National Coming Out Day came to Penn a bit early this year, but was complete with appearances by an Olympic swimmer and Wharton professors in drag.
Because the official date of NCOD -- Oct. 11 -- falls during fall break, the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community sponsored a National Coming Out Week, which culminated yesterday with a lecture by Olympic swimming gold medalist Mark Tewksbury.
The LGBT Center's task force, Penn Athletes and Allies Tackling Homophobia and Heterosexism, invited Tewksbury to speak because he is an openly gay male athlete.
However, he had not always been open. "I never wanted people in the world of the sport to find out I was gay," Tewksbury said.
But hiding his sexual preference took its toll on Tewksbury, causing him to have "shaky confidence," especially at swim meets.
"I started to really question myself, and wonder if I really deserved to be there," he said.
Eventually, following his retirement from the sport, Tewksbury realized he could no longer hide his sexual preference.
"I decided that I couldn't live this double life anymore," he said, adding that he told his parents and, eventually, his homeland, Canada.
Though some were less supportive than others, Tewksbury does not have any regrets about his decision to come out.
"All the awful things people said would happen if I came out -- they were totally untrue," he said. "In the end... people said I had integrity and honesty" for coming out.
PATH Co-Chairwoman and College sophomore Karrie Moore said that it is important to educate both gay and straight athletes.
"It's so hard to come out within the athletic world," she said. "There's just such a stigma against gay athletes. It's important to recognize this major space where homophobia is still almost embraced."
Engineering junior Neal Wojdowski, a Penn track team member, said that he enjoyed hearing Tewksbury's story -- since the issue of having a gay teammate has arisen in the past.
"He had a lot of good things to say," Wojdowski said. "I feel like people who didn't come see this really missed out."
College junior Natalie Fabe said that she liked the unpredictability and frankness of Tewksbury's speech.
"He gave me much more insight into the entire path of what he had to go through," she said. "He included so many parts of his life."
Meanwhile, across campus, Out4Biz, Wharton's gay and lesbian professional and social club, celebrated NCOD on a less serious note, transforming Vance Hall into a posh nightclub -- complete with zebra print walls and dazzling dance performances.
The evening at the "Rainbow Pub" began with drinks, but by 8 p.m., things took a more rowdy turn -- first, the Wharton Dance Studio took the stage, followed by a Cher impersonation by a drag queen named "Ginger Snap."
The show ended with a drag show put on by several Wharton Graduate professors, who danced to the tune of Vogue.
"It's amazing," Wharton graduate student Kareem Dright said of the performance. "My stats professor is up there gyrating and doing whatever."
"I think it's cool that he's willing to get involved with what we do," he added.
Wharton graduate student Meg Gorman added that she was also impressed by her professors' interest in their students.
"It's hilarious. That's what Wharton is," she said. "Our professors aren't just sitting back and saying, 'We support diversity.' They're actually saying, 'We're standing up and doing something about it.'"
Out4Biz member and Wharton graduate student John Randolph pointed out the more serious undertones to the evening.
"It's important because it provides an opportunity for the whole community to show solidarity and support for diversity."
