Y Hoang (The Beacon)
By Y Hoang, Guest Commentary
A lot has happened in response to Fr. Beauchamp's Fireside chat last Monday. The student body has been divided into many groups: those who support what he said, those who oppose it and plenty of those who are in between irritated and wondering, "What's with all the fuss?" Regardless of what groups of students you identify with, I would like to bring to your attention a few things that should not go unnoticed.
"Personally I felt like it was a waste of time asking about the homosexuality," said senior Caleb Patterson. This comment is extremely unsettling to me. Since when can a group of people be objectified by their sexual orientation? Not only that, a condescending tone could be heard by the choice of word - "the homosexuality" - making it sound more like an illness or disease, while the undisputed truth is that homosexuality is only a characteristic of a person. It is a small, yet essential part of one's personal traits. Reading this comment made me realize that the attitude towards how people address this subject matter - equal treatment for members of the LGBTQ community - needs to change.
Perhaps it is because I did not start speaking English until I was fifteen that I am so conscious of the word choices. Perhaps it is because I am a pianist that I always focus on the delivery tonal of a statement (or musical line). Or perhaps it is simply because I am a human who is compassionate and thoughtful toward other people's feelings and experiences.
As a female who immigrated to America from a low-working class family of an oppressive government, I cannot help but be in tune with people's emotions and sensitive toward those whose voices have been suppressed and who have been mistreated. Is it too difficult to put one's self into other people's shoes and be sympathetic with the oppressed when one comes from a more privileged background? It saddens me greatly when people engage in the discussions about the Nondiscrimination Policy in a mindless, even offensive, manner. Here we are talking about our friends, our classmates, our neighbors, our professors and our staff on campus.
After an extensive process of self-reflecting, years of soul-searching, along with the help and guidance of religious and spiritual directors, I have come to accept my Catholic faith and embrace my whole identity. Thus, it was hurtful when a friend suggested I do more research before engaging in an emotion-driven debate, and to reconsider my faith. As a matter of fact, I believe that personal identity is an active attempt rather than a passive and given claim. Consequently, it is a conscious and mindful decision of mine to continue living in peace and harmony between my faith and sexuality. I would encourage you to do the same. Have mindful reflections on your identity and opinions before picking sides of any argument, and contemplate where your beliefs originated from. Are they influenced by upbringings, conventional traditions, popular societal norms, or are they derived from conscious and active self-reflection processes? Are these beliefs authentically yours?
My fellow UP students, I urge you to take a moment and think about the impact of your statements when you engage in future discussions and debates, and please do so in a respectful way. These are social discussions and should not be personal attacks. When something may not change, it does not mean it does not need to be changed. My friend Edith Guerrero noted that "Too many people too often use the privilege of relying on the 'intent' of what they said instead of what they actually said; it's problematic." Indeed it is. Inarguably, there is a world of difference between intent versus impact.
Y Hoang is a senior biochemistry major. She can be reached at hoang13@up.edu.
