My afternoon class was canceled last minute and the note on the classroom door read, "FYS Canceled. Email Professor for more information." For not having read all the materials that day, I was relieved and ecstatic.
As I walked back to my dorm on that cool autumn day, minding my own business along Locust Street, I heard "faggot" yelled at me from a passing car. My jaw hit the floor and I stood there in shock.
I hurriedly walked up the pathway of my dorm and ran to my room feeling nauseous, scared and above all, inhuman. I asked myself several questions: Why was it okay for someone to feel the need to treat me this way and call me that? What was it that made them think they could publicly humiliate and demoralize me?
I had only been here for two months and was already feeling remorse about attending DePauw. I did not approach anyone about this incident because I thought no one would care or listen. My naïveté led me to believe that I was the only one who experienced this particular type of verbal assault. I remained silent for years.
Since then, I have experienced subtle and overt forms of discrimination based on my multiple identities as an openly gay Latino student.
Fortunately, I have never experienced physical assault for being who I am, but this does not exclude me from future encounters on or off campus.
My individual experiences do not reflect every other person's experiences with discrimination, nor should they. Ironically, the common thread of alienation ties me to many people.
Our DePauw community was recently made aware of certain actions and behaviors that have ultimately led to the dehumanization of some LGBT students, myself included.
Those who think it is acceptable to demean other students for their identities are operating from points of view that define many DePauw students as less than human.
The way we use language and how we treat people inevitably serve as a form of policing particular communities. Every time I hear a joke at the expense of a marginalized community, I feel personally hurt and as if I am not wanted here.
In spite of the many obstacles thrown my way during my time here, I would consider myself unique. Navigating a campus about which I am ambivalent and that is ambivalent about me requires developing mechanisms for social survival. I found support and a network of invaluable people who have all contributed to the many enriching and intellectually stimulating experiences DePauw has provided me.
My positive experiences far outweigh any negative encounters. However, should anyone have to worry about their safety and well-being when they are hear to pursue an education from an amazing institution?
I see the current happenings as an opportunity to spark conversation with your peers, faculty, staff and administration about the larger DePauw community.
I am a firm believer of challenging ideas, not individuals. This means that we as members of an intellectual community, must critically engage this issue from all standpoints and interrogate where we fall in the discussion.
The next time you crack a joke at the expense of some "fag," "dyke," or any other person, understand that your words are heard and their damage to others is immeasurable.
—Flores is a senior anthropology major from Olton, Texas.
Opinion@thedepauw.com
