Dear Editors,
My name is Philip Degaltini Jr. I am a fifth year senior here at C.W. Post and there is something about the pioneer that I have noticed over my five years here that I wanted to address. The Pioneer is supposed to be the voice of the students, and I think that you are both doing a very thorough job this year of making this paper an outlet for students to share their opinions. Unfortunately, I don’t see myself and my community represented much within the paper. The relationship column, for example, is very heavily set on gender roles and very seldom, if ever, does it talk about homosexual relationships. I believe there should be a balance. Yes, a relationship article about heterosexual relationships will reach a wide audience, but those of us in the C.W. Post community who do not identify as heterosexual are left out, in a sense. The Pioneer is not reaching out to the people of different sexual orientations or gender identities as much as it could be. I’m no trying to say that anyone is being excluded purposefully, but people are being excluded none the less. When I talk to other students about the tendency of this campus to exclude those who identify as Third Gender, Transgender, Genderqueer, etc, they tell me that they were unaware that there are students who identify as such. Gender identity is not something everyone wheres on their sleeve. You may know a Genderqueer student or a Transgender student and not even know it. You may be sitting next to someone in your Poli Sci class who identifies as Third Gender. You might see an extremely masculine guy or a very feminine girl and not know that they are homosexual. I speak for the Queer Community here at post when I say, I think that with your help we can make Post a much more Gender-neutral environment as well as a place for people of all sexuality to feel welcome. The world is not right or left or black and white, and just because you don’t see someone it doesn’t mean they’re no there.
Always.
Philip F. Degaltini Jr.
BFA Acting ’12
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