The
LGBT Community: a world of difference
Evan Hamilton, posted Nov. 14, 2006
Imagine walking down the street alone at night, minding your
own business, when suddenly you are attacked by a group of
strangers. Imagine finding out after a severe beating that
the reason for your suffering might have been because your
attackers thought you were gay.
On Oct. 15, 2005, this happened to a young man named Daniel
Maddox in Greek Town at MU. Daniel Maddox was not gay; however,
as he was assaulted, he was repeatedly called a “faggot.”
For the LGBT (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender) students at MU, there is a safe environment welcome
to all students, faculty and community members. This safe
environment is the LGBT Resource Center and it actively supports
student learning through programming and leadership opportunities.
It encourages understanding by providing a broad range of
resources on LGBT issues and by advocating for the creation
of an inclusive MU community.
The LGBT Resource Center is headed by John Faughn, Resource
Center Coordinator since June 2006. “I’m working
towards equality. I don’t know if I will ever see it,
but I am working towards it,” said Faughn. “All
isms are interlocking forms of oppression.” This includes
racism, sexism, heterosexism and others.
With the passing of Oct. 11, National Coming Out Day, Faughn
said, “More people are involved with the resource center,
but not necessarily more people come out.” The day is,
“used as more of a pride and reflection day in order
to help someone.”
“We don’t work with people in early stages of
coming out. Many students haven’t dealt with sexuality
and gender issues. The resource center isn’t an accurate
depiction of the LGBT community, so we count on Residential
Life to educate students and faculty,” Faughn said.
According to the Research Institute for Studies in Education,
up to 17 percent of the University of Missouri population,
a large, land-grant, research one institution in a rural/suburban
location, could be identified as being LGBT, but Faughn sees
less than 5 percent in his office.
“There are a lot of straight allies. People who have
family and friends in the LGBT community want to be involved,”
Faughn said. The resource center was, “funded by Missouri
Student Association its first year. MSA went to the Vice-Chancellor
of Student Affairs and said this was something they needed
to invest in,” Faughn said.
In the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Resource Center,
scrapbooks can be found, filled with information concerning
the LGBT community. One includes the story of a young man
named Jesse Valencia who was murdered by his lover, Steven
Rios, on June 5, 2004. Rios was married with kids. “He
was a police offer who couldn’t handle people finding
out his secret. He murdered his lover out of fear of homophobia,”
Faughn said. “We must remember, because it is a pivotal
point in history here.”
With the attack last year, the LGBT Resource Center held a
Remembrance/Awareness Week in which they held group counseling
sessions and helped people express what they felt. “Usually
a lot of campuses want to ignore [situations like these],
but people need to talk about it,” Faughn said.
Some people are afraid of the LGBT community. “Some
people don’t think. Just because they [LGBT community]
are attracted to the same sex doesn’t mean they are
attracted to you,” Faughn said.
“Some people think they will catch it if they’re
in the same room with the person,” said Emma Key, a
frequent visitor of the LGBT Resource Center.
Faughn said to those afraid to come out, “There’s
a community here. You are not the only one. There are many
allies. There are allies everywhere on campus, so if a person
doesn’t want to come to the resource center they can
find a safe zone. Everything will be okay. You just have to
talk to someone. You are not the only one.”
