Hiding in Plain Sight: LGBTQ Students in the South

• In Event: New Perspectives on the History of Being a College Student

Abstract

The visible presence of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and Queer (LGBTQ) students on American college and university campuses stands out as one of the most significant changes in campus social life in the last thirty years since the publication of Campus Life, as some recent scholarship has pointed out (e.g., Dilley, 2002; Howard, 2009; Nash and Silverman, 2015).  Although the larger collegiate landscape shows an increasing brilliance for the distinctive identities and concerns of LGBTQ students, an unevenness characterizes this portrait.  This history of inequality rings true, especially in the South, where code and custom backed by violence and open hostility have restrained public displays of gender and sexual difference but “quietly accommodated” same-sex living arrangements and the unspoken identities of “spinster aunts” and “bachelor uncles.”  This paper explores the history of LGBTQ students on southern college and university campuses and relies upon individual interviews and the review of extant literature, especially collections of coming out narratives, to understand how students have navigated this difficult terrain, built relationships, and established networks within conservative social institutions such as churches, fraternities, sororities, and athletic teams.  In addition, this history considers the work of student personnel professionals such as counselors and deans of students who empowered students to participate fully in campus life while making use of campus and community resources to “circulate,” connect with other LGBTQ students, and create safe spaces for personal expression, identity development, and academic study.    

Authors

• Kerry Brian Melear, The University of Mississippi

• Amy E. Wells Dolan, The University of Mississippi