April is Pride Month at colleges and universities throughout Illinois. Typically I find young people delightful. They are curious about the world and not afraid to ask questions. They are proud and confident to be who they are. They are the leaders of a future which quite frankly I am looking forward to. But there are exceptions… The last speaking engagement I had last month was at a small elegant college in one of the most exclusive North Shore communities. I had been e-mailed by one of the students looking for some transgendered speakers for Pride Month. We settled on a date in the last week of April. I thought that I would give the students a treat and have several fairly prominent speakers join me: Beth Plotner, the only "out" TG attorney in Chicago and perhaps in all of Illinois, and Olivia Connors, the President of the Chicago Gender Society. As the time got nearer, I realized that I had not heard back from my student contact about a few minor details, such as time and location. I e-mailed my contact, but received back only the most confusing directions. |
It was all so vague. But hey, what are you going to do about kids these days? So on the day of our talk, Beth, Olivia and I drove to this beautiful suburban campus to try to find our hostess. We went to the student union building where we had finally arranged to meet, but there was no one there. We went to the classroom building where we were scheduled to speak, but the classrooms were empty. We found a posted flyer about Pride Month, and saw that nothing had been scheduled for that day and our names were nowhere to be found. Finally we tracked down the faculty advisor of the queer student group. She was totally surprised by our visit, and knew nothing about the invitation. It was all so bizarre but we just shrugged it off. It wasn't until the next day that Beth started talking about the possibility that this was a practical joke. As we discussed it, the seemingly absurd suggestion began to appear very likely. |
Why meet in a public place? Why no notice on the Pride Month calendar? Why wait until the last minute to confirm? Why did she leave me no phone number? Why was there no one in the classroom? Why did the faculty advisor know nothing? Suddenly it all became very clear. It was a joke! On a dare, she invited some transgender people to this posh campus. Of course, these people would be the most absurd creatures, and would be a laughing stock among these rich spoiled children, Her friends would lurk in the shadows as the freaks stumbled around in their towering high heels, fright wigs, and micro minis. What a laugh! Those of you who know me, know that I am really a fairly ordinary-looking woman, though a bit on the tall side. Beth and Olivia are both very attractive women, certainly not the kind who would generate stares. We just blend into the crowd. I am sure that our contact was very disappointed if she saw us. Was it a joke? Or is it paranoia? Who knows? April is Pride Month on Campus. I know one student who must have been very proud of herself that day. |
For
example, she suggested that we meet outside, at some large gate
between two dormitories. (What if it's raining? I suggested an
indoor location.) And she wanted to meet early so she could get
to her 7 o'clock class (which is when I thought our presentation
was).