Difference between revisions of "Closets of a College Town"

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===== ''Self-Discovery at The Pennsylvania State University'' =====
 
===== ''Self-Discovery at The Pennsylvania State University'' =====
 
[[Image:OldMain.jpg|thumb|left|200px|Old Main Building, as it looks from College Avenue.  <ref name="OldMain">[http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Penn_state_old_main_summer.jpg. Attributed to:] George Chriss. "Old Main Building 2006." Photo. 7 July 2006. [http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/ Creative Commons Attribution ShareAlike 3.0]. Retrieved 18 February 2010, from <nowiki>http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Penn_state_old_main_summer.jpg.</nowiki></ref>]]
 
[[Image:OldMain.jpg|thumb|left|200px|Old Main Building, as it looks from College Avenue.  <ref name="OldMain">[http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Penn_state_old_main_summer.jpg. Attributed to:] George Chriss. "Old Main Building 2006." Photo. 7 July 2006. [http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/ Creative Commons Attribution ShareAlike 3.0]. Retrieved 18 February 2010, from <nowiki>http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Penn_state_old_main_summer.jpg.</nowiki></ref>]]
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Dear "Old State" is generally held in high regard by its students; not only are they filled with Penn State pride - but moving to the University Park campus gives many people their first opportunity to escape from home and experience the excitement of living on one's own. During college many students embark on the endless path of self-discovery; for example, students may explore their gender identities or sexual orientations. State College is a unique location for such self-exploration, as it has a very large population of young adults, many of whom are involved with groups that have been typified as homophobic, including a large military program, an impressive Athletics Department, and the second largest Greek system in the country. While Penn Staters who identify with the LGBT community frequently report experiencing harassment or discrimination in situations "lubricated" by alcohol, other places where where anti-gay harassment has been commonly reported include military classes, locker rooms, and daily interactions of fraternity members. Given the strong emphasis on Greek life and Athletics at Penn State, behavior observed in these environments intrinsically has a strong influence on the perceived social climate around the University.<br/>
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Dear "Old State" is generally held in high regard by its students; not only are they filled with Penn State pride - but moving to the University Park campus gives many people their first opportunity to escape from home and experience the excitement of living on one's own. During college many students embark on the endless path of self-discovery; for example, students may explore their gender identities or sexual orientations. State College is a unique location for such self-exploration, as it has a very large population of young adults, many of whom are involved with groups that have been typified as homophobic, including a large military program, an impressive Athletics Department, and the second largest Greek system in the country. While Penn Staters who identify with the LGBT community frequently report experiencing harassment or discrimination in situations "lubricated" by alcohol, other places where where anti-gay remarks are commonly reported include military classes, locker rooms, and fraternities. Given the strong emphasis on Greek life and Athletics at Penn State, behavior observed in these environments intrinsically has a strong influence on the perceived and acceptable social climate around the University.<br/>
 
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The generalized 1-in-10 statistic suggests that nearly 4,400 undergraduates at University Park may be lesbian, gay, or bisexual. A 2005 Penn State survey indicated that 79% of students knew of at least one student who was openly LGBT - supporting that the general population is aware of a University LGBT community. Interestingly though, 33% of students had no friends who identified as LGBT and 64% had 2 friends or less who identified as LGBT - indicating that most Penn Staters do not develop a deep connection to the Penn State LGBT community. In the same survey, 69% of students reported being comfortable with individuals who are lesbian, gay, or bisexual and less than half were comfortable with individuals who identified as transgender. These numbers corroborate with the 67% of the general survey takers who thought the University climate was supportive; however, only 33% of LGBT students agreed, indicating that the LGBT community largely has a different experience at Penn State than the general population.  <ref name="Pulse">[http://www.sa.psu.edu/SARA/pulse/136-LGBTA-GISO.pdf]  Penn State Pulse. Retrieved 11 April 2010, from <nowiki>http://www.sa.psu.edu/SARA/pulse/136-LGBTA-GISO.pdf.</nowiki></ref><br/>  
 
The generalized 1-in-10 statistic suggests that nearly 4,400 undergraduates at University Park may be lesbian, gay, or bisexual. A 2005 Penn State survey indicated that 79% of students knew of at least one student who was openly LGBT - supporting that the general population is aware of a University LGBT community. Interestingly though, 33% of students had no friends who identified as LGBT and 64% had 2 friends or less who identified as LGBT - indicating that most Penn Staters do not develop a deep connection to the Penn State LGBT community. In the same survey, 69% of students reported being comfortable with individuals who are lesbian, gay, or bisexual and less than half were comfortable with individuals who identified as transgender. These numbers corroborate with the 67% of the general survey takers who thought the University climate was supportive; however, only 33% of LGBT students agreed, indicating that the LGBT community largely has a different experience at Penn State than the general population.  <ref name="Pulse">[http://www.sa.psu.edu/SARA/pulse/136-LGBTA-GISO.pdf]  Penn State Pulse. Retrieved 11 April 2010, from <nowiki>http://www.sa.psu.edu/SARA/pulse/136-LGBTA-GISO.pdf.</nowiki></ref><br/>  

Revision as of 07:29, 14 April 2010

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Self-Discovery at The Pennsylvania State University
Old Main Building, as it looks from College Avenue. [1]

Dear "Old State" is generally held in high regard by its students; not only are they filled with Penn State pride - but moving to the University Park campus gives many people their first opportunity to escape from home and experience the excitement of living on one's own. During college many students embark on the endless path of self-discovery; for example, students may explore their gender identities or sexual orientations. State College is a unique location for such self-exploration, as it has a very large population of young adults, many of whom are involved with groups that have been typified as homophobic, including a large military program, an impressive Athletics Department, and the second largest Greek system in the country. While Penn Staters who identify with the LGBT community frequently report experiencing harassment or discrimination in situations "lubricated" by alcohol, other places where where anti-gay remarks are commonly reported include military classes, locker rooms, and fraternities. Given the strong emphasis on Greek life and Athletics at Penn State, behavior observed in these environments intrinsically has a strong influence on the perceived and acceptable social climate around the University.

The generalized 1-in-10 statistic suggests that nearly 4,400 undergraduates at University Park may be lesbian, gay, or bisexual. A 2005 Penn State survey indicated that 79% of students knew of at least one student who was openly LGBT - supporting that the general population is aware of a University LGBT community. Interestingly though, 33% of students had no friends who identified as LGBT and 64% had 2 friends or less who identified as LGBT - indicating that most Penn Staters do not develop a deep connection to the Penn State LGBT community. In the same survey, 69% of students reported being comfortable with individuals who are lesbian, gay, or bisexual and less than half were comfortable with individuals who identified as transgender. These numbers corroborate with the 67% of the general survey takers who thought the University climate was supportive; however, only 33% of LGBT students agreed, indicating that the LGBT community largely has a different experience at Penn State than the general population. [2]





A night football game at Beaver Stadium.






Athletics and Tailgating
Traditional tailgates at University Park for Penn State football games.




















Example incidents of alcohol-lubricated harassment and discrimination.
***Disclaimer: Videos may be loud and they contain sexual content, swears, and slurs.***

The following is a short documentary on sexual harassment at Penn State and was completed in 2007 as a project for a Women Studies class. Although the dialogue is specifically centered around sexual harassment, the video is representative of an average Thursday, Friday, or Saturday night in downtown State College. The video includes sexual language and harassment that may be offensive.

<youtube>WzVYRdyY5rI</youtube>

The next video documents harassment at the Pike (Pi Kappa Alpha) Fraternity after a football game with Ohio State in 2007. The party is representative of an average weekend fraternity party at Penn State. Although the incident centers around school rivalry (and the victims are members of the Ohio State Pike chapter), the assault with full cans of beer and extensive verbal harassment could easily be construed as something more personal. The fraternity was suspended shortly after this incident. The short video contains swears and slurs against gender and sexual orientation that may be offensive.

<youtube>jDiRPUiQZHc</youtube>


Fraternities and Sororities


Homecoming Parade as it passes the intersection of College Ave & South Allen St. [3]





The Interfraternity Council / Panhellenic Dance Marathon, which benefits the Four Diamonds Fund.


Pi Beta Phi, Sigma Phi, and Kappa Alpha Psi performed selections from "The Wedding Singer" in 2009 and took first place in Greek Sing.[4]


Participants at the Interfraternity Council / Panhellenic Dance Marathon, performing their traditional, hourly dance.

























Pike's fraternity video



Intersections with LGBTQA Communities

References and Sources

  1. ↑ Attributed to: George Chriss. "Old Main Building 2006." Photo. 7 July 2006. Creative Commons Attribution ShareAlike 3.0. Retrieved 18 February 2010, from http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Penn_state_old_main_summer.jpg.
  2. ↑ [1] Penn State Pulse. Retrieved 11 April 2010, from http://www.sa.psu.edu/SARA/pulse/136-LGBTA-GISO.pdf.
  3. ↑ Attributed to: Rick Zhuang. "Homecoming Parade 2005." Photo. 28 October 2005. Creative Commons Attribution ShareAlike 3.0. Retrieved 4 March 2010, from http://farm1.static.flickr.com/32/57087024_766d9bc60d.jpg.
  4. ↑ Attributed to: Tina Hay. "Greek Sing 2009." Photo. The Penn Stater Magazine. 2 November 2009. Retrieved 4 March 2010, from http://pennstatermag.com/category/campus-events/


Contact Information

Name: Eric V. Patridge, Ph.D.
Email: eric.patridge@gmail.com
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