In the meantime, I am eroding my REM time working up some marketing pieces for TNDC. What is TNDC, asks the neophyte? Why, Thursday Night Drinking Club, of course! A Darden tradition. Every Thursday, rain or shine (we call it off for icy snow), the Darden community descends on some unsuspecting bar in Charlottesville for a few raucous hours to blow off steam and commune with their colleagues. Every Thursday an email is distributed to the entire student body, revealing the week’s location. This week’s is at Club 216; the only gay club in Charlottesville. It’s a part of the efforts of GLAD (Gays, Lesbians and Allies at Darden) to spread the message about the importance of all types of diversity and dialogue in our institutions, organizations, and lives. We work to ensure a respectful environment for gay and lesbian students, stimulate conversations on gay/lesbian topics, facilitate the connection between students and gay-friendly companies, and help the university as a whole become a more tolerant place. I’m really proud to be an officer. Can’t you tell?
Aside from being able to wear rainbows whenever I choose, the past few years have increased my exposure to sexual orientations other than my own, and I am so glad for that. A dramatic example comes to mind. Someone who I’ve known forever recently came out. I was surprised, but it was probably due to the fact that we hadn’t spoken much in 5 years beforehand, so any new developments in this person’s life weren’t on my radar. But when we finally got back in touch I was delighted to learn more about their life. I am so glad I did, but am also saddened to hear that their parents/family weren’t really supportive of this lifestyle. It breaks my heart. How on earth could a parent, in a sense, say “I am unsupportive of you finding your own happiness. How dare you?”WTF? Are you freakin kidding me?
Conversely, a new friend recently told me that she was a lesbian. I asked her how her parents “took the news”, and was delighted to hear that they were ultra-supportive. I see how much more comfortable she is with this reality as a result of the amazing support system she has around her. And I am so sad that my old friend does not have the same.
And this is why I believe clubs like GLAD are so important. They call upon us all to examine what we believe to be “right”, “wrong”, “normal”, “abnormal”, “ethnicity”, “values”, etc. Keep the conversation going. Darden is meant to challenge us, so let’s throw it all in the hopper. I hope I come out a better person than when I started.
5 comments:
Mandy, excellent post. You are dead on. I had a close friend come out in college. It didn't really hit home how hard society makes it for him sometimes until I had lunch with him a few years later. The waiter could tell my friend was gay and thinly veiled his hostility. My admiration for my friend's courage for being who he is cannot be overstated. I'll see you at TNDC.
Good for you!
I can't believe how closed minded a lot of people are. Thank goodness that generation is slowly dying out.
LOVE the dress! really darling on you.
And by the way, did you know it's practically illegal to be gay in France? A fellow cyclist from france confided in me that she is gay but couldn't tell even her own teammates because it would be instant career (she's a pro cyclist too) and social death! She feels she is forced to sit there quietly and listen to her teammates joke about gay people for fear that her paycheck will stop - and she'll lose the only social life she has. That just sucks.
I can’t believe El Gato finally came out of the closet. All those long back rubs finally make sense.
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