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Title
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Op-ed Annoying to Student
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Description
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Letter to the editor asserting that homosexuality is immoral and should be kept out of the public. This letter is in regard to "Op-Ed: Sexual Ignorance Is Rampant" of October 26, 1976. The original author's response is also shown, presenting the letter's homophobia as the reason Gay Liberation is needed and maintaining the importance of gay visibility.
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Creator
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Campus Times
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Date
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1977-10-28
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Format
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Newspaper
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Language
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eng
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Publisher
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University of Rochester
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Rights
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This Item is protected by copyright and/or related rights. You are free to use this Item in any way that is permitted by the copyright and related rights legislation that applies to your use. For other uses you need to obtain permission from the rights-holder(s). http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/
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Source
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Campus Times (October 28, 1977), Campus times (University of Rochester), LD4747.C197, Rare Books, Special Collections, and Preservation, River Campus Libraries, University of Rochester
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Text
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To the Editor:
Regarding Barry Bergen's oped:
What a person does in the privacy of his home is (or should be) of no concern to anyone but himself. In public, however, he subjects himself to the standards of the community. It is obvious to me, and to Mr. Bergen who cited several incidents, that the majority of the people in this country, and probably this university, simply will not accept homosexuality as a normal facet of human behavior. To many it is even a moral question. I don't expect any homosexuals to conform to the lifestyle of the majority, but, I cannot tolerate being badgered into condoning something I find unnatural and repulsive. So please, do your own thing, but do it quietly.
Patricia DiPetto
Mr. Bergen replies:
I wonder if Ms. DiPetto has considered the fact that homosexuals are themselves "badgered" into a role they find unnatural, and yes, perhaps even repulsive. From earliest childhood, Ms. DiPetto, heterosexuality is assumed of us. More than assumed, forced on us, shoved at us, imbued in us in every conceivable way. No wonder that one who has the strength to push off the enforced restraints of heterosexuality is proud to communicate this to others. My short op-ed for the. CT was intended to extend lines of communication, in what I supposed was as inoffensive a manner as possible. It needn't have been, and perhaps it should not have been.
I find myself being asked to do my own thing quietly, and perhaps the real intent here is that I remain silent. I do not intend to remain silent, nor even quiet. I would hope to remain inoffensive, so that the true spirit behind Gay Liberation can be communicated. But I refuse to accept Ms. DiPetto's normalcy, or what she feels to be consensus as a basis for self-condemnation and remaining quiet.
Moreover, by remaining silent, I tacitly accept laws which deprive gays of what even Ms. DiPetto concedes us the right to what we do in private. In most states, homosexual acts are illegal, even in private. Therefore, I cannot remain silent, and if need be I will become increasingly vocal, perhaps even offensive. For poor, badgered Ms. DiPetto I feel no pity.
