks every time she tells someone she had a lesbian roommate her freshman year at TCU.

“Most people are really surprised,” Ferguson says. “Either they didn’t know she was gay, or they say they don’t understand how a heterosexual girl could have a gay roommate.”

Ferguson says her former roommate was never “fully out” during her time at TCU, mainly because of the conservative attitude of much of the student body. She says eventually it led her roommate to leave TCU to find somewhere where she could be better accepted.

In a society where gay marriages has become a major political issue and society has become dominated by a “Queer Eye,” some students and faculty say there is still no escaping the fact that a majority of the student body has a hard time accepting homosexuals on and off campus.

Senior Matthew Flinchum, former president of the eQ Alliance, which serves as a support group for gay, lesbian and bisexual students, says there is definitely a sense of homophobia on campus.

“There is a significant portion of students that feel strongly that homosexuality is wrong, immoral and a sin,” Flinchum says. “And they can’t leave well enough alone.”

Although he believes many feel this way, Flinchum says they do not make it completely obvious. He says there have been several examples in the past few years of “covert homophobia” by the student body.

Two years ago, when the university was commemorating Holocaust Week, all the pink flags, representing the homosexual Holocaust victims, were ripped out of the ground, Flinchum says.

Another example occurred last year when the banner for National Coming Out Week was cut down and stolen during the night. Luckily, Flinchum says, there have not been any violent acts against gays reported on campus.

Flinchum says a lot of the homophobia and crimes elsewhere against gays have to do with our society as a whole.

“It has a lot to do with the constant barrage of images and ideas that being gay is bad,” Flinchum says. “I mean, how many times a day do you hear someone say, ‘That’s so gay.’”

Another reason Flinchum says homophobia exists on the TCU campus is because of the location of the university. He says ideals of men and women, especially in the South, are for the men to be rough and tough, while the women are soft and demure.

“Being gay is thought of a man showing the least bit of femininity, or a woman showing masculinity,” Flinchum says. “If they do that, then they are automatically a homosexual.”

Lorna Runge, an administrative assistant in the School of Education, says she agrees TCU’s location in the South has a lot to do with the student body’s feelings toward homosexuals.

“Southern states are historically more conservative than other regions of the country,” Runge says. “(They) also often lag behind the rest of the country when it comes to civil rights issues.”

Runge says another big problem that causes homophobia is people’s ignorance about different lifestyles. This ignorance scares off a lot of people from just being themselves, she says.

Flinchum says unfortunately that fear that is instilled into some homosexual students by society can cause some to suppress their true feelings, which can lead to depression and even suicide.

According to a recent study by professors at the National Association of School Psychologists, gay and lesbian youths between the age of 17 and 24 are 200 to 300 percent more likely to attempt suicide than other young people. The study also showed that homosexuals account for about 30 percent of suicides among youths.

Flinchum says it is a sad trend that hopefully can be fixed.

“Any pain and hurt that they experience could have been avoided if people had been more open-minded and accepting,” Flinchum says.

Flinchum says he hopes that with programs like eQ Alliance, the campus can eventually become more welcoming to homosexuals, but the way things are right now, it may take a while.

“The fact that some students are scared to just come to eQ Alliance meetings because they don’t want to be ostracized is quite telling of the current situation on campus,” Flinchum says.

Don Mills, the vice chancellor of Student Affairs, says that while he feels college campuses are some of the most welcoming institutions for gays and lesbians, there is always an opportunity for discrimination.

“No place is devoid of bigotry,” Mills says. “While official policy may be welcoming, individual students may be targets of threats, harassment, or, on occasion, violence.”

While Mills says there have been several cases much like the Holocaust Week incident, the school has been lucky they have never had to deal with violent confrontations on the subject.

“I know that over the last few years several students have been the target of threats and harassment,” Mills says. “I am certain some feel lonely and isolated.”

Mills says it is the responsibility of the university to provide help for these students that do feel alone, with such programs as eQ Alliance, and Allies, which is a program that provides community support for gay, lesbian and bi students.

Ferguson says that since her former roommate left freshman year, she believes the student body has gotten a little bit more accepting but still has some work to do.

“I think the student body is definitely starting to get a little bit more liberal,” Ferguson says. “But it will always be mostly conservative. I mean, it is still TCU we are talking about here.”
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