Cal Alumni Pride

LGBT Presentation to Regents

Alex February 3rd, 2010

Recently Richie Nguyen, our LGBT Scholarship winner, gave some remarks about life as an LGBT student in the University of California system at the January UC Regents meeting. Below is the power point presentation and Richie’s remarks.

We are proud of Richie for not only representing Cal at the meeting but also the LGBT community. Yet another way our scholarship winners keep making a difference in our community.

LGBT Students at the University of California

Richie Nguyen’s Remarks to Regents Special Committee on Student Life and Alumni Affairs

2009 Scholarship Recipient Richie Nguyen

Thanks for that introduction, Vice President Sakaki.

I decided to attend UC Berkeley because it is known for being a progressive, diverse, and inclusive campus. Despite its reputation, I remember feeling out of place as a new student. Being gay, I had difficulty making friends. I remember having three straight roommates, and being scared that they wouldn’t accept me. I often felt isolated and alone.

I joined a few student organizations on campus, and although I made a few friends, I still didn’t feel like part of the campus community. I remember attending a club event and hearing a lot of homophobic comments from one of the other members. Although I’ve grown up my whole life hearing these types of comments, I was still shocked and hurt. I was beginning to think this was the norm for Berkeley.

I didn’t realize how important LGBT spaces on campus were until I heard about Sigma Epsilon Omega, the gay fraternity that was starting my first year. I attended a few of their events, and for the first time was around people who I could identify with and around whom I could be myself – I felt safe. As I look back, I realize how important Sigma Epsilon Omega was to my development. It offered me not only a positive social outlet and life long friends, but also the tools and confidence to be a campus leader outside of my fraternity.

Overall, I have had an extremely enriching experience my last three and a half years at Berkeley. I have grown personally and professionally, have had the opportunity to be a student leader in many spaces on campus, and have developed a commitment to public service, not only within my own community but other communities as well.

Many campus resources have helped me to become successful personally and academically. With the help of Billy Curtis, the Director of the Gender and Equity Resource Center and Grahaeme Hesp, the Director of Fraternity and Sorority Life, we were able to establish the foundations of our fraternity, and eventually become a part of our campus’ Inter Fraternity Council.

Both Billy and Grahaeme are openly LGBT identified, which encourages me to seek their advice whenever I have an issue. LGBT internships through the Gender and Equity Resource Center have helped officers of the Queer Alliance and Resource Center organize effectively and develop the tools to create a thriving spaces for LGBT students.

There was also a time during my college experience where I had difficulty coping with the stress from my personal and academic life. I contacted our campus health center and was referred to an LGBT identified counselor. This made it a lot easier being open and honest about my experiences, and really helped my mental well being during this difficult time.

Although I have had an extremely enriching experienced my last few years here at UC Berkeley, my case is rare. I am humbled by the fact that there are still many students that suffer from issues that are specific to being LGBT. The reality is that many LGBT students still do not feel physically safe on or around campus. Many still deal with homophobia and heterosexism on a daily basis. Many of my peers suffer from a loss of financial support from their families as a result of coming out, and fear that being openly LGBT will affect their chances of being successful in social, academic, and professional circles. For these and many more reasons, I feel that it is increasingly important to have identity affirming spaces and resources specific to the needs of LGBT students.

Through my experiences at Cal, I’ve witnessed how important LGBT resources have been to my own development and, that of my peers. Especially in the wake of the passage of Proposition 8 and recent instances of harassment and assault on LGBT students in Berkeley, it’s more important than ever to maintain these resources, and consider other ways we can support our communities. Perhaps we can think about ways to ensure greater campus safety for LGBT students or find ways to attract more LGBT identified staff and faculty. Or perhaps we can find ways to provide additional gender and sexual identity sensitivity trainings for our staff and faculty.

Thank you for providing me with the opportunity to share my experiences with you today. By having these conversations, we can work towards a more equitable and inclusive University of California. Thank you.