This is a Letter to the Editor in a series of letters responding to last week’s Staff Editorial: From some other concerned Grinnell students. Find a list all the letters in this series below the article.
Thank you for writing that editorial,
I too, was shocked by recent campus action and actively question what purpose this rally serves. Maybe I just missed the word of mouth, but I don’t remember seeing any posters or receiving any e-mails from any campus group regarding outreach to discuss this issue, either what had happened or what the response should be (which is unsurprising given the sensitive nature of the issue and the fact that it had just occurred this past weekend). Therefore, I was caught by surprise to see students rallying outside the JRC. I only stopped to watch for a few minutes, but I really couldn’t parse through the message of the thing, which seemed a combination of reaction to the hate-crime and desire to reject the recent election (and it’s implication for LGBQT rights), at least to me.
I don’t know, maybe I’m just missing the point here…but I really don’t see what purpose this type of action serves. The lack of communication outlined in this article undermines any chance at possible desired institutional change by alienating administrators. And the rally I feel simply preaches to the choir (this who share the views expressed or wish to support their LGBQT peers) or simply angers, or puts-off people who have differing views or are on the fence about LGBQT rights, and hate-crime response issues…people have this notion that Grinnell College exists within a cultural vacuum and this type of action simply reaffirms this false view. If I was a first year, or a member of the (non-campus) community, I would be highly uncomfortable with what I saw and aren’t these people you’re trying to reach at a cultural level?
If you undermine your chance at institutional change and shut down any possible discourse to create cultural change, you fail at accomplishing any “real change”. I admit, maybe I don’t get it, the rallies, the institutional frustration, but I think I”m far from the only one. So please someone explain this to me?
Kevin • Nov 13, 2010 at 5:39 pm
Rachel,
So I don’t get what’s beyond my own personal experience or what is presented to me. I’m not going to apologize for trying to find out. That’s what I’m worried about happening when you shut down cultural discourse. The fact is many people go to Grinnell not because they had the luxury of choosing between schools that they would most fit into but simply because Grinnell actually has a need-blind admissions and financial aid process (unlike the lip-service and lack of action this policy receives at other top colleges/universities). Being a student of color and associating with many students of color on this campus, I feel that this is especially the case among minorities who are often devout Christians. For some, it is still difficult the conceptualize people who are LGBQT, let alone the struggle this community faces in wanting to feel safe at Grinnell. That is what I meant by talking about a cultural vacuum. I understand the futility in creating a “forum to talk to those who are intolerant and hateful”, but what about those who are simply ignorant? Rachel, try to be more sensitive to the fact that people don’t always have the opportunity to “look for a different college.”
I take your point on the need for solidarity, how silence can be deadly and how the administration SHOULD do more to address the issue at hand. My problem is that the pride rally, and subsequent Nollen House protest were the ONLY actions/information we were being presented with as a student body from either the administration or student groups when the editorial was written. Why? Pride rallies are fine, but they don’t necessarily lend themselves to open discussion about campus climate, administrative response or to creating understanding between people with different views.
David Nathan • Nov 12, 2010 at 12:18 pm
Rachel,
I think *you* miss the point. The author of the article is asking for someone to explain what is going on. Instead, you take an insulting and sarcastic tone “Maybe instead, gay people should just be quiet and wait for hateful, ignorant idiots to decide that they’re ready to accept homosexuality?” to what reads to me as an honest question.
Your condescending conclusion “And if a first year is uncomfortable with the sight of students protesting, he or she should probably look for a different college.” further muddies the waters. Perhaps you don’t know what the protest is really about either. It is ok that you do not know, but you should not take your ignorance out on someone who is asking for an explanation. People should not be punished or shamed for asking questions.
Kevin- as an alum of Grinnell and a graduate student in psychology who is planning on becoming a child psychologist, here is my take: many people at Grinnell are trying to figure out who they are. The years between 18-28 are a very common time for Americans to do this. Sometimes it is easier to identify who you are by identifying who you are not. Many (not all, but many) of the people who participate in rallies like the one you describe above are happy to be able to say, consciously or unconsciously, that they are not homophobes. Being able to come closer to who one is by identifying who one is not can be a very, very powerful and positive feeling for people. I would guess that some of the energy put into these rallies comes from that dynamic.
Other members of this group were people who were persecuted or felt persecuted by others when they were growing up. Perhaps their family members, classmates, friends, etc did not accept them or were abusive to them about who they were. It could be because they were homosexual, had a different outlook on the world, did not fit into the norms others thought they should, etc. People who fit into this group feel that they have found a new and supportive community within this group, and when they see someone in their community attacked the way that the student was when her dorm was entered and painted, they feel a profound and personal connection to what happened, and to them, it brings up painful memories of what they themselves went through before coming to Grinnell. Getting together with other community members, getting support and giving others their support helps them cope with these memories and feelings of shame, embarrassment, anger and sadness.
Other people who attended could be people who just like to go to parties and aren’t there for the political or community message at all.
There are other reasons why people attend events like this, but I think those three are probably the biggest ones.
David Nathan
Rachel Fields • Nov 12, 2010 at 8:17 am
Kevin,
I think you are missing the point. I agree that the lack of communication with the administration may have been damaging on some level, put I don’t think the queer community should have to cater to the needs of those people who “have differing views or are on the fence about LGBQT rights, and hate-crime response issues.” Maybe instead, gay people should just be quiet and wait for hateful, ignorant idiots to decide that they’re ready to accept homosexuality? To say that Grinnell’s queer community should have to sacrifice a pride rally — an event that reinforces their sense of pride, belonging and comfort after a traumatizing event — to make people comfortable is ridiculous. No one makes change by sitting back and waiting for it to happen, and I guarantee you that those people who disapprove of gay people aren’t going to get any less homophobic if gay people stop talking. They’ll just think they did their job in eliminating the problem.
You say “…people have this notion that Grinnell College exists within a cultural vacuum and this type of action simply reaffirms this false view.” But pride parades and rallies happen all over the world. Maybe small-town Iowa hasn’t seen these kind of events traditionally, but that’s changing, and it should change. And if a first year is uncomfortable with the sight of students protesting, he or she should probably look for a different college.
Respectfully,
Rachel Fields