Coming Out Day

GAMBIER, Ohio (October 9, 2006) Kenyon's campus will be bedecked with the colors of the rainbow on October 11, National Coming Out Day. Balloons, buttons, signs, and T-shirts will all affirm acceptance and support of the College's diverse population, regardless of sexual orientation. The observance, which is organized in part by Unity House and ALSO (Allied Sexual Orientations), falls on the third anniversary of the dedication of Unity House, the College's first resource center for the GLBTQQA (gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, queer, questioning, and ally) community on campus. "Allies" are those who choose to support their friends and classmates without necessarily being GLBTQ themselves.

"We hope to make it clear that we do not mean to alienate, but to include, anyone who is interested in making Kenyon a positive environment for everyone here," explain Ieshia West, Class of 2009; Aubrey Wade, Class of 2008; and Sahadeo Ramharrack, Class of 2007, who are coordinating the activities.

Students who sign "Coming Out Against Homophobia" signs during lunch and dinner in both Gund and Ernst dining halls will receive free buttons. Solid-colored T-shirts, in each of the six colors of the gay rainbow, will be for sale for $10.

On Friday, October 13, a parade, complete with signs, flags, and beads, will begin at 4:10 p.m. at Old Kenyon and proceed down Middle Path to Unity House, east of the Bexley Apartments. "That way, as classes are letting out, people can just hop in," West says.

T-shirts and buttons will both bear the message, "A closed mind is a wonderful thing to lose."