Thursday, October 11, 2001

Speaker to focus on social justice
Sam Eaton
Staff Reporter

Betty DeGeneres, mother of homosexual comedian Ellen DeGeneres, will emphasize the importance of social justice in relation to sexual orientation rights at 8 p.m. tonight in the PepsiCo Recital Hall.

The event, sponsored by eQ Alliance, a support group for gay, lesbian, bi-sexual and transgender students, coincides with National Coming Out Day. TCU has commemorated this day for the last four years.

Bernardo Vallarino, vice president of eQ Alliance, said he hoped those in attendance Thursday would be able to listen to DeGeneres with an open mind.

“(Degeneres) is here to tell parents, friends and family about the importance of coming out,” Vallarino said.

Marcy Paul, director of the Women’s Resource Center and advisor to eQ Alliance, said National Coming Out Day is a day for gays to be able to feel free about themselves.

“National Coming Out Day is a day of celebration for gay, lesbian, bi-sexual and transgenders to feel free about who they are, to come out if they choose to come out, and to celebrate their lives,” Paul said. “It’s an international day of celebration.”

National Coming Out Day was first held Oct. 11, 1988, on the one year anniversary of the gays’ march on Washington.

Rob Darnell, senior Spanish major and President of eQ Alliance, said the group worked with Paul to arrange for DeGeneres to be able to come to TCU.

Darnell said DeGeneres’ acceptance of her daughter’s homosexuality is an inspiration to those struggling with coming out of the ‘closet.’

National Coming Out Day is an opportunity for TCU to promote greater tolerance for the gay community, he said.

“It offers a platform for people to speak on issues and for people to realize themselves, and if they’re not gay or not going to come out, then at least hear other people’s voices about it and achieve greater tolerance,” Darnell said.

Darnell said that in the past TCU has not been the most welcoming place for people to be openly homosexual.

“Many (homosexual) students have felt there was no chance of being accepted at TCU, even forced to stay in the closet,” Darnell said.

Darnell said there have been previous incidents of intolerance against gays on campus.

“Last year, the pink flags representing homosexuals who died in the Holocaust were removed from the Holocaust flag display,” he said.

Paul said that anyone from the Metroplex would be welcome at the lecture.

“Anyone can come,” Paul said. “The information has been out to students, faculty, staff and community members from Dallas, Fort Worth and Denton.”

Senior Julia Bogart, an eQ Alliance member, said people with different views of homosexuality could come to the event.

“Anyone with dissenting opinions can come and listen and hear the things that she has to say and get discussion going,” Bogart said.

Darnell said he’d like to see a mixed crowd of straights and gays.

“We’d like everybody,” Darnell said. “We’d like as many straights as gays.”

Some students say they are not pleased about having a homosexual activist come to our campus.

Sophomore marketing and merchandising major Zabrina Steele said she didn’t like the fact that DeGeneres was going to speak.

“I do not think TCU should support any homosexuality events because it is morally wrong and for this to be a so-called Christian school makes it even worse,” Steele said. “It’s very embarrassing.”

Steele said she didn’t think TCU should prohibit gays on campus, but did think the university shouldn’t support the lifestyle.

“I think TCU shouldn’t condemn gays by not allowing them to come here, but they should not support it either,” Steele said. “They should just be neutral about it.”

Sam Eaton
s.m.eaton@student.tcu.edu