Standing as a community
More than 50 students, faculty members, and administrators gathered Wednesday night to commemorate National Coming Out Day and to memorialize the bisexual, gay, lesbian, transgender, and queer (BGLTQ) students nationwide who committed suicide in recent years following brutal harassment and discrimination. The event, organized by the group Queer Students and Allies (QSA), began at Sever Hall and concluded with a candlelight vigil on the steps of University Hall that both honored the recent progress toward equality for the BGLTQ (bisexual, gay, lesbian, transgender, and queer) community and the suffering many still face as a result of their sexuality. “On this day, the day after National Coming Out Day, we would like to celebrate our sexual and gender diversity, while simultaneously recognizing the discrimination and harassment that many BGLTQ people, and youth in particular, face,” QSA board member Sam Bakkila ’12 said. “We want to thank everyone here. Your efforts to make Harvard...