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Outing the unis

by Hugh Coyle

Oftentimes I wonder at how removed
Vermont really is from the rest of the coun-
try. On the level of popular culture, that
translates into scenarios like our singular
inability to tune in to "The Simpsons" on
Sunday night television. Characteristics
such as that come to define the word "rural"
for the rest of the country and separate
Vermonters from the excesses of trendy
materialism which prevail in such urban
areas as New York and San Francisco.

These differences are felt in the gay
and lesbian communities as well. News of
the massive protests at the 6th International
AIDS Conference in San Francisco had
little impact on Pride Day activities here in
Montpelier; in fact, the topic of AIDS itself
was hardly mentioned (though its perva-
sive influence cannot be in doubt). The
current obsession with "outing" that has
taken hold of the nation has not caused
undue alarm or concern here in Vermont
either, probably owing to the lack of a
highly visible gay media network here in
the state (01 TM is, we admit, a far cry from
GCN and 0utWeek).

Still, it is that topic - "outing" - which
has prompted some remarkable dialogue
and discussion in the gay and lesbian com-
munities. There is in both communities a
desire to know who "is" and who "isn't,"
and that desire is not always just a passing
curiosity. We are, after all, strengthened by
numbers, and made bold by the ability to
define who exactly "we" are.

Insofar as outing has become the latest
trend in gay activism, Vermont has re-
mained unaffected. Let's face it: Vennontis
a rather low-profile kind of state. Some
people see the mountains as a kind of socio-
logical buffer. You spend your years as an
activist in New York City, then retire

A DESKTOP PUBLISHING STUDIO
TYPE 8: DESIGN/WORKSHOPS/SELF-SERVICE

 

 
   

"upstate" to Vermont to live in blissful
anonymity. You don't have to worry about
things like outing when you live in the
Green Mountain Closet.

Or so I thought until recently. A few
months ago, a well-known gay and lesbian
magazine mailed off a subscription offer to
potential readers. The advertisement was
sent in a bold and telling envelope, much to
the dismay and outrage of some of the re-
cipients. The same magazine recently
polled its readers on whether they would
continue to subscribe if the magazine
ceased using plain sealed envelopes for
delivery.

This idea inspired me. I thought of how
much fun it would be to send a letter to
magazine subscribers which said some-
thing like "Your subscription to Queer
Quarterly is about to expire. If you choose
not to renew now at full price, we will begin
mailing QQ to you without any kind of
outside covering." What a great way to
maintain a strong subscriber list! (Fear not,
OITM subscribers...there is a clause in our
bylaws which prohibits our enacting such a
policy.)

In theory, we should not have to worry
about what we find in our mailboxes, or
about what anyone thinks about what they
find in our mailboxes. Being labelled "gay"
or "lesbian" should not be viewed as a bad
thing. Outing is not, as the Burlington Free
Press called it, a "witch"-hunt. And yet, so
long as society views being gay or lesbian
as something negative, then things such as
outing will be viewed with horror and
alarm. In fact, using outing as a political
weapon or tool depends on the negative
connotations associated with being gay or
lesbian, otherwise the whole gesture would
be weak and ineffective.

(continued on page 11)

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