LGBT Life at BC, and social life in general

Colleges and Universities A-Z Boston College
1

<p>After matriculating to Boston College I’ve become increasingly more aware of the stereotypes of conservatism and “bro”-y-ness that seem to stick to the school. I know this is not at all indicative of an entire undergrad student body of 9,000 (I did make a couple visits to the campus and got to meet several freshmen), but I still have reservations about being a gay student in this Jesuit institution. Rather than be told that the student body is generally accepting and liberal (which I’m sure it is), I’d like to know if any current students or alumni could talk about their interaction with LGBT students and/or the events offered by the LGBT clubs.</p>

<p>On a separate note: Are freshmen [guys] really that disadvantaged with campus parties because of strict RAs the BCPD? Yeah, Boston’s close…but a $25-cab-ride/50-minute-T-ride kind of close. Chances of befriending an upperclassman and finding more parties?</p>

2

<p>GLC (GLBTQ Leadership Council) is under the umbrella organization of UGBC (Undergraduate Government of Boston College). GLC is well known and offers a number of events throughout the year. The biggest is the GLC Gala, which is usually themed. Allies of Boston College is separate and puts on other events. Most recently they were publicizing Day of Silence and did a photograph campaign in which they had students put tape over their mouths. The photos were blown up in black and white and were displayed in the library. Typically at BC you see people wearing “Support Love” t-shirts which display a man and a woman, two men, and two women together. These are the t-shirts that GLC sells. Throughout the year, as I said, there are a number of events, like movie screenings, discussions, etc. The GLC has accomplished a lot in recent years in terms of working with the administration. Keep in mind that there is still work to be done, because they are still trying to get the administration to provide a GLBTQ Resource Center (services of this nature are currently provided through the Women’s Resource Center). Also, the last thing I saw is that they are starting a discussion group for gay men, but I forget what organization that’s under.</p>

3

<p>The Mods is the hotspot for parties. You don’t really need to know anyone to get into a lot of them. You just need to have the beloved “ratio,” which, yes, makes it significantly more difficult for guys to get into parties frosh year. After first year, though, prospects are much better.</p>

<p>If you want to know the truth, much of the activity for BC students happens in and around BC, not Boston. I, personally, think it to be a good thing. People go into Boston for movies, concerts, professional sports, etc., but it’s not a regular activity here. </p>

<p>As far as the MBTA is concerned, you can get from your dorm room to the center of Boston Common or Harvard Square in about 40 min. It really isn’t all that bad.</p>

4

<p>Thanks, guys, I appreciate your informative replies. Do you (or anyone else) have anything to say about freshmen dorm strictness? And I’m going to go on a tangent here and ask how Medeiros (honors housing) factors into networking at BC. I already know about the close-knit quality of the dorm.</p>

5

<p>^Also interested in the dorm strictness thing. My visit took us through the all girls dorms for whatever reason, and there were Natty cans everywhere. But I heard it just depends on if you have a chill RA or whatever.</p>

6

<p>Hi, all. One year later, I’m bumping this thread. </p>

<p>Why? As it turns out, I will be transferring from Boston College. The reasons are distinct yet varied, and like for every transfer student, very personal. For one, several schools offer more opportunities, resources, and breadth in the subjects I am currently interested in, not to mention more money (and for undergrad, you should follow the money if you have the choice), therefore providing external draws to my decision. </p>

<p>There were, however, reasons from within the school that compelled me to leave the Heights, and I would like to explain them not to lambast BC, but to really give prospective students a fuller picture of the social life on campus. Please read: fuller. In no way is this a complete view of a campus that has 9,000 undergraduates. But I believe that, even after just one year, I have valuable insight that, let’s face it, no rising freshman has any of. The way I see it, any additional viewpoints are helpful for those who have no idea what to expect. As I go through the process of transitioning from one school to another, I wish I had seen posts that told it as it is rather than those that sugar-coated things for the sake of respect or school loyalty. </p>

<p>So let me first outline my perspective. I come from a public school in a major metropolitan area with a total enrollment of 2200. Here’s the demographic breakdown, with a state’s averages and BC’s following in that order: </p>

<p>White–43.1% v 51.4% v 65%
Black–8.3% v 18.3% v 6%
Hispanic–11.9% v 23% v 7%
Asian–34.1% v 4.1% v 9%</p>

<p>From a purely objective POV, stepping foot on campus might have been a shock for me. For my school, which is heavily skewed between first-gen-ers from South, West, and SW Asia, diversity was more bipolar than tri-polar as characteristic of most other schools in my city–ethnically it is incredibly diverse–there are about 50 countries and dozens of languages represented by the student body; it’s truly a unique place, so that definitely gives me a very different POV than most other suburban public school students that are the regular feeders into college populations. Still, BC, no matter how you splice it, is remarkably white. There’s no getting around that. </p>

<p>So the following might be contested, probably fiercely so. Just by prefacing this by saying it might be controversial seems to be asking for trouble. But again, I want prospects to know the details of their investment, because that is what college is. </p>

<p>Here it goes…</p>

7

<p>Of course, it’s 2012. Here, people have Asian friends, or black friends, or Latino friends, if you want to look at it that rigidly. But in keeping with that rigid view, here are definitely blocs of groups that are more black, or more Asian, than others. In many ways, that’s how every college campus is, but from experience I found this to be much more prevalent at BC. You find comfort in those with similar backgrounds, be it cultural (like, niche-wise), racial, etc. On campuses with more racial diversity, students can branch out because they have both a good number of friends from their racial background and those not from that said background.</p>

<p>In Chestnut Hill, it can be more difficult to find many people with a similar racial/ethnic tie, so–this is PURELY speculative–people stick with them. They, as a result, don’t branch out and because of that we have groups that can be centered on racial/ethnic similarities. This is not the best situation for a liberal arts college because at college one should expand not only his mind but his network. A bubble within a bubble doesn’t help, doesn’t provide social mobility, something I think is one of the great hallmarks of American universities. </p>

<p>Anyway, I’m not saying students are racist (but there was a racial slur shouted at a Latina student on campus, although it cannot be proven to have come from a BC student…nevertheless the incident went by without an inkling of protest by the student body), but I am saying that if you come from a city school, or a public hs that’s even marginally diverse, BC’s racial make-up alone will be a “learning curve” of sorts. When I had fears about its largely white pop, I was told it can be overlooked, that racial diversity is only a front to the remarkable variances in interests, ideas, and philosophies each individual holds (we will get to this part of diversity soon). And that is indeed true; a white suburban male can have just as interesting a story as a black female from Chicago’s South Side. Absolutely no doubt about that. But when you have such little diversity in the way of race like at BC, you do miss out on that South Sider’s story. You get more of the New England boy’s story. And that’s a shame.</p>

<p>And as a side note, the AHANA Leadership Council (ALC) is big organization on campus, but IMO, a divisive one. It offers grants to AHANA students that aren’t offered to non-AHANA students, and its organization obviously draws more AHANAs than whites, and as a result further insulates them from the entire student body. I’m not gonna say the “s” word, but BC’s not the most integrated of places (simply because there aren’t that many to integrate in the first place…NOT because students don’t want to).</p>

8

<p>Wow, I went on a LOT longer than I intended to. So on to the next one (gotta love Jay Z, eh?). So racial diversity isn’t everything. Nope. But what do BC students have to offer in the way of ideas and philosophies and beliefs? A lot. Haha, didn’t expect that after my previous “tirade,” right? Well, yes, my first year was great because I really did get to connect with many people of many mindsets. Even though most come from upper middle class New England/Mid-Atlantic households with a private–often single-sex–Catholic school education, I got to encounter theater, psych, classics, bio, business, and english majors (and a whole lotta premed, but those drop like flies soon enough) that were everything from socialist to Bush-supporting conservative. Yes, BC is more conservative than most LACs, and you will get a lot of those “socially-liberal-fiscally-conservative” people (they’ll figure out eventually that that’s a fundamentally flawed idea) kids, but it is still more liberal by a majority (how big that majority is, I do not know–I <em>think</em> I remember seeing that the College Democrats club has more members on its email listserv, while the College Republicans have more active members…but hey, that sounds like something coming from Election Night pollsters). And back to that rainbow of majors my friends made up, it’s indicative of how BC stresses the humanities, one of the biggest reasons I originally chose it. True, the number of pre-professional majors is growing, but as long as BC holds onto its Jesuit-minded core curriculum, it won’t lose its way. That’s not guaranteed though, and I hope the school continues to advertise its liberal arts values and in particular strengthen its humanities base (Stokes Hall was a step in the right direction). I admire the business and nursing students, but I do hope BC will continue to primarily emphasize its liberal arts college to make it competitive not on a national ranking list, but as a hallmark of excellence in the tradition of Western liberal arts education. </p>

<p>Okay, goodness, I didn’t even leave myself much room for the last part, and a critical part of my personal reason for leaving. But if you’ve made it this far, this last part will only concern a small, yet important niche of prospectives–those who are gay, lesbian, transgender, bi, or questioning (others can skip down to my concluding remarks following this section). BC, simply put, isn’t the best place to be gay. It’s not a bad place to be gay. It’s a fine place to be gay, really, but that’s about it. It’s fine. I was a peer counselor for those those with GLBTQ questions and concerns and never once had anyone come into office hours. Maybe this meant there were no problems, but really I think it’s because no one heard of us. Or didn’t want to come. Or that no one had any questions because no one was gay. That last part may sound dumb, but it’s sorta true. I think I can count the number of gay guys I met and know of on my ten toes and fingers. Granted I was only a freshman and admittedly didn’t go to all the events and such. But I >knew< there were more gay guys. Just go on Grindr and you’ll see a bunch of headless torsos or blacked out profiles saying “discreet college kid” or “bi guy, just curious” or “masc for masc.” The gay guys are there, but they haven’t come out of Boston’s Closet quite yet. We are at Catholic school, after all. </p>

<p>That being said my roomies were incredibly cool with my sexual orientation, as were my friends. I did personally encounter those uncomfortable with homosexuality, but you’ll find that anywhere in the real world. Not unique to BC. Still, for an LAC, it’s surprisingly more mum about gays. In much the same way race doesn’t come up in the radar of a typical BC student, gays don’t either. There just aren’t enough of them to make them 1) something to talk about 2) know enough about. Despite the deficiencies in student leadership from this year’s GLC and lack of cohesiveness of the gay community on campus, I think BC is on the upswing. I think. </p>

<p>First semester <em>The Observer</em>, BC’s NY Post, wrote an editorial lambasting BC ResLife’s posting of Support Love posters in Edmonds Hall. In response, BC’s NY Times, <em>The Heights</em>, posted an editorial that obliquely criticized the Observor_ for its ignorant remarks (for which <em>The Observor</em> gave a half-assed apology like the half-assed paper it is…whoops, did I just say that? Eh, it’s getting late…). It also included a number of compelling op-eds by allies and LGBT students, with one in particular that was incredibly moving, as this student discussed how he reconciled his Catholic beliefs and sexual orientation. And there was discussion in the dining halls, both among my GLC peers and regular acquaintances and friends. GLC also held a retreat that my friends went on, and I think this past one was its first ever (don’t take my word on that, though). My friends who went spoke very highly of it, and are the same one who intend on taking leadership positions next year in GLC. Hopefully they will bring the GLC back to prominence and raise awareness of the GLBTQ community on campus. For these reasons I think the “it-gets-better” mantra really applies for incoming students who identify as GLBTQ. For your reading convenience I posted all the links to mentioned editorials/op-eds below. I urge you to read the last one at the very least. </p>

<p><em>The Observer’s</em> Editorial: [ResLife</a> Poster Does Not Support “Love” | The Observer at Boston College](<a href=“http://www.thebcobserver.com/2011/12/06/reslife-poster-does-not-support-love/]ResLife”>http://www.thebcobserver.com/2011/12/06/reslife-poster-does-not-support-love/)
<em>The Heights’s</em> Response: [In</a> support of ‘Support Love’ - Editorials - The Heights - Boston College](<a href=“http://www.bcheights.com/opinions/editorials/in-support-of-support-love-1.2729865#.T7SaOnlYtXo]In”>http://www.bcheights.com/opinions/editorials/in-support-of-support-love-1.2729865#.T7SaOnlYtXo)
<em>The Observer’s</em> "Apology: [“The</a> Observer” Responds | The Observer at Boston College](<a href=“http://www.thebcobserver.com/2011/12/07/the-observer-responds/]"The”>http://www.thebcobserver.com/2011/12/07/the-observer-responds/)
The incredible op-ed included in <em>The Heights</em>. If anything, read this. It’s so poignant to not only GLBTQ students but to all who at one point in their lives had to reconcile one’s identity with friends, family, and/or religion/society: [Gay</a> and Catholic, In Response to ?ResLife Poster Does Not Support Love - Letters to the Editor - The Heights - Boston College](<a href=“http://www.bcheights.com/2.5479/gay-and-catholic-in-response-to-reslife-poster-does-not-support-love-1.2732268#.T7SaNnlYtXo]Gay”>http://www.bcheights.com/2.5479/gay-and-catholic-in-response-to-reslife-poster-does-not-support-love-1.2732268#.T7SaNnlYtXo)</p>

9

<p>And so I end the year with mixed feelings for BC. I was mostly satisfied with the value of my education and incredibly blessed with the friendships I made through this year. But considering the student body as a whole, I was underwhelmed. Most of my grievances come from a lack of visible diversity, but it also comes from a sense that they had more to offer, but simply didn’t. You can lead a horse to water but you can’t make it drink. The administration has made leaps and bounds in its outreach to AHANA students. But AHANA students don’t matriculate. Neither do gay students. And when those students do, there isn’t much impetus in the general population to really integrate with everyone else. But of course it can’t be easy for the gen. pop. because–this is when we get into a Catch-22 situation–there are few students of diversity to begin with. So you have an end goal that can only be achieved by a stronger minority student body–and I don’t only mean AHANA. Low-income, gay, non-New England/West Coast (mostly to do with socioeconomics), international students…they all need to be in the mix–and substantially so–to make BC go from a great school to an incredible school. This will be one of BC’s greatest challenges in the coming years. To keep its edge as a liberal arts institution and remain relevant among top American universities, its student body must reflect our country’s cosmopolitanism. The student body is remarkably active and I have the utmost confidence that every organization has the capacity to enable progress in the university. For that I feel like a hypocrite, leaving the problems behind rather than sticking around for the betterment of the community. But like any cash-strapped college student, I think for myself. I go to the institution that offers the most money, the most inroads in various social circles, the most avenues to opportunity. BC must understand that I think like every prospective college student (or in this case, student with the option to transfer), and YOU, that prospective college student who’s choosing with his wads of $60,000 X 4, must know that, and capitalize on that. </p>

<p>***So here are the disclaimers:
This was a much longer post than expected. My original intent was to inform prospective students to consider all aspects of BC’s social life, as they should at any college they consider. By doing that they must hear about everything, not just from the brochures and rosy campus tours. They need all sides, and my side is just ONE of them. </p>

<p>This all remained my goal through the end. I fully admit to not knowing the most about BC. But I still have a year under my belt, and we’re talking about advice to freshman, who have none. So upperclassmen, please try to bring perspective to what the intent of this post is. It is neither an endorsement nor a full-blast criticism of BC. I am offering insight into aspects of social life that I think only a gay, racial-minority first-year can have. </p>

<p>You, the current BC undergrad, however, may have other insights. No, you <em>must</em> have other ones. So I encourage you to offer them on this thread so as to give freshman the best idea of what they are potentially investing in. You can definitely gun for BC, but try to be as honest as possible. </p>

<p>Finally, I love BC. I really do. I wish I didn’t have to leave after one year, and I will definitely miss many aspects of it. As I enumerated above, however, that is not the best option for me. I’ll miss my friends most of all–it’s a miracle a good majority of them live either near my home town or the metro area of my next school. I’ll be seeing them again, on BC’s campus actually. </p>

<p>Best of luck, to all prospects. To those who matriculated, as I’m sure most did, since it is May 8, congratulations. I’m sure you will find ways to blow this post out of the water and love BC. To those who might find that more difficult to do, it really does get better, no matter where you go. Again, congrats and best wishes.</p>

10

<p>I’m very interested in this. I was wait listed at BC, but if by some miracle I’m accepted, I still worry about the lack of diversity that I keep hearing about. Being a minority yourself (LGBT) did you feel that your differences weren’t fully embraced? I am a minority as well (albeit a racial, underrepresented minority) and I seriously have no qualms about going to a predominantly white school; I’d feel totally comfortable with it. My only fear is that they might not feel comfortable with it. I know our situations might be a little different, but do you think it would be possible for a liberal, not-so-religious black kid to fit in at Boston College? If accepted, I’d be going for the academics, but I don’t want to be totally friendless either. Would you say there is a lot of racial tension? I really don’t need to deal with people whispering “affirmative action” under their breath whenever I walk by.</p>

11

<p>Sorry. I wrote my response before I saw your other posts.</p>

12

<p>That works out well because I wrote a long-winded response until it got deleted b/c I wasn’t signed in haha. If you still have those questions after reading my book (I have no life, I know), I’d be happy to discuss with you these issues via PM.</p>

<p>**Also, I think I need to reiterate after miami4rmjax’s post that there are no racial tensions on BC. No, no, no. There are absolutely no implicit and certainly no explicit feelings of resentment based on race. My grievances have more to do with the homogeneity of the Heights. For example, hipsters/alt kids are lost in the sea of Vineyard Vines and w/e else “defines” NE. The novelty was cute at first, but got tiring after a while.</p>

13

<p>@GeilerMann Thank you so much! I really appreciate your thoughtful posts. They were very helpful.</p>