All Work And No Gay?

Durham’s nightlife is a constant subject of criticism for the student body and, indeed, compared to most other universities in the country, it is incredibly limited. However, as much as we complain, there is always somewhere to stage an exceedingly good night. For gay students, on the other hand, there is not a single gay bar or club in Durham.
Of course, there is no reason why members of the LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender) community here cannot have just as much fun as their straight counterparts in the pubs and clubs of Durham. But surely they yearn for an environment in which a certain sexual orientation is not assumed and they can express their sexuality without being conscious of potentially provoking prejudice or a homophobic backlash?
“When I first arrived in Durham, I was surprised that in a student body with some of the country’s brightest and most free-thinking young people, no one had done anything about the huge lack of a gay scene”, says Adam Leake, President of the LGBTa (Durham University Students’ Union’s LGBT association). “That’s the main reason I took on the responsibility of being President this year.”
It is an issue which affects a significant proportion of LGBT students here. “The fact that the nearest scene is in Newcastle is really annoying. It is such an effort to get to”, says one second year who feels that the non-existence of a gay scene in Durham has severely worsened his overall experience of university life, “I would say that if you want a gay scene or you want to be expressive about your sexuality, as a gay person, then Durham isn’t the university for you.”
This is one of the strongest opinions I met, although there is universal agreement that the situation could be considerably improved. Katie Butler, a second year at Van Mildert, says, “It does annoy me sometimes that there isn’t just one gay pub, even if it is a naff one. It was something I looked into when choosing a university, but, obviously, it didn’t affect my final choice. Oldham, where I live, is a pretty rubbish town but there is one crumbling old gay pub which is a run-down mess, full of old, disgusting people drinking shandy and playing pool, but you know it’s there and it feels like home!” The absent gay scene is an issue which the LGBTa work hard to combat with their weekly socials at the DSU. Every Monday, from 8:00pm, members of the LGBTa gather at the Riverside Café, before many head to Studio for their unofficial gay night. These socials are ‘safe-space’, a highly regarded idea, which indicates an assumed level of, sadly still very necessary, confidentiality. A further point, which was emphasised to me, is that there is no supposition of individuals’ sexuality at the socials.
“The LGBTa is so important,” adds Becca Carbery, Campaigns Officer of the association, “because we are the gay scene in Durham.” As someone who identifies herself as ‘trans’, I ask Becca how she would describe outwardly heterosexual Durham students’ attitudes towards those who are openly LGBT. “It’s not that people here are overly hostile to a trans person,” she replies, “But often when I’m in female toilets, because I look quite masculine, people will ask me what I’m doing in there. Or they will whisper among each other and say, “What is that?” or ask me, “What are you?” I get that in the DSU quite often.”
Becca relays these incidences with an apparent apathy that suggests to me she is rather accustomed to this sort of treatment. On a positive note, however, the NUS (National Union of Students) has been promoting the provision of gender-neutral toilets and many unions have brought them in. Becca wants to raise awareness of this idea, and it is something she hopes will be implemented, at some point in the future, in the DSU.
Kieran Aldred, Welfare Officer of the LGBTa, agrees that, “There is still a lack of awareness about gender fluidity and transsexualism. There is still an idea of what people should look like in terms of gender. However, I would say that generally, in terms of homosexuality and bisexuality, there is no active hostility in Durham University from the students. There is no active prejudice.”
My second-year friend, on the other hand, disagrees. “I was quite surprised by how many more close-minded people there are in Durham compared to where I’m from. I find it much easier to be gay at home than here. I wouldn’t hold my boyfriend’s hand anywhere in Durham, especially in a club, out of fear mainly.” It appears that when it comes to acceptance of homosexuality, Durham is neither the pinnacle nor the pits, and, as with any community, the opinions of LGBT students differ widely.
This year, the association is striving to co-ordinate a wider variety of socials. As well as forthcoming trips to Newcastle and Manchester, the annual Shipwrecked party on the Prince Bishop boat and the extravagant Q Ball in the Summer term, amongst a range of other events, the LGBTa has introduced girls’ socials this term. These have arisen predominantly because many female students have sports and other commitments on Monday nights so cannot make the weekly socials.
The newly elected LGBTa Women’s Place President, Kate Taylor, is regularly at the Monday socials and is very much aware of the disproportionate numbers between males and females there. She asserts that females are under-represented within the LGBTa, causing them to have a significantly different experience of the association to the males. Katie Butler adds to this saying, “Out of the people I’ve met in Durham, there are far more men who are openly gay than women.”
However, an improvement in female attendance at LGBTa socials has already been noticed, and hopefully the new girls’ socials, combined with a higher number of females on the executive this year, will have a positive effect. Katie is optimistic, “I’m chuffed with what the executive is doing and the changes they are trying to make. I’ve got high hopes for this year.”
According to Kieran, the LGBTa has been coming through quite a remarkable transformation, “We are really trying to change the face of things in many ways. It was only last year that the Welfare Officer of the LGBTa began sitting on the University Welfare Committee and that has had a huge, huge impact.”
“What we should be aiming towards is that your sexuality becomes just an incidental part of you rather than the defining feature of who you are. However, a balancing act is required between not wanting to be in people’s faces but, at the same time, wanting people to know about us and wanting to shake off the taboo that can surround being LGBT.”
“Sexuality is a very broad issue. Being gay, lesbian, bisexual or trans to one person means a world away from what it means to another. Some people don’t feel the need to go somewhere that is based on sexuality. At the same time, there are a lot of LGBT people who want to socialise with other LGBT people. Especially when you are coming to terms with your sexuality, as many students are, or are going through any transition in life, it’s very useful to talk to people who have gone, or are going through, the same things.”
“In an ideal world Durham would have gay bars, but I think you come here in good faith that there will be a competent LGBTa and that is what we try to provide. I think we get low numbers either because people are scared, they have heard things that are rumour-based, or they have stereotypes which they feel are going to play into it. If we could challenge that fear and challenge those stereotypes, people would be more willing to come and it would make the LGBTa of Durham better for all.”

For more information visit:
www.durhamlgbta.org.uk
www.nus.org.uk/Campaigns/LGBT/Donation-not-discrimination
The Transgender Day of Remembrance, 20th November, memorialises those killed due to anti-transgender prejudice and hatred. Look out for a workshop increasing awareness of transgender issues.
Q Week: 8-13 February 2010