Coming out, going strong - Metro

Coming out, going strong - Metro
By: Matt Nelson - The Daily Iowan
Posted: 10/12/07

Students in hoodies and sweaters carrying signs and bearing slogans gathered on the Pentacrest on Thursday in the hopes that some day they wouldn't have to.

Sitting at the foot of the Pentacrest were approximately 10 supporters in support of both the 19th-annual National Coming Out Day and the Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender, and Allied Union student group.

"There are a lot of people who are celebrating in their own way," said Laurie Eiserman, noting the low attendance. "Coming out is a constant process," added Cody Shafer, noting that the day fell in the middle of midterms for many people.

This year, the internationally observed National Coming Out Day coincides with the 20th anniversary of the Gay and Lesbian March on Washington as well as the presentation of the AIDS Quilt at the National Mall as a memorial to those who suffered AIDS-related deaths.

The recent controversy over a judge's ruling that the Iowa law limiting marriage to opposite-sex couples was unconstitutional provided a backdrop for the event.

The decision lasted fewer than 24 hours before the same judge stayed the ruling pending Polk County's appeal to the Iowa Supreme Court.

"Now, more than ever, it's important for students to know what we mean [by equality]," said Mark Anthony Dingbaum, who works for One Iowa, a gay-rights advocacy group that promotes equal access to marriage for same-sex couples.

As a member of One Iowa's Project Equality, which started this year, Dingbaum has helped organize educational events over the past year between One Iowa and the Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender and Allied Union at the UI, including a meeting that was held last night at the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Resource Center.

The house opened last October to provide a space for students to interact and to serve as a resource for members of the gay community.

Shafer, one of the executive board members, said the push for same-sex marriage rights will likely be one of the defining issues for the movement in the state for the next few years.

And though organizers spoke warmly about the day, Haley Whitlatch expressed hope that National Coming Out Day might end at some point.

"More and more people are coming out every day," Whitlatch said. "Hopefully, 10 years from now, we won't need a Coming Out Day."