Arts and Humanities Commons^™

Object To Your Affection, Melissa J. Lauro

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Recently a guy in one of my classes defended objectification of women on the grounds that if he cares for a girl, he will treat her like he treats his most treasured objects; he used his coat as an example. He said that he loved his coat, he wouldn’t let it touch the ground, and he took great care of it; he would do the same for any girl he cared about, for “his girl.” [excerpt]

Fearless Friday: Erin Duran, Christina L. Bassler

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As we conclude PRIDE Week, we honor Erin Duran, the fearless director of LGBTQA Advocacy and Education. In Erin’s three years at Gettysburg, he has established institutional support for the LGBTQA community and has worked to make the campus more inclusive and accepting of all students. [excerpt]

But, Why Not?, Anonymous

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I am the lucky one.

That’s how I’ve felt growing up in backwater Pennsyltucky, yet somehow managing to be openly queer. I came out to my friends and family as bi/pan-sexual in the 8th grade. None of my coming-out experiences resulted in horror stories. At that point most people had already guessed and accepted the fact that I was most definitely a queer kid. Even the most conservatively religious members of my friend group seemed perfectly okay with the fact that my sexuality didn’t fit with their ideas of morality. I was who I was, and to all outward appearances …

Respiration: Breathing Between The Stacks, Jerome D. Clarke

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How rare are we, who brandish Black and Male identity, in Academia?

In the past two weeks, I have been reminded of my Black maleness in a multitude of ways. I sat alone, subordinate in number, in a dialogue about Internalized Oppression at Diaspora House. Strong women of color discuss this issue while I work to stay respectful and non-oppressive in this space. I sat alone, subordinate in number, in each of my classes, where I am often the only one of my race and class. My race-gender circumstance is a matter of fact to me. How does this Black …

Fearless: Maihan Wali, Christina L. Bassler

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Maihan Wali describes herself as “one of those kids that always wanted to help.”

So when she noticed that many of her peers in her class struggled with reading and writing, she started a peer to peer literacy program with the help of her sister and a few friends. She was only 8 years old. [excerpt]

Stop The Spread, Please, Stephany W. Harrington

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As I walked down the sidewalk of East Lincoln Ave, I saw several students coming towards me. They were guys strolling three across. They clearly saw me approaching, but as the gap closed between us I found the situation similar to a game of chicken. I was unsure how close I would get before one of them moved. It sure as hell wasn’t going to be me. No, I stood my ground and was subsequently body-checked. As he collided with my shoulder I looked at him with disgust, but he kept walking like nothing happened. [excerpt]