continued from page 10
Howard believes there are advantages
in being gay. "It's OK for me to share
some of my feelings with other men. It's
OK for me to cry in front of other men. I
think that a straight man's fearing that
somebody else might label him as queer is
the reason why straight men don't share
as much. He says, 'I can't be a poor athlete
in front of somebody else 'cos then they 11
think I'm gay.' It's really sad 'cos I think it
keeps a lot of straight men from interact
ing; just as people; just as average close
relationships," Howard says.
When asked to decide if she would
rather be gay or straight, Donna says, "I
would probably choose straight because
being gay has caused a whole lot of
problems that if I were straight I wouldn't
be dealing with right now."
Karen says, "I feel fine about being gay.
I enjoy it. I suppose if I were talking about
some sort of ideal I think people ought to
be bisexual. I certainly wouldn't choose to
be exclusively straight."
"If I went back to zero I'd like to be
bisexual," Howard says.
Dan says, "I'm not unhappy being gay.
Being heterosexual would be something
different. I don't think it would be better. I
have never had sex with a woman, and it's
something I would like to do. I have had
meaningful social-interpersonal
relationships with women. When I was in
college I dated quite a number of women."
Karen says she dated several men.
Howard dated several women at college.
"I enjoyed dating them, but I couldn't get
into sex. I am attracted to women by their
personalities but not by their bodies," he
says.
Chapel Hill is the only city in this state
that has an ordinance that says that a per
son working for the city (excluding the
University) cannot be fired because of
sexual preference. But theordinancedoes
not pertain to hiring or being in public
places .
Howard says, "I wish it would be OK
for me to walk into Harrison's and dance
there with another guy. But I can't 'cos I'd
get thrown out. If I sat in Harrison's and
put my arm around another guy and kiss
ed him, I'd probably get thrown out."
Christophers, on Chapel Hill Blvd., is
Chapel Hill's only gay bar. A bar is the
traditional place for homosexuals to pick
up partners. Dan says the most common
way two gay men signal interest in each
other is through prolonged eye contact.
"Most straight men walking down the
street will look at another man and look
away," Howard says. "Now think about
how he lets a woman know he is in
terested in her. He probably looks at her
long and hard. Looks up and down. Right?
It's called cruising. It's no different for a
gay man."
Donna says in addition toprolonged eye
contact, lesbians signal interest by smiling
and speaking.
Donna says some gays in the past have
signaled their homosexuality by letting a
red bandanna dangle from their pants'
back pocket. Some gay men wear one
earring. Some gays wear a button that has
an inscription concerning their sexuality
such as "How dare you presume I'm
heterosexual."
Gay baths are found in large cities like
Charlotte and Washington. It is common
for gay men, but not lesbians, to go to gay
baths. "When you walk in you pay your
money which is $6 for a room and $4 for a
locker," Dan says. "In the room there's a
bed and a locker. You get a towel and the
key to. your room. You wear only the
towel wrapped around you
"You leave y6ur door Open and lie there
seductively, and someone comes in your
room. Or you go out to somebody's room.
It depends on 'how assertive you are. I
usually stay three or four hours.
"In most cases there is some personal
feeling. We need to dispose of the myth
that says gay men are attracted to all men.
I mean, all heterosexual men are not at
tracted to all women. There is a respect
and a caring for the other person. It's not
totally mechanical," Dan says.
Many gay baths have weight rooms,
dance floors, showers, and sauna baths.
In seeking a sex mate, gay men are con
cerned most about physical appearance
while lesbians are concerned more about
personality. "Gay men who are
DOONESBURY
overweight, too thin, too old or too bald
find difficulty being accepted in the gay
bar setting," Dan says. "The emphasis is
on cruising and picking up someone. It's
all based on physical appearance. It has lit
tle to do with the individual's personali-
ty"
Concerning Anita Bryant, Howard
says, "She really upsets me. And I'm very
upset that she has so much power. It's
really incredible that so many people sup
port her and believe her and think that
she's a wonder woman. It's scary to me. I
am Jewish. I say God will accept, me if
I love and care for other people regardless
of what their gender is."
Dan says a large percentage of people
(two-thirds of the male population) who
define themselves as heterosexual have
had at least one homosexual experience.
Dan had an affair with a dorm
counselor and a football player. "Neither
of these people identified themselves as
being gay. The football player was using
me as a convenient sexual outlet'
The Carolina Gay Association was
founded in 1974 by Dan Leonard. Its ac
tivities include weekly rap sessions,
monthly lectures and programs, dances.
The Tar HeelThursday, July 13, 197811
consciousness-raising groups and a
newsletter. Monthly meetings have 15-30
participants. Weekly rap sessions usually
have 5-15 participants.
Gay Awareness Week last March
reached about 500 people. Six to 10 people
who had not identified themselves as gay
or bisexual before came to do so during
that week, Dan says. There were 12 lec
ture sessions during Awareness Week,
with about 20-25 in each session.
Last year the CGA set aside a day in
which people who were gay were to wear
blue jeans. "It makes people realize that
gays are everywhere. It makes people who
usually wear blue jeans very uncomfor
table and experience some of the anxieties
that gays may have about being
different," Dan says.
This year the Duke Gay Alliance used
the blue jean tactic. "One of the counter
moves at Duke was if you hate fags wear a
shirt," Da i says.
Donna's last words were: "1 just came
out last September which means I was
alone from the ninth grade until 1 was a
junior in college. I met my first lesbian and
gay man last September. I was flunking
out last spring. I just did pull myselt
together to take three of my exams. Two I
didn't take. Which means I got Fs in the
courses. That was last spring. This past
fall I was on the dean's list. Every bit of
that change is from coming out . . .feeling
gotnl about myself, finally after all these
years."
by Garry Trudeau
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"Being gay has made me very strong individually. I've had to stand
on my own more times than 1 care to remember."