-KNOW Homo-

LGBTQ* Support History

Above is a copy of the M.I.T. (Massachusetts Institute for Technology) Homophile League support flyers from 1970. The League formed in 1969. It was the third Boston area student gay and lesbian organization. GaMIT is M.I.T.’s active LGBTQ* and friends student alliance on campus today.

LGBTQ* Advice, Insight and Education

How Educators Can Help:

1.) Treat the topic of sexual orientation as you would an other human difference

2.) Illustrate ways in which diversity has had a positive effect on our culture

3.) Do not allow students to use names such as “fag,” “butch,” “dyke,” “homo,” etc. in a negative fashion. Treat these words the same way you give notice to ethnic or racial slurs. Create a safe space for discussion.

4.) Let others show that derogatory gestures and jokes are not amusing — they cause pain

5.) Be away that some LGBTQ* students are very often uncomfortable, invisible, isolated and need acceptance from you 

6.) Some LGBTQ* students will probably not admit to being LGBTQ* due to denial, need to conform or personal acknowledgement. Don’t confront these students! Be an ally and allow them time.

7.) You can convey respect and show that each student is valued for characteristics within his/her control.

8.) Sexual orientation is a minor (but important) part of a person’s existence and should not be overly emphasized.

9.) When you speak to someone it is important to remember that that person may be indeed related to the “invisible” minority and can easily be hurt. Be a good friend. Do not use a student or fellow peer as examples without their permission.

10.) If a student tells you he/she is LGBTQ*, thank the person for trusting you and keep it to yourself. If a student needs help, the school psychologist or social worker will be available and the information will be kept confidential.

(Taken from a university Safe Haven manual. Picture source unknown.)

LGBTQ* Literature To Keep On Your Radar

Call Me By Your Name by Andre Aciman

Egyptian-born Aciman is the author of the acclaimed memoir Out of Egypt and of the essay collection False Papers. His first novel poignantly probes a boy’s erotic coming-of-age at his family’s Italian Mediterranean home. Elio—17, extremely well-read, sensitive and the son of a prominent expatriate professor—finds himself troublingly attracted to this year’s visiting resident scholar, recruited by his father from an American university. Oliver is 24, breezy and spontaneous, and at work on a book about Heraclitus. The young men loll about in bathing suits, play tennis, jog along the Italian Riviera and flirt. Both also flirt (and more) with women among their circle of friends, but Elio, who narrates, yearns for Oliver. Their shared literary interests and Jewishness help impart a sense of intimacy, and when they do consummate their passion in Oliver’s room, they call each other by the other’s name. A trip to Rome, sanctioned by Elio’s prescient father, ushers Elio fully into first love’s joy and pain, and his travails set up a well-managed look into Elio’s future. Aciman overcomes an occasionally awkward structure with elegant writing in Elio’s sweet and sanguine voice. (Feb.)
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USC LGBTQ Allies

from former Ally Project:

http://sait.usc.edu/lgbt/allies/come-out-as-an-ally.aspx