<p>All of us have visited Princeton and become infatuated with the campus, the architecture, the students, the professors, the academic opportunities, the cordiality of the people. Many of us, including me, have applied ED. </p>
<p>Unfortunately, though, for me there's an additional factor that I should have taken into consideration before possibly binding myself to the school for 4 years. I have heard rumblings of the conservative atmosphere at the school. I even saw a few editorials in the Daily Princetonian criticizing the "homosexual lifestyle" and "those who condone it." I know that the administration is supportive of gay student rights, but what really matters are the students and community in creating a friendly atmosphere. Even the Princeton Pride Alliance's website is not very encouraging. In their quotes page, there are more than one reference to homophobia on campus. I hear that there is an extreme independent gay group on campus that has taken controversial measures to get their agenda across. That's totally not me. I am just a typical suburban northern californian. Out here where most people are extremely open-minded, my friends are a very mixed group of people, straight and gay, and sexuality is really a non-issue. I don't want to be naive, though, and imagine that the same climate exists throughout the country. </p>
<p>My fear is not so much attacks on the street or overt belligerence, but rather the general closed-mindedness that exists in many parts of the country, where people maintain a perfectly polite facade to your face, but they'd never be your friend (after all, what would others think?), and you end up clustering in a little group of ostracized gay students. What kind of college experience would that be? Of course there are exceptions wherever you go, but i'm talking about the general picture. Call me apathetic or lazy or whatever you want, but I really don't want to live in a "highly closeted atmosphere". Although I could conceivably do it since I don't fit the stereotype (i'm an unstylish, uneffeminate baseball player), the closet is not somewhere I want to return to, especially for 4 more years. </p>
<p>There's a small part of me that would not be so depressed upon receiving a little envelope in the mail come December, so i could keep my options open later on. Am I overreacting?</p>
<p>email me at <a href="mailto:sarcasticsam87@yahoo.com">sarcasticsam87@yahoo.com</a></p>