Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: WEDNESDAY, October 12, 1994 TAG: 9410120086
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: C-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: LESLIE TAYLOR AND ALLISON BLAKE STAFF WRITERS
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
Exactly a year ago, Rori Klion came out to her co-workers at Virginia Tech.
"They were having a discussion, and they sounded pretty cool," said the Tech senior. "I asked if anyone was a homophobe, and this one guy said he had a problem."
He and Klion ended up in a debate over homosexual rights. As their conversation heated up, another in the group asked Klion point-blank: Was she a lesbian? Klion said yes.
"It's not easy. This is a small town. No one wants to see it or put up with it," Klion said.
Late Tuesday afternoon, Klion read the poem she wrote that October night when she was so pained and hurt. Listening quietly were about 20 others gathered to recognize National Coming Out Day. Just over two years ago, Klion, who said she was raised in a sheltered home, startled herself when she figured out she is homosexual. Now, she is co-chairwoman of Lambda Rising, the gay, lesbian and bisexual student union at Virginia Tech.
Their small gathering Tuesday at Henderson Lawn was one of several held in Western Virginia for National Coming Out Day. Aimed at ending the fear that comes from living a secret life, the day was launched in 1987.
Just inside the entrance to Hollins College is the "Senior Rock," covered with hundreds of coats of painted messages.
Early Tuesday, members of Harmony - a campus organization that promotes understanding of diverse sexual orientations - added another:
"Closets are for clothes."
Harmony members painted the rock "as a form of awareness, to make a statement on campus," said Clare Flynn, Harmony spokeswoman.
"Nationally, the more people who know about you being homosexual or bisexual, the more it will counteract the ignorance," she said. "The main point of coming out is to heighten awareness within the entire community, not just the gay community."
Harmony members distributed fliers Tuesday that read "Heterosexism can blind you. Open your eyes," and "I'm out; therefore, I am."
They passed out rainbow-hued ribbons in the campus dining hall. Some people refused them. Most accepted, said Flynn, who by midday was combing stores for more ribbon.
Flynn, a 20-year-old junior from Baltimore, disclosed her bisexuality two years ago, during her freshman year. Now she is "out" to the entire faculty, staff and administration, she says.
"I've gained some friends, and I've lost some friends, both at college and at home," Flynn said. "There are people who don't talk to me anymore."
Name-calling and pranks happen occasionally, she says.
"It's part of society in general. Hollins is no worse of a place than anywhere else."
J. Fleenor - manager of Phoenix Rising, a gay and lesbian bookstore in downtown Roanoke - said he knew quite a few people who were letting National Coming Out Day "give them the strength to come out."
"They're making the extra effort, wearing a button to work or telling family or a co-worker," he said.
One of his friends, a lesbian who works for a state agency, wore a menswear-styled suit to work rather than her usual dresses "to make the point of the whole ridiculousness of gender-specifics and to make a kind of statement."
Fleenor, 20, has been openly gay for five years.
"It's been a whole lot easier," he said. "I have very, very supportive friends and family. My father really was the only one to have problems with me coming out.
"His only problem is me being too vocal. He doesn't want people to know he has a gay son."
by CNB