The panel, an integral piece of "Coming Out Week," featured five speakers. Two UMass-Amherst faculty members, social work intern Jim Helling and Diane Fedorchak, head of UMass' Queer Peer Education program, were among the speakers. Student-athletes on the panel included rugby and soccer player Scout Durwood '06, and two others who wished to remain anonymous. The five shared observations about sexual orientation as it relates to athletics and fielded questions from an audience of about two dozen.
The discussion revealed conflicting accounts of life as an LGBTQ student-athlete at Amherst. Durwood, a transfer student from St. Joseph's College in Rensselaer, Indiana, painted an optimistic picture. "Questioning [at St. Joseph's] was an interesting experience because of the lack of awareness," she related. "It wasn't really an option. But coming out at Amherst wasn't hard at all. Everybody accepted it, especially my teammates."
The other female student on the panel who is a member of a club team agreed with Durwood. Of her fellow players she stated, "It was a really supportive group of women to be associated with … I never had a problem."
Yet, other evidence suggested Amherst is not always so tolerant. The event's organizers were discouraged by their difficulty in procuring an openly gay male athlete. While women did not hesitate to lend their voices, men proved nearly impossible to find. When the Pride Alliance finally managed to track down a male volunteer, he was forced to bow out due to a scheduling conflict. His replacement spoke only on the condition of confidentiality.
The panel also discussed ways in which to make the homosexist culture, which has led to silence, more open. Helling and Fedorchak offered insight on this issue. The two have helped revive the once dormant Gay-Straight Athletic Alliance (GSAA) at UMass, which provides a network connecting gay athletes with each other, coaches and the administration. Helling said the group is so diverse that instead of bonding over common experience, it spends more time comparing their differences. "We have people who come from Amherst liberalism and we have people from devout religious communities in Georgia," said Helling. "Sometimes it can be tough communicating."
Despite the lack of familiarity and the frequently sparse attendance at GSAA meetings, Helling maintains that a need for the Alliance exists. "It's very challenging to organize this sort of thing at UMass due to bias [against homosexuals]," said Helling. "A lot of coaches understand courage on the field or the pitch, but they don't understand this type of courage."
Fedorchak's remarks accentuated the difficulty of overcoming homophobic prejudice. "What I regret," she recalled, "is that for a long time I wasn't comfortable enough with myself to help give back to other athletes." She has since resolved her regrets by leading the GSAA's renaissance.
Other suggestions for fostering tolerance included poster and sticker campaigns. Indeed, sheets of stickers that promoted bastions of "Safe Zones" for LGBTQ students were provided by the Pride Alliance.
Most attendees of the event, however, expressed a need for progress at a more individual level. Durwood told a story of a roommate at St. Joseph's who had never before encountered a LGBTQ person. After meeting Durwood, the student developed a newfound awareness. "One person at a time is a great way to solve things," Durwood said. "It's as important to come out as an ally as it is come out [as gay]."
Chase Tanenbaum '09, who attended the discussion panel, expressed similar sentiments. "While it is very important that coaches be sensitive to the needs of their gay athletes ... the only way to create a truly safe space is to foster acceptance and understanding among their straight companions," he said.
Dean of Students Ben Lieber corroborated, adding, "It's up to all of us-the students, faculty, athletic department, coaches-to create a comfortable environment. And we'll know we've succeeded when more people, especially athletes, are able to be open."