Prominent Gay Rights Activist Reflects on Battles Against Hate
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The University of Maine DigitalCommons@UMaine Social Justice: Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion Special Collections 4-21-1997 Prominent gay rights activist reflects on battles against hate Krista Marrs University of Maine Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.library.umaine.edu/social_justice Part of the Feminist, Gender, and Sexuality Studies Commons, Gender Equity in Education Commons, Higher Education Commons, and the United States History Commons Repository Citation Marrs, Krista, "Prominent gay rights activist reflects on battles against hate" (1997). Social Justice: Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion. 264. https://digitalcommons.library.umaine.edu/social_justice/264 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by DigitalCommons@UMaine. It has been accepted for inclusion in Social Justice: Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion by an authorized administrator of DigitalCommons@UMaine. For more information, please contact [email protected]. • Discrimination Prominent gay rights activist reflects on battles against hate By Krista Marrs of his experiences of coming out in Maine Campus staff the early 1980s and how the gay scene has changed in the last 10 to The media does not do their job 15 years. in educating people about homo "In the early 80s, 'coming out' sexual issues, an activist and mem meant that you were out to your ber of the gay community told lis friends, yet still behind a screen to teners Thursday night. the rest of the world," Signorile "Consciously or not, the media said. tries to keep gays divided and sep While working as a publicist in arated from the heterosexual com the entertainment industry, Signorile munity," Michaelangelo Signorile and all columnists were told to leave said during his lecture titled "Queers Michelangelo Signorile. {Stef out and ignore all topics of homosex in America" Bailey Photo.) uality, even if the person they were An author of several books and writing about was openly gay. a memberofthe gay activist group, and members of the gay communi Act-Up, Signorile spoke to students ty as part of QueerFest '97. He told See ACTIVIST on page 6 Activist from page l "Even though the industry is full of homo were hiding information dealing with homo sexual men and women, we had to heterosex sexuality and how much it was hurting the ualize them in order to maintain the image of public, both gay and straight members. a total heterosexual world," Signorile said. With the help of other members from Act "Even today the media tries to keep people in Up, Signorile started "Outweek Magazine," power in the closet so that nobody will make in which he criticized various gossip forums any waves. But coming out is all about mak of the media. ing waves." "Since people get most ideas from gossip Signorile also talked about the change in magazines. It made more sense to go after the gay scene since the spread of AIDS. He those kinds of mediums rather than the main said it was no longer "hip" to be gay as he stream outlets," Signorile said. recalled how his friends, straight and gay, His magazine got much criticism and started to lose contact with one another and controversy with his articles, but Signorile eventually stopped associating. said he was only setting the record straight. "After my best friend died of AIDS in He felt there was no longer the need for 1988, now suddenly the whole issue of AIDS homosexuality to be kept quiet in the media. had hit home," Signorile said. "The whole "With the criticism I got from my articles, gay scene dramatically changed as AIDS it just shows how much the media puts a solidified, which is drawn through fear and strangle-hold on the issue," Signorile said. homophobia. In closing, Signorile spoke of the closet "Then I found Act-Up, a group of activ and how gay have the right to come out and ists from all professions and all walks oflife, make everyone know their sexual orientation. and I was completely transformed after the "We were forced into the closet for so first meeting." long," Signorile said. "Now it is our right to He said he finally saw how the media get out of it." .