One former Bobcat challenges the opinion of a man who wrote to The Post about his thoughts on reporting LGBT issues.
While I appreciate Gary Golinski's defense of editorial freedom and liberty to share one's opinions, I am skeptical of his motives for questioning the space given to the LGBT population of Ohio University and in Athens. Given the rhetoric of his letter that refers to our community as "the homosexuals" and our "fornication," it's my assumption that Mr. Golinski harbors old-fashioned, homophobic values where any space in the pages of The Post dedicated to a non-majority population is too much. It appears that Mr. Golinski would prefer us in the LGBT community to be neither seen nor heard because we do not meet the criteria of worthiness in his opinion.
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In the past, negative vitriol defined the public discourse about LGBT individuals, and we were thankful not to be abused, harassed, kicked out of our homes and made to feel unsafe in our places of study, work or worship. Better sense has prevailed, and we are free to use the power of our collective queer voices. To be faced with a population with whom he is clearly neither comfortable nor in agreement is likely troubling to whatever long-held beliefs Mr. Golinski has, but that does not make our presence in The Post less worthy. For every article devoted to LGBT issues there are many dozens that are not, and to conclude that the few representations that our community is privy to highlights the continued disparity between those afraid of losing their hegemonic privilege and those who are claiming their voices — perhaps for the first time.
Mathew Hall is an Ohio University alum.
