A Letter from the LGBT Alumni Association

Normally we would have anonymous posts for y'all on Mondays, but this week we didn't get any. Instead we're publishing a letter from the LGBT Alumni Network that they sent to Larry Moneta on Saturday. Here it is:



Dear Larry:

We write to express our concern about recent developments related to the relocation process for the Center for LGBT Life.

As you know, some of the LGBT Network’s members were involved in the working group assembled by Janie Long earlier this year. Those participants, as well as our board members and other alumni have followed the developments of the process closely.

Recently we received a letter from the leadership of Blue Devils United outlining a gap in what was promised for the new LGBT Center space earlier in the process versus what is being delivered at this point. Their analysis, along with analysis posted on the BDU blog, was based on the architect’s drawings.

Our board members have first-hand experience attending some of the magnificent events held at the Center. We agree with the BDU assessment that the current programming space is insufficient for the foot traffic the Center attracts for such events, and we are discouraged by what appears to be the decision to sacrifice other LGBT Center staff-designated space to inflate the square footage of programming space in the new design.

We have corresponded with the leadership of BDU, and we believe this analysis is not only accurate, but shows a disturbing disregard for the needs of the LGBT community at Duke. Having had several Network members involved in the advisory process for this relocation, we are also concerned that alumni volunteer time and enthusiasm dedicated to a project your office designed is not being taken seriously. In addition, we are concerned at the lack of transparency with which this process has been carried out.

As active alumni volunteers, we take great pride in Duke, and we take the time and effort we dedicate to the University seriously. As members of Duke’s extended LGBT community, we watch closely when the campus community is affected by the administration’s decisions. And as a body that believes in conducting negotiations and consultations transparently, we are concerned when it appears that important voices were sidelined in the process.

We understand the Student Affairs office is charged with difficult decisions and negotiations every day. However in this case, the evidence we have seen suggests the LGBT Center relocation process was not carried out as promised – neither in protocol nor product. We encourage your office to take seriously the concerns of the Blue Devils United group, meet with their leadership, allow their input into the process before it is finalized, and adjust the current plans for the new space to reflect the promises made earlier in the process.

We look forward to hearing from you about your plans moving forward.

Respectfully,
The Duke LGBT Network Board

Kyle Knight, President
Tom Clark, Chair
Jules Torti
Butch Trusty
Maneesh Goyal
Christopher Ventry
Darren Spedale
Todd Sears
Harry Harkins
Todd Montgomery
Ariel Levin

Unnatural

When it comes to nucleotides and amino acids, evolutionary processes have led us to four bases and twenty amino acids that are utilized in our everyday biological chemistry. Even better, this is also universal: with very few exceptions, all organisms across all domains of life use these same nucleotides and amino acids to form DNA and proteins that guide our functions. The chemistry of amino acids and nucleotides aren't too complicated (although if you're in Bio201, biochem, or anything of the sort you might disagree with me); with some minor tweaks and substitutions, it is simple to construct new nucleobases and synthetic amino acids that, while novel, are unnatural, and do not conform to the central dogma of molecular biology.

I arrived to campus two years ago, and I felt like an unnatural amino acid: out of place, weird, and synthetic. I was putting on a face that was going to get me through college. I had to pretend to be "natural." Straying away from the chemistry, I was shy and unsure of what college was about to throw at me. My introversion kept me indoors, avoiding parties, and wondering about what I was missing. I wanted to incorporate myself into the Duke mainstream, but every time I tried for the first month, I felt rejected. Coming from high school where I was well liked, college was a different feeling as I searched for acceptance. No matter how much I attempted to conform to the Duke "culture," even the "culture" within the LGBTQ community, I felt unnatural.

Synthetic amino acids are peculiar because when substituted for a natural amino acid in proteins, they can shut down the protein's function and destroy the native structure. In addition, synthetic nucleotides can incorporate mutations into DNA if included in DNA synthesis and replication. Well, this is exactly how I felt coming in to Duke. Even if I wanted to fit into the community, I wouldn't contribute anything, or I would screw something up, both personally and communally. What did I know about LGBTQ activism? I had only been out for five months. What meaningful relationships could I form? I'm too awkward to interact with people, and how would I even be remembered? Me, the unnatural amino acid, wouldn't survive selective pressures and I would get flushed out as unimportant or extraneous.

Yet here I am, two years later, still writing for this fantastic blog that has been such an important part of my Duke career and my stable integration into the LGBTQ community. Remember how I said unnatural amino acids and nucleotides are, well..."unnatural"? How I said that they can stop a protein from functioning or mutate DNA? Well, these are true statements, in some regards. However, unnatural amino acids have been show to improve immunogenic response to self proteins that are involved in autoimmune disorders and could stop inflammation and toxic shock response. Unnatural nucleotides are used in a specific assay to detect very small amounts of viral DNA to see if HIV or HCV is dormant, on the rise, or eliminated. And the utility of these two synthetic biology tools is only increasing, not only for medical advances, but also to improve basic sciences research and develop a better understanding of ourselves and the origins of life.

I realized that being "unnatural" did not mean that I had no role in this community. In fact, as I cited at the beginning, being novel may mean the same as unnatural, but my novelty provided something new to the university and this blog (I mean, who else has a post centered around synthetic biology?). I had to find my niche, and it wasn't the easiest task, but I did find my way. Particularly, writing for this blog has been my way of reaching out to Duke in ways that I can't do by being an engineer, or by being a researcher, and especially by being an introvert. Being a novel, "unnatural," and unique amino acid or nucleotide may just be the tool this community needs to thrive and survive. There is no Duke or LGBTQ "culture" that is supplemented by a few nutrients. The LGBTQ community does not fit one mold, nor four, nor even twenty molds, and conforming to one of these set structures isn't going to advance us. As we welcome a new class of students to Duke, each person needs to appreciate their differences and embrace how we can come together and build a stable community. We need more unnaturalness to progress, so that the DNA strand can hold new structures, and so the peptide chain folds in new ways and confers new functions.

Hopefully I didn't go too crazy with this extended metaphor, but I'm always available to talk (especially if it's on the synthetic biology) via email. To the new class, welcome to Duke, and to the old, welcome back!

What you should know about the new LGBT Center

(Click for larger image)

First let us correct an inconsistency: The new plan for the LGBT center does include a programing space that is of similar size to our current space. Yesterday Members of the Blue Devils United executive board made a case to the Senate using the limited information we were able to receive from the administration.

A previous design only granted the center half of our current programing space. And while this final design does grant us more programing space than the original, it takes that space from other aspects of the center. 

We were able to receive a layout including square footage for the previous design, but not square footage for this latest design.

Note: the information on the previous design was not received from either the administration of the LGBT center, but forwarded by an outside ally of our cause.

This morning we were finally given a complete layout that included square footage.

Note: It took two months, pressure from alums, and legislation from the DSG Senate to finally receive the complete information requested months ago.

Let us be clear: We will continue our quest for more space and we ask that the administration be straightforward and clear with the facts and information so that we can have an accurate and truthful conversation about the future of our Center.


Two weeks ago I received this image, an image of a LGBT Center drawn and set forth without any consultation with its major stakeholders-the undergraduate LGBT community.

It should come as no surprise to you that the administration has once again ignored the needs of our community and attempted to silence our concerns. There is clear and painful history of institutionalized homophobia employed by this university that spans decades. From the dechartering of the Gay and Lesbian Alliance in 1983 to the current outright disregard for the LGBT community as the Center relocation process has plainly illustrated.

In the spring we were promised a seat at the table to design our own space, and given an assurance that the final plan would only be set fourth after student consultation.  But as evidenced by the final design, those promises were not kept. Put simply, we were systematically ignored, and blatantly lied to. Inquest into the process over the summer received responses that at best could be described as evasive.

To give you the raw facts…

We acquired a meeting room and office for BDU/center student staff but…
Both Janie and Jess’s office space have been slashed to create the new spaces.


The Administration’s plan grants the LGBT Center less space than what was promised, and our programing space has not been increased. Any of you who have attended a major event (Lav Grad, Orientation Reception, Guest Speaker, etc) in the center know that our current space is already inadequate. The fact that the administration would refuse to increase that space illustrates that either they ignored the information highlighted in our report, or just didn’t read our report at all.

It is also worth noting that the administration told us to form a study group so that they could better address the needs of our growing community. After we turned in the results of our research to them, that was the last we ever heard of it. No further contact was made with the students, faculty, and alumni that were part of this study group to discuss the findings of the report.

Either way, let us make this statement again- Due to the explosion of programming and rapid growth of our community, we need a programming space that allows for the nurturing and growth of our community.

THEREFORE WE DEMAND that the new LGBT Center be increased to at least half the size of UCAE, as was previously promised.

We also give thanks to the Duke Student Government for their support in this cause and their resolution.

We are not asking for special treatment or requesting unreasonable concessions; we only demand what was promised to us, and what is truly and duly owed to us.

So, once again, we assert that our administrators must embrace their responsibility to Duke’s LGBT population and acknowledge our right to speak and be heard.

Because…

We will not be second-class students on our own campus

We will not be relegated to the fringes of campus life

We will not live in fear on our own campus, and

We will not be silenced or ignored.


Denzell Faison
Co-President Blue Devils United

Jacob Tobia
Co-President Blue Devils United

Kory Painter
Vice President Blue Devils United

Michael Pruitt
DSG Director of LGBT Affairs and Policy
BDU Outreach Chair

Jessica Alvarez
Blue Devils United Treasurer

Kyle Berner
BDU Blog Editor

The closet seems smaller this time...

After a slow section over summer vacation, Our Lives is ready to get back in gear for this semester. If you're new to Our Lives, here's the kind of thing you can expect:

After the end of last semester I got home with every fiber of my being feeling totally relieved. Finally, I was out of the pressure cooker environment of Duke and could relax a little more. I do like being at Duke, I was just ready for a break from the intense environment here. After taking about a week to myself, I began applying to jobs for summer employment. I started with tech based internships to build a good resume for a computer science major, when that failed I went to the more typical retail/service/food job applications. 20 or so applications in, I started to get a bit nervous. I started branching out more, and found myself applying to local golf courses. Most of them weren’t hiring anybody, but one ended up calling me back. This course had a full time job available for the summer and I’d get paid $7.50 an hour. After all of the panic of searching without any positive results, I jumped at the chance and took the job immediately. (Little did I know that the job was half lawn mowing and half weedeating ditches and trimming thornbushes by hand. But hey, work is work.)

 A little while into this job I started to realize just how good I had it back at Duke. No, I don’t mean the difficult physical labor, that was hard but I didn’t mind it. No, I mean the people I worked with. The employees I called my coworkers included one rapist, one serial rapist, one decent man who was relatively unprejudiced, one man who was a pretty reasonable person but was still quite prejudiced, and a sixteen year old who wanted to grow up to be just like the serial rapist. (Note: I found out about the serial rapist when he bragged about how he used to get girls drunk to the point of being unconscious and then have sex with them. The other rapist then laughed and told the story of when he did something similar.) So, we’re talking about a pretty wide spectrum of people here. Oh, and my boss was a birther, said he was ok with “the f-gs” so long as they didn’t touch him, and was convinced that white people are naturally more hardworking than all other ethnicities. So a real charmer. By the way I describe them, you may be beginning to get an impression of how I dealt with this situation. I hid behind a veil of dry sarcasm to prevent myself from suffering a mental break but never having to commit the workplace suicide of telling them any of my real opinions. It sort of helped that none of them understood sarcasm.

 About two months into it I was having a bit of an identity crisis. I’d obviously not come out to anybody at my workplace, but I had also never explicitly denied anything. For an example of what I mean, I present this actual situation: I was edging and mulching planting beds around the parking lot of the clubhouse when my boss drives up in a golf cart and tells me that if I’d like to work on the bed near the pool next, he’ll let me. I should mention here that the reason he presented this like a gift is because most of the other people that work there liked to work near the pool in the afternoons to watch women who are sunbathing in bikinis. When I said I didn’t care, he asked, “What, are you gay or something?” I responded, “Not quite, but seriously what do you need done?” This answer put him off a lot more than I expected and he drove off disgruntled. I guess a lot of sarcastic comments like that built into a reputation for me, and many of the workers would refer to me as “queer”, “homo”, “fag”, or “faggot” about half the times they wanted to get my attention. Also, they had a little joke amongst themselves that if any of them were left alone with me, I would sodomize them. After a while, I started to wonder if I should be challenging them on it. Deep down I knew it wasn’t my responsibility, I knew that no real gain could come of me engaging the group about their homophobia, racism, or sexism. Yet I still felt like every time I just took it when they called me a faggot made me a weak person. I felt like a total coward, but I knew there was nothing else I could do.

One day the coworker that I mentioned earlier who was pretty reasonable but was also prejudiced finally picked up on my facial expression after he used gay as a pejorative. He then asked me if I had a problem with him using the word. Here’s how the conversation went.

Me: Do you hate gay people?

Him: No. Actually, I don’t think I’d mind if they could marry.

Me: So when you call something gay, what do you mean?

Him: Well, I guess I mean that it’s… I don’t know, it’s just a word.

Me: You mean it’s something you dislike.

Him: I guess, yeah.

Me: But you said you don’t hate gay people.

Him: I don’t!

Me: Then why do you use the word “gay” to refer to things you dislike?

Him: Oh.

Me: Yeah.

He didn’t mention it for a day, then came back two days after we had the conversation and told me that he considered it, and he wasn’t going to say it anymore. Best part is, he kept his promise.

I did gain a lot from this summer, as it gave new meaning to my work here at Duke. BDU, this blog, and my work at the Center seem even more real and relevant when I consider that there are people out there that have to experience what I did this summer with no foreseeable end. While that thought makes me angry, it honestly makes me more determined than anything else. Forums like this blog are rare, and though I obvious come from a biased viewpoint on the matter, having a place where the LGBT community can share and discuss their life experiences is so key to coping with the isolation that many of the members of our community feel. Here’s to an excellent year, for all of you, the blog, and the entire spectrum of people that belong to and affiliate with our community.

So on that note let me proudly announce that Our Lives is officially back! Well, we never really leave, but we're going to restart posting on a regular basis. The rate of posting will likely increase as we get more writers, but expect regular posts to be going up from now on! If you want to get involved with the blog as a writer, email me and we can get you set up as soon as possible! Also email me with any questions you may have about the blog, I'd be glad to answer them.

Best,
Kyle

Event Wrap Up: East Campus OUTstravangza

This past Thursday the Center for LGBT Life and Blue Devils United teamed up to bring an event called OUTstravaganza to East Campus. Down on the main floor of marketplace BDU members and Center Staff waved rainbow flags and guided people upstairs. When people arrived in the space above Marketplace the Center had a table set up for Ben and Jerry’s to serve ice cream to hungry first years and older folks. Music played in the background as people socialized with each other. The Center for LGBT Life had a display set up to introduce what it does to the new students. BDU had a table set up in the room as well that was passing out rainbow flags for free, and getting new people signed up for the listserv. Over 100 flags got passed out to students who wanted to show their support for the LGBT community at Duke. Here's to the start of another exciting year!

Here's a picture:

Anonymous Posts (8.27.12-9.2.12)

Every week, we collect anonymous entries sent in using the link on our sidebar and post them all on Monday. We post anything as long as it doesn't contain personal attacks, hate speech, or express or insinuate that one is at risk for hurting themselves or someone else. Please read this for an explanation of this policy and seek help if your or a friend find yourself in that position. With those exceptions aside, please feel free to submit your thoughts and questions. :)


Hey y'all, I hope it's been a good FWOC for you. I hope you swung by the OUTstravangza on East Campus this Thursday, we had a lot of fun! There were lots of rainbow flags and ice cream, so honestly what more could you want?

Are you a LGBTQ identified woman? If you are you may want to consider coming to Women Loving Women! It's a monthly discussion and dinner group for undergraduate and graduate women who identify as LGBTQ and questioning. Membership is confidential. The first meeting is this week on Tuesday at 6:30. RSVP to colleen.warner@duke.edu by Tuesday morning if you plan on attending.

If you question gender, identify as trans, do not feel that you fit in traditional gender norms, or have any other non-cisgendered gender identity, Spectrum may the group for you. This is a confidential discussion which meets in the Center for LGBT Life. The first meeting of this group is Thursday at 6:00. Note: This is not a group to come to learn about other people. This is a group to explore your own identity.

Now, notes from OC:

#1
Coming out to my friends has been the most frustrating/rewarding thing I've done in a while. It's totally awesome that my friends accept me, but it's really frustrating that they don't understand what being a lesbian means. They still hold me to heteronormative standards of beauty and try to give me advice (grow your hair back out, wear super tight skirts with heels) on how to look more "attractive." It would be awesome if we could do some type of campaign to help people keep their heteronormative views in check.

Please remember that there are a number of resources available on campus and in the local community. resources are available over breaks and throughout the school year. If you or a friend are experiencing thoughts or urges to harm yourself or somebody else, please reach out to the following resources: In an emergency, please don't hesitate to call CAPS at any time, including "after hours" at (919) 966-3820. Ask to speak to the advice nurse and tell them you are a Duke student. You may also call the Trevor Project, a national hotline specifically for lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans, queer and questioning youth (college students included). Their number is 866-4-U-TREVOR (866-488-7386).