The recent LGBT versus Anyone struggles have been depressing. It's as frustrating as hearing Jews saying there's not enough coverage about their religious/ethnic group being killed in the Holocaust. I know it's controversial to even be mentioning either, but let me explain my reaction.
First, I will not deny that both gays and Jews have been oppressed for ages. Their struggle to be recognized as normal members of society is an extremely important fight. I will join the fight of any minority group to help it gain the representation it deserves. But when these groups become politically active on a scale where they begin to ostracize themselves by forcing the mentality of being the oppressed, it becomes sickening.
Wasn't the fight in the first place about equality? Now these groups have "super-equal" status and separate themselves further from society. Supporters get scared away because suddenly it becomes a critical issue that "they don't know how it feels." Everyone is secretly making fun of this "super-equal" minority, while they can't say anything approaching criticism in public because of an overly politically correct society. And furthermore, they hurt other minorities who are looking for equality, partly because the status quo fears another "super-equal" group, and partly because the status quo is too busy apologizing to this new "superior" minority to be able to give other minorities the attention they deserve. And this mentality makes us all sick.
I don't want friends or even myself to be tempted to make fun of the LGBT community and its struggles. But I'm fed up with the University and its double standard. How can the University say that painting the cannon during the day and chalking the pavement overnight are not equal forms of free speech? How can it apologize profusely to LGBT students for washing off their chalk "by accident," while calling the whitewashed cannon justice? I know that the University has rules against student expression that is negative and hurtful towards other students, but there is definitely a double standard.
Unfortunately, there are many instances of chalked messages without taste or respect that never get any attention from the University deans or Facilities. For example, on National Coming-Out Day, there was a message in front of Bush Hall saying, "Lesbians Like Bush." And the campaign by the Tufts Poetry Society called "Giving Sex Back to the Community" was postered all around the library. And I'm not even going to go into the issue of censoring University-sponsored magazines such as The Primary Source or the Zamboni that have no respect for anyone and will intentionally insult a specific group or individual.
So what am I getting at? What, exactly, is my problem, you may ask. I have two issues: First, freedom of speech being held at a double standard. Second, this LGBT issue has been blown out of proportion. I don't want to blame the LGBT community for fighting for equality and the opportunity to foster a sense of community for its members. And I certainly want to make it clear that I am not anti-gay. I love homosexuals, I love heterosexuals, I love bisexuals; they are all just ordinary people like myself, as far as I'm concerned. I also know that if I accuse the University or one of its deans of promoting a double standard, I will run into a bunch of legal bull about how it wasn't the University that erased the messages, but an independent person or group, etc.
So, fine. Blame wasn't my original intent. I just feel that the argument between the LGBT community, the University, and everyone in between needed to be addressed by a student who doesn't want to get involved in the mess, but would like to comment that both groups are setting themselves up for ridicule.
Tufts University seems like it's going through a sexuality/identity crisis and needs to set itself up for a visit at the Counseling Center. The LGBT community may be in need of an anger management class. And everyone, I feel, has the need for a little more love in their hearts.
Marta Selinger is a freshman majoring in political science.
