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Same goal, different blogger =)

June 4th, 2012 by ar124803

Hello everyone,

Before going into an introduction of myself and my thoughts, I would first like to thank my dear friend Jordan for doing such a wonderful job with our blog site. He worked so diligently with others to get our eSafeZone site up and running and then he continued to write such wonderful posts. He was always so insightful and was not afraid to share his inner feelings with us, and I hope I can be as great a blogger as he was. So Jordan, thank you for all you have done and for that amazing closing blog. Myself and all the other members of the D2E committee are so proud of you and wish you all the best in the future.

Now for my introduction!! Helloooo everyone, as Jordan mentioned before, my name is Anjaynee Rajkumar, but everyone pretty much calls me Angie. I am a senior at Baruch majoring in Finance and minoring in Communications Studies. I got involved with the Dare to Engage committee due to Jordan, who I’ve worked with in T.E.A.M. Baruch for the past 2 years and who I’ve become good friends with. I am so thankful that Jordan thought I would be a good fit for the committee and that the other members of the committee have accepted me with open arms!

I first became familiar with the D2E committee after the panel in 2010 which was held after the Tyler Clementi suicide. It was the first event I recall attending that addressed issues related to the LGBTQIA community and after that I attended the discussion panel which addressed religion and homosexuality. Since my junior high school years I have had friends who were homosexual or bi-sexual and I have always accepted and supported their life styles. To me, their sexuality did not make them any different from anyone else. They were still human, still great people and friends, and the truth is, their relationships were no different than heterosexual relationships. So what was the big deal? Why couldn’t people accept them for them? I always new a lot of people, especially from older generations, did not support the LGBTQIA community, however, after attending these panels, I began to notice just how intolerant and ignorant some people could be! I recall getting into a heated debate with one religious figure who said his job was to “fix” people in the LGBTQIA community. Fix???? What was wrong with them? They didn’t seem broken to me!

As time continues to pass, I’ve began to realize just how many people view homosexuality or bi-sexuality as a “choice.” My difficulty in understanding this view is, any homosexual or bi-sexual person I have met never said they “chose” to be that way, instead they say, that’s just they way they are! What’s even more baffling to me is that some people know they are not heterosexual from a young age. The first homosexual young man I met said he knew from three years old; therefore, I’m not sure how at age three someone “chooses” to be homosexual. Reflecting on my own sexuality, I don’t think I “chose” to be heterosexual, it’s just who I am. It’s just how my body and mind is. I don’t tell my body to choose men over women, it just does! Therefore, how can a man preferring a man be any different than a man preferring a woman? My apologies if this is getting confusing, but it’s exactly how I feel. I am so confused as to why so many people, ranging from all backgrounds and all levels of education, believe people just “choose” to be homosexual or that doing a certain thing can lead someone to become homosexual. Does stopping a young boy from watching porn cause him to become homosexual? Highly unlikely!

Therefore, it is with this confusion and determination to bring understanding of the LGBTQIA community to the heterosexual community, that I gladly accept my new title of the D2E blogger and a member of the D2E! As we enter into a new year of the committee, I hope we continue to make Baruch a SafeZone and a much more understanding place! And as many of you may realize, I have a very different writing style from Jordan, but no matter what the style, we are working towards a common goal and I hope as the blog continues, more of you guys get involved and start commenting. I loooove discussions and would really appreciate reading your thoughts/feelings/reflections on what I discuss. I would even love it if you all would give suggestions on things you want to read about or events you believe would benefit the goal of the D2E committee.

Let’s give it up for a new year filled with greater growth, understanding, and a stronger community because even if you are a member of the LGBTQIA community or not, we are all part of the Baruch community!!!!!

Posted in DareToEngage (D2E) | | 1 Comments

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  1. Fghanie said,

    on June 4th, 2012 at 9:39 pm

    Hey Angie, I think you made some really great points. I’ve also noticed that it is usually members of the older generations that seem to have difficulty accepting homosexual and/or bi-sexual individuals for who they are. We share the same belief and understanding that homosexuals and bi-sexuals did not make a choice- they are just being themselves, which is something I highly value and truly admire! Keep up the great work on the blog!

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