October is LGBT History Month and one again the JKM Library has put together a display on the first floor featuring gay and lesbian fiction, as well as books on homosexual histories.
Over the last couple of years gay and lesbian couples and their allies have made their voices heard and our representatives responded. As of now same-sex marriage is legal in 14 states across the country. In September the White House hosted the first ever bisexual- focused meeting. While the Supreme Court’s overturn of the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) in June was another landmark for the gay community, there is still much progress to be made. Bisexual and transsexual persons are often forgotten or left out of the conversation, gay teens are 4 times more likely to attempt suicide, and while, “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” has been officially banned by President Obama, gays in the military are still subject to harassment. But this will not discourage us from moving forward in the hope for equality and recognition. As the great champion of mankind Walt Whitman said, “Keep your face always toward the sunshine/ and shadows will fall behind you.”