Editor:
I found a previous letter concerning the LGBT article (Oct. 28, 2002 issue) a bit disconcerting. I agree that Mr. Rowley has a point about the student coming out anonymously, as well as the prospect of heterosexism. And certainly, there is nothing wrong with somebody thinking that homosexuality is wrong (it goes under that whole freedom of thought thing).
However, I must disagree with his protests about homophobia. First, what he himself fails to grasp is that though a great deal of people still see homosexuality as morally repugnant, a great deal of homosexual people do not view heterosexuality as morally repugnant. Therein lies a troubling imbalance of judgment. When one is abhorrent in the eyes of another, then perhaps there is a bit of intolerance that Mr. Rowley claims those people do not have. Secondly, judging a homosexual as morally repugnant because he or she is different from oneself is a simple act of bias. To reject the label of a homophobic for such a person is like saying, “”Don’t call me a racist; I just believe that white people are better than blacks. It’s my belief”” (as Mr. Rowley puts it).
— Krystal Young
UCSD student
‘Basically’ ignores student’s sensitivities
Editor:
This letter is in response to Carrie Sklar’s “”Basically”” column printed on Oct. 28. At first I thought I had made a mistake and was reading The Koala rather than the Guardian. The comment that kids “”look way too much like midgets, which, as we all know, are rather frightening”” crossed the line as acceptable humor. As Sklar should know as an educated college student, small people (or “”midgets”” as she ignorantly refers to them) have enough problems fighting the image of them played out in the movies. Sklar’s article attempted to make relating their appearance to freaks acceptable, and it should not be able go without criticism.
While I enjoyed the rest of Ms. Sklar’s article, particularly the handcuffs story, I felt the need to write to the Guardian in hopes that, unlike The Koala, the Guardian would attempt to work on its social conscience and think about how such comments can be hurtful to students on this campus who may not think it is funny that the Guardian is fueling the fire of the things they unfortunately have to endure as part of their daily reality.
— Cristina Villegas
UCSD student
