The University of Sheffield’s LGBT-only housing will give queer students a space to be themselves, not create a ghetto as feared
For teenagers, leaving the family home and moving to college for the first time can be one of the most anxiety-producing events of their young lives. They will be in a new environment not knowing a soul, and will have to figure out, many for the first time, how to feed themselves and do their own laundry. (Just throw it all in the washer on cold, kids, and it will turn out fine.) But there is a particular anxiety for LGBT youth headed off to college, many of whom might still be in the closet. There is the fear of ridicule and alienation from their peers, and of violence against them. To combat this, the University of Sheffield recently announced that in the next academic year it would provide accommodation for LGBT students that would serve as a “safe space for students to be themselves”. It has received 30 applications for the 12 rooms and vows to offer more designated spaces in the future.
This led to an article in the Times saying the university had been “warned about ghettoising LGBT students”. It seems to forget that gay people for decades have chosen to live in “gaybourhoods” in large cities, not simply to be able to live as their authentic selves, but also to ensure their safety. For many LGBT people, a ghetto is exactly what they are looking for. There are some that even want the queer community to have an independent nation.
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