Just as they have done for the past 15 years, new and old members of the Tufts lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community gathered on the campus center patio Wednesday for the Coming Out Day Rally.
Rainbow-colored balloons and decorations covered the area, and Diana Ross' "I'm Coming Out" blared over the speakers as over 100 students, faculty and staff discussed the importance of the national day of awareness.
This year's rally also marked the name change of the Tufts Transgender Lesbian Gay Bisexual Collective student group to the Queer Straight Alliance (QSA). The group's leaders made the change Tuesday night. The change is expected to broaden participation in the group.
Dona Yarbrough, the director of the Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender Center, detailed the community's history at Tufts, the beginning of which she dated to a 1972 Tufts Observer headline, "Gay Liberation Emerges at Tufts."
The article, Yarbrough said, reported 15 students came out to each other and planned to start a group. The following year, the Tufts Gay Community was formed. Bisexuals and lesbians joined the group later, and transgender students were added in 1997.
Sophomore Sean Locke, a co-coordinator of the QSA, shared his coming out experience.
Locke said his experiences with prejudice began at an early age, when other children called him a "fag" before he understood what the word meant. "I was one of those kids who hung out with all the girls on the playground," he said. "I started to realize three years into denying that I was gay that they just might be right."
Locke then described the gradual process of coming out: first to himself, then to his mom and family, and finally to his friends. "I looked in the mirror and told myself, 'I'm gay,'" he said. "Coming out to myself was the hardest part because I realized there was no going back."
Coming out is a never-ending process, Locke said. "While it does get easier every time you do it, it's something you have to keep doing over and over," he said.
University College Professor Molly Mead explained the positive and negative effects of the Massachusetts Supreme Court's ruling that allowed for same-sex marriages beginning in May 2004.
While the decision gave same-sex couples equal rights, Mead said, the issue was abused and used as a wedge between the political parties in the 2004 presidential election.
"When 'queer' was used as a noun, it was always a derogatory term," English Department Professor Jonathan Strong said.
Strong spoke about the term's origins and usage. "We have a chance to make our own definition in a way that doesn't fall into an acceptable mold," he said.
After the prepared speeches, the event became an open forum. Members of the audience voiced their support for their friends, and students shared their coming out stories.
Rabbi Jeffrey Summit spoke about the relationship between Coming Out Day and the Jewish holiday of Yom Kippur, which began Wednesday evening and lasts until sundown today.
Summit encouraged students to be at one with themselves, the goal of the Jewish Day of Atonement. "It's only by telling the truth that you form deep relationships with people," he said.
Transfer students compared the atmosphere at Tufts with that of their previous colleges and thanked the community for being supportive.
One student, who identified herself as Amanda, a freshman, declared herself bisexual for the first time. She said hearing misconceptions about bisexuality influenced her decision to come out. "I felt like I should come out as a voice for other people to say, 'No, that's not true,'" she said.
Another student said he came out six years ago. "If the past six years have taught me anything, it's that my outness is not just my own personal victory," said the student, who identified himself as Sam, a senior. "We must continue to let our outness shine."
