Gay College Students: Active, Vocal and Taking Their Place in Today’s World

By D. KEVIN MCNEIR

It’s an interesting phenomenon about young people: no matter what the era or where they live, they are often the impetus behind great change. Consider such historical events like the student protests in Soweto, South Africa or the Tiananmen Square protest led by students and intellectuals in China which both resulted in the massacre of hundreds of unarmed youth. Young adults put their lives on the line for what they believed mattered most in Montgomery (Ala) as part of the Montgomery Bus Boycott and other civil rights initiatives, in anti-war demonstrations during the Vietnam War and at the Stonewall Riots in New York City.

LGBT students at several of the South Florida’s colleges and universities are no different. They are out, proud, inquisitive and making their voices heard — one person and one issue at a time.

Their stories reflect the myriad of challenges that they face on their school campuses, in their homes and in their lives as newlymaturing adults.

Palm Beach State

Barbara Cipriano is the co-advisor for the Gay Straight Alliance at Palm Beach State which is housed at the Lakewood Campus. She says that her students are still finding their way but are gradually making their presence known.

“We have four campuses and are struggling to get our club up and running,” she said. “That is a challenge because we are a commuter college. Still, we meet weekly and have done some things in partnership with other clubs including a talent show, HIV testing, participated in the Day of Silence and PrideFest. And we are working on establishing a safe zone.”

The university-funded club has around 14 members.

“On campus the issues our members face come to my attention from their peers and faculty,” Cipriano said. “I’ve come across students who are not out to their parents and these kids need assistance and support. We just hired a counselor because we see a real need especially with the problems our students are facing at home.”

Nova Southeastern University

Mikaela Myers, took it upon herself to reignite students on the campus of Nova Southeastern University (NSU), where she serves as the president of the Gay-Straight Student Alliance (GSA).

“I restarted the group last fall; as soon as I arrived on campus last August I began asking questions about how to start a student organization on campus,” Myers said. “I grabbed my new friends and we put it together. It is more work than I ever anticipated but I also never imagined the network of other schools and people in the area that I would be meeting.”

The Nova students meet bi-weekly to hold group discussions and various activities and like all student groups at their university, they must raise a portion of their own money.

“We recently had about 30 people come in for free food and to discuss homophobia issues in Jamaica,” Myers said. “We hold traditional fundraisers like car washes but the real work we do relates to community service and volunteer hours. We are still growing but we look forward to our first large event next December when we’ll partner with the Graduate GSA to host a viewing of the AIDS Memorial Quilt.”

Students gathered about a week ago for a viewing and discussion of an AIDS documentary with Red Hispana Florida. And while Myers says she and the other members are supported by NSU faculty and staff, some students question the purpose of their organization.

“Some students are confused and unsure why there is a need for the Gay-Straight Alliance,” she admits. “I can’t speak beyond my own personal experience, but no matter what the beliefs of others, they have been nice and respectful to me. But like anywhere else, those who don’t understand our sexuality can be very hurtful behind our backs.”

Florida Atlantic University

For Carly Cass (president) and Amanda Dier (secretary-treasurer), the work they are continuing as leaders of the Lambda United Gay Straight Alliance at Florida Atlantic University in Boca Raton is part of a legacy that began at least as far back as the early 70s. But surprisingly, many on campus today are still unaware of their presence.

“We have over 100 members on the Boca Raton campus alone, but for the most part I think our organization is kind of an underground one,” Dier said. “Most faculty don’t really know we are here and a lot of the staff don’t either. The fact that there is a GLBTQIS organization on campus is usually spread through word of mouth or found through Facebook or by doing a Google search. We do have some issues when we table in the Breezeway (a major outdoor hallway on campus) to let people know we’re here. Students have sometimes knocked down things on our table and when we sit near a few of the Christian tables, they usually move away.”

Lambda’s members remain very active and vocal, holding weekly meetings, debate nights, and monthly trips to Wilton Manors as well as frequenting many of the area PrideFests. So far this year they have also sponsored two dances, a Halloween Bash and a Valentine’s Dance, and educated their campus on days particularly important to the GLBTQ world including: the Day of Silence, Transgender Day of Remembrance, Matthew Sheppard Day and the AIDS Walk. ”

We are really excited about our Gay Prom that we are sponsoring on April 24,” Dier said. “The purpose is to provide students and allies with a safe space to celebrate the end of the year and to also provide a replacement prom for students who were either not allowed to go to their proms or were discouraged or outright banned from bringing their (same gender) date. We’re also holding a twonight special event to educate faculty, students and staff about the dangers of staying silent when there is homophobia, trans-phobia and gender-phobia on campus. We also have the trip to Key West PrideFest coming up in June — it’s going to be a blast.”

Broward College — Central Campus

Andrew Dutka is the advisor for the Gay Straight Alliance for Broward College — a position he’s held since 2005. And he’s pleased to say that this year he has an exceptional bunch of students.

“Our membership online and in person is about 100 in total with about 25 coming out regularly,” he said. “In the fall semester when interest is high we get about 40 students at our meetings. Other years it’s been just me and one other student. So this is really an exceptional year for us. It can be difficult to maintain and sustain membership, enthusiasm and interest from yearto- year because in the past we have been a two-year school; we’re transitioning now to a four-year institution but we’re still a commuter school.”

According to Dutka, who knows his way around the world of research quite well, given his position as an archives and special collections librarian, the earliest evidence he was able to find about a gay group on campus dates back to 1984, so activities have been happening at BCC for some time.

“Our group loves to get involved with the student government-sponsored activities and that can mean anything from a beach cleanup, chili cook-off and health fair to club rush week and the regular Student Government General Assembly meetings,” he said. “The things that the Alliance specifically does include volunteering in the community and for non-profit organizations, holding panel discussions to raise awareness of GLBTQ issues on campus and sometimes just hanging out at low key social events – like chilling at a coffee shop.”.

Dutka added that since 2006, the Gay Straight Alliance has clocked over 100 hours of volunteer time for PrideFest.

“Our latest activity was a two-day event, “What’s Your Gay Point Average?” that was led by Shane Windmeyer, an acclaimed author and national leader in gay and lesbian civil rights,” Dutka said. “He was part of our panel discussions with students and community leaders as we sought ways to destroy stereotypes, deepen understanding and compel participants to take the next step in coming out as visible allies and leaders for all people, including LGBT people.”

When asked how the organization and its members are treated on campus and in their classes, Dutka said he hasn’t seen any outward homophobia.

“I think our members are treated as well as other students, however my casual observation is usually of the confident, out student who is comfortable in any situation,” he said. “I am also coordinator of the Broward College SAFEZONE team along with Renee Pleus from South Campus. The team promotes dialogue and understanding of GLBTQ issues and trains faculty, staff and administration on becoming SAFEZONE allies to provide safe, judgment-free spaces on campus.”

Florida International University

Stonewall Pride Alliance is dedicated to supporting the needs of the Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender, and ally students of FIU and its community. Stonewall also strives to educate and inform FIU about the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and ally community. Recently, the group hosted a Pride Week in April on campus which featured three openly-gay former service members speaking about being kicked out of the United States armed services just for being gay. FIU also has a fraternity for gay men, the only one in the state of Florida. Delta Lambda Phi has 25 members and participates in many of the same activities that other fraternities do including community service.

University of Miami

SpectrUM at the University of Miami holds weekly meetings that serve as a time for members of UM’s LGBT community to meet and mingle in a safe and discreet environment. They also have gay and lesbian themed books that are available for students to b o r r o w . S p e c t r U M marched in this past weekends Miami Beach Pride Parade and also participated in the Florida Collegiate Pride Conference at the beginning of April.

Miami-Dade College

The Gay-Straight alliance is currently housed at the Homestead campus. They are a small club that provides resources for students to help with the coming out process.

St. Thomas University

The Gay and Lesbian Law Student Association (GALLSA) is an organization of gay and lesbian law students committed to overcoming discrimination in the job market based on sexual orientation and to provide career opportunities. GALLSA sponsors discussion groups on being gay in the legal profession and organizes events to inform the community of developments in litigation and legislation affecting gays and lesbians.