how welcoming is mcmaster to gay students?

Hi,

McMaster isn't the best university in terms of the gay community.

But you can try joining the QSCC!

I wouldn't say its unwelcoming though...

I guess it's like anywhere else. Probably more accepting than the general public, but I've also encountered a couple (three or four) incidents that were kind of discouraging (in all four years I've been here). In general I've found that most people have a fairly accepting/tolerant attitude, and very few are outright rude. I see lots of ally pins around, if that means anything

I agree with Kevin, I definitely wouldn't say it's unwelcoming at all.

I definitely agree with Lauren. It's not unwelcoming, but just as any community it's not 100% accepting either.

I've never had any issues on campus in my four years here. It's just like anywhere else really, you'll be bound to have homophobia and heterosexism here and there.

I've seen several gay couples around campus, and not just in the less-dense areas like by Cootes, but also in MUSC and MDCL. I saw a lesbian couple a few weeks ago in Mills and no one looked twice. And coming from that alone I can say that Mac is pretty open-armed, no issues at all.

Originally Posted by drpatel

I've seen several gay couples around campus, and not just in the less-dense areas like by Cootes, but also in MUSC and MDCL. I saw a lesbian couple a few weeks ago in Mills and no one looked twice. And coming from that alone I can say that Mac is pretty open-armed, no issues at all.

lol are the gays generally known to cluster in less dense areas?

Originally Posted by drpatel

I've seen several gay couples around campus, and not just in the less-dense areas like by Cootes, but also in MUSC and MDCL. I saw a lesbian couple a few weeks ago in Mills and no one looked twice. And coming from that alone I can say that Mac is pretty open-armed, no issues at all.

There definitely aren't "no issues at all". I'm not gay, but I wear an ally pin and I used to wear a rainbow pin as well that says "love knows no gender" (it started falling off a lot and I didn't want to lose it, which is why I don't wear it any more. I've had people sit next to me on the bus, see the pins, and immediately move away from me. I've had a group of guys yelling derogatory terms at me trying to get my attention. I've been walking with a friend who fits the stereotypical dyke description, and someone passing by mutters "f*cking f*gs" at us.
There are problems, I'm not gay and I've experienced homophobia. What about someone who is openly gay?

That said, Mac is still probably more welcoming towards the LGBTQ community than society in general, but the same trends occur (ie, less tolerance among very religious people, less tolerance of trans/queer, lesbians=hot but gay men=weak, etc). Overall the positive outweighs the negative and I don't find the atmosphere negative at all, but that doesn't mean there aren't any issues, either.

Originally Posted by Twelve Chars

lol are the gays generally known to cluster in less dense areas?

Well I meant that they might do this to avoid the stares and judgement by non-tolerant people, eg. a gay couple having lunch and making out in musc vs. having lunch privately. Imagine how hard it must be to live your life when you can feel their stares at the back of your neck.

I don't think people should be making out in MUSC, quite frankly. It's not something that everyone else needs to see. It's simply a matter of courtesy. There are going to be people processing what you are doing, regardless and most people don't want to see it. It doesn't matter i you are gay, or straight. The same thing applies. Making out in a public venue is flagrantly offensive and will garner unwanted attention. If you want to do something subtle (holding hands, a hug, or even a cheek peck) that's fine, but don't perform aggressive PDA and expect there to not be a reaction.

Originally Posted by nerual

There definitely aren't "no issues at all". I'm not gay, but I wear an ally pin and I used to wear a rainbow pin as well that says "love knows no gender" (it started falling off a lot and I didn't want to lose it, which is why I don't wear it any more. I've had people sit next to me on the bus, see the pins, and immediately move away from me. I've had a group of guys yelling derogatory terms at me trying to get my attention. I've been walking with a friend who fits the stereotypical dyke description, and someone passing by mutters "f*cking f*gs" at us.
There are problems, I'm not gay and I've experienced homophobia. What about someone who is openly gay?

Sh*t like this happens at Mac... I had no idea! That's ridiculous, and quite frankly it's kind of sad that in 2012, in Canada, this sh*t still happens.

Originally Posted by Philipp31

Sh*t like this happens at Mac... I had no idea! That's ridiculous, and quite frankly it's kind of sad that in 2012, in Canada, this sh*t still happens.

I'm sure I'm not the only one with stories like that. Also, I remember some sort of graffiti-related incident involving the Phoenix a year or two ago.

It shouldn't be that surprising, that stuff like this still exists. Look at what's happening in the States...every time these issues go on the ballot, the vote is against gay marriage. In most of the states, gay couples cannot adopt. People think that we're so far ahead, that we've dealt with all these problems, but our society is not really THAT far ahead of countries where homosexuality is illegal (and in some cases punishable by death). If this stuff was up for voting in Canada, I suspect it would follow very similar trends to in the States.

It is ridiculous and sad...but it's the way things are right now. The more people think that things are fine the way they currently are, the harder it will be for change to happen.

Edit: this is an article for what happened at the phoenix (it's a pdf).

Originally Posted by nerual

It shouldn't be that surprising, that stuff like this still exists. Look at what's happening in the States...every time these issues go on the ballot, the vote is against gay marriage. In most of the states, gay couples cannot adopt. People think that we're so far ahead, that we've dealt with all these problems, but our society is not really THAT far ahead of countries where homosexuality is illegal (and in some cases punishable by death). If this stuff was up for voting in Canada, I suspect it would follow very similar trends to in the States.

It is ridiculous and sad...but it's the way things are right now. The more people think that things are fine the way they currently are, the harder it will be for change to happen.

I don't think that is true, since the further north you go in the States, the more people support or don't care if its legal and culture is based on region as well as country. 7 of the 8 states that it is legal in border Canada (or are very close) so they tend to share similar views as us.

I think if there was a vote, it would be approved but of course there are always those who oppose

Originally Posted by Snowman

I don't think that is true, since the further north you go in the States, the more people support or don't care if its legal and culture is based on region as well as country. 7 of the 8 states that it is legal in border Canada (or are very close) so they tend to share similar views as us.

I think if there was a vote, it would be approved but of course there are always those who oppose

In some of these states (such as Maine) the people are trying to veto it through a vote. I'm pretty sure in all of the states where it is legal, it was done so through government, not through votes. If it had been done through votes in those states, it likely would not have passed.
Also, when I hypothesized about a vote in Canada I meant Canada-wide, not province-by-province. There are many more people than you'd think that would oppose this if given a chance. By now, it's been seven years since gay marriage has been legal in Canada, and most people have realized that it did not cause our society to implode and have moved on with their lives, but that doesn't mean they would still vote to support it. There are a lot of socially conservative people, a lot of religious people, older people, uneducated people, all of whom tend to (although not always) vote against gay rights. Of course, there are socially liberal, non-religious, young and educated people who would also vote against gay rights, but the general trends are still there.

I think one thing that has really changed in society, is that now people are a lot less likely to voice homophobic views, because chances are they'll be looked down on for it or there will be other negative consequences. This creates the illusion that the vast majority of people are not homophobic, but I don't think that's actually accurate. Voting is secret...and I think that's why places like California, that are widely thought to be super liberal and "gay-friendly", still vote against gay marriage. I believe the same would happen in Canada.

This is super off-topic, but my original (on-topic) point was that just because you don't see blatant, outright homophobia all the time, that doesn't mean it doesn't exist. It means you're not looking hard enough, that people are hiding it, and that you've been conditioned to believe that the way things currently are is completely fine and the problem is gone. The last one is most problematic, because it prevents things from getting better. It's like that in society in general, and at Mac as well, although I do believe it's either better hidden or genuinely less prevalent at Mac. While I wouldn't call Mac a "safe haven" or anything like that, I also wouldn't say that it's unaccepting or the overall atmosphere is homophobic or negative either. The issues that Mac has are issues everywhere.