I would like to applaud Nathan Carleton for writing the "Gay? Not Fine By Me" column. It is nice to know that there is someone at this University with the guts to stand up to an institution, administration and student body that oppress conservative thinking.
Wednesday's letter to the editor by George Gilbert brings up an interesting point. He states, "For one day, perhaps, [Nathan Carleton] felt the same marginalization that homosexuals combat every day of their lives." Gilbert conveniently chose to overlook the fact that both he and Mr. Carleton live at Duke, a place where liberalism, diversity and acceptance is considered the norm.
Let's examine conservative thought at Duke. The majority of administrators, professors, and students at Duke are liberal. The majority of public speakers who come to Duke are liberal. I have seen students pick up stacks of "New Sense" and throw them into the trash. I have heard concerns from friends that their term papers were given lower grades because they employed conservative thinking and logic. If any minority on campus should feel oppressed, it is conservatives.
Now let's take a look at homosexuality at Duke. I would say it is thriving. We have an LGBT center, which is expanding. We have Coming Out Week. For those of you who have never experienced it, I urge you to check it out.
Two years ago it included a parade showcasing a rampant exhibition of sex toys and sexual acts that disgusted even some of those involved. Last year, it featured a kiss-in where people with an "alternative lifestyle" were encouraged to sit on the quad and do what they pleased. Homosexuals here don't exactly act like a group of people who feel oppressed.
It is true that Carleton could have printed up shirts that said, "Gay? Not Fine By Me." and distributed those freely among Duke students. If he had, he would have been more likely to endure threats and/or violence than any gay student currently at Duke.
Nathan Carleton does have to endure oppression similar to that which homosexuals are purported to experience. However, while homosexuals at Duke are free to express themselves however they choose, Carleton has to live with the fact that his views are unpopular here.
I commend him on his willingness to endure this just so his views can be heard and I encourage more students to do the same.
Justin DeSimone
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