Monday, October 13, 1997
Coloring outside the lines
Students use National Coming Out Week to find
a voice in the community
By Quyen Ta
Daily Bruin Contributor
Rainbow-colored flags and posters with "pride" written boldly
across them popped up across campus starting last Monday morning.
These flags and posters marked the beginning of National Coming Out
Week for the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender, or LGBT,
community.
Although there have been efforts to organize events for National
Coming Out Weeks in the past, the UCLA Gay and Lesbian Association,
or GALA, made a point to be more visible this year.
"This year is different," said GALA co-chair Emily Houston. "We
decorated the quad between Royce [Hall] and Powell [Library] with
the rainbow flags. That’s never been done before. We wanted to show
others our sense of pride, to show that we’re here. We also wanted
the LGBT community to see something."
GALA planned various events for the week, including a resource
fair, a poetry reading and a pride rally. Though the events
promised much visibility for the LGBT community, all did not go as
smoothly as planned, and some were left disappointed.
"I wish more people were involved and that it could have been
more organized," commented Ryan Thomson, a second-year biology
student.
Problem One: The Queer Resource Fair, planned for Monday to
provide students with information for events during the week, never
took place. According to Dr. Ronni Sanlo, director of the LGBT
Resource Center, tables were placed flat in the Perloff Quad by
Facilities Management personnel, and organizers left without seeing
them.
David Chase, a graduate student who participated in an
LGBT-studies discussion, found it difficult to get information on
the events. "I had a vague sense of what was going on." Part of
this, according to organizers, could be attributed to another
mishap.
That was Problem Two: UCLA’s LGBT newsmagazine, TenPercent,
included a schedule for the week and was supposed to be distributed
across campus by Monday morning. Because of printing problems,
however, TenPercent did not make its way onto the campus until late
Wednesday.
Despite these mishaps, most events still took place and were
considered successful by many participants and organizers. The
highlights of the week’s events, though, were the pride rally on
Friday and the candlelight vigil on Saturday night.
Kate Bornstein, a well-known transgendered playwright, author
and performer, was the keynote speaker at this year’s pride rally,
which took place in Westwood Plaza. Clad in a leopard print dress,
high heeled platforms, a yellow happy-face watch on her wrist and a
big ruby ring on her finger, Bornstein held the attention of about
40 individuals.
As her talk continued, however, some students passing by Bruin
Walk stopped to listen. Others coming out of the student store sat
on the cement steps and also listened attentively.
"I’m not a man. I’m not a woman. I’m not a bisexual. Bear with
me. I’m really trying to come out to you. I want to belong,"
Bornstein said, in a tone of confidence and pride.
Bornstein continued to talk about her past and at some points
included rhetorical questions which seemed to affect many of her
listeners.
"They want to know who we are. They want to be certain. ‘Are you
certain? Are you sure?’ I still color outside the lines. Do you?
I’ve tried to belong. Have you tried to belong? Do you belong?"
Though she shared three prepared pieces with her audience,
Bornstein’s most well-received piece must have been the last, where
she recounted a talk she had with her mother.
"My mother once asked, ‘Who are you, Albert? Who are you?’ I was
her baby, always would be. Her little boy. The daughter she never
had. She said, "That’s good. I didn’t want to lose any of you ever.
Ever.’" As Bornstein walked off stage, many clapped loudly while
others turned to their neighbors and commented on the
performance.
"Kate’s speech made a lot of points which showed exactly how I
was feeling," said Stephen Cheung, a second-year
chemical-engineering student. Cheung recently came out to many of
his friends and family members despite the pressures which are
attached to being a part of the LGBT community.
"You either go with your heart or you go with society. It’s a
choice I had to make, but this week has been a good experience. It
helped out a lot," continued Cheung.
Others agreed that Bornstein’s speech was effective and many
found it easy to relate to her. "The speech encompassed everybody.
Every person could take something away from it," said Kim Hackett,
a second-year civil-engineering student.
The choice to have Bornstein speak was in an effort to be more
inclusive, says Erez Levon, co-chair of GALA. "’Transgender’ has
been around for several years, but this is the first time we’ve had
a transgendered individual speak at UCLA. We’re striving to be more
all-inclusive," Levon said.
The week’s events, co-chaired by the GALA, was made possible
with the help of the LGBT Resource Center, Lambda Alumni, the
Office of Residential Life and the Women’s Resource Center.
Friday’s rally was considered successful by many, but Saturday
night’s candlelight vigil was also worthwhile for the 20 students
who participated. As they walked with their candles through the
UCLA campus and Westwood, the students explained their reasons for
participating in the vigil.
"I’m here to show a voice," said Drew Hodgson, a third-year
design major. "I’m here to support my friends and to show a sense
of solidarity. I feel solidarity, especially now," he
continued.
Some admitted that the vigil was the first event they
participated in, but nevertheless, had their own unique reasons for
participating.
"I’m here to support my friend, Emily, and to support the
cause," explained fifth-year student Nikki Jacoby.
For ex-GALA co-chair and this year’s general representative to
USAC, Darnell Grisby, participation meant several different
things.
"Events like this allow visibility. I also think it is important
to have individual effort support as well as organizational," he
said.
In spite of the obstacles organizers met during the week, all
considered the week effective in terms of visibility and
outreach.
"I want students to think of this week in terms of outreach, so
we can also reach our non-gay friends and allies too. … Overall,
I think it was a wonderful success. I’m really proud of all the
students," said Sanlo.
Houston agreed.
"It brought out a lot of new faces. If we even reached one
person, I consider it successful."
Photos by INGA DOROSZ
A rainbow flag, the symbol of gay pride, adorns the microphone
used in the Gay Pride Rally at Westwood Plaza on Friday.
Playwright and performer
Kate Bornstein, UCLA’s first transgender speaker, presents three
autobiographical pieces on Saturday at a Westwood Plaza gay-pride
rally.