Tonight was the honours banquet, and it was super intense. The food was delish and the company and conversation were very good (it was good to get away from the chaos of classes for a few hours and just sit around and talk).
The speaker was so intense though. She's a sociology professor who specialises in abuse survivors and abusers. She gave us lots of web sites to help others or help ourselves, including RAINN, of which I am a big supporter. RAINN does wonderful work.
Abuse is everywhere and it effects so many lives. Both sets of my parents' parents came from very abusive relationships. My father's parents were terribly abusive to one and other, and psychologically abusive to their three sons. My mother's father constantly abused his wife (my grandmother) and his only son and psychologically abused his five daughters. He died of a heart attack when my mother was fifteen. My grandmother, as a result of his abuse, has had several strokes.
Neither of my parents every abused each other or me. They broke the cycle with themselves. But it's not okay to live with abuse. My grandparents shouldn't have had to deal with that behaviour, and neither should my mother and father, or my aunts or uncles. It is a serious problem and it needs to be stopped. It was interesting looking at it from a sociological perspective, though. What makes people become abusers, etc.
This issue is very personal to me for a variety of reasons which I don't want to bring up, which made the banquet a little more than uncomfortable. I hope I didn't give the speaker the wrong impression, I really wasn't bored at all and I was paying attention but there is a fine line between looking thoroughly bored and trying to not be ill. It's difficult to describe what was discussed at the banquet to people who were not there, so just take my word for it, it was intense.
I'm actually taking a class with the woman who spoke tonight next semester, called Changing Families. It sounds like a fantastic course. It doesn't go towards either of my majors so I'm hoping it's at least insightful.
The ally panel is tomorrow (!!) and I'm soo nervous and anxious and excited. I'm Rachel to my friends, but I don't know everyone who is going to be at the panel. I want to be Rachel to them, I don't want to be anything that they perceive about me from what is said at the panel. I'm just Rachel. The panel is necessary, a lot of people don't have anyone to put a face to when it comes to GLBTQ issues. We share the same dorms, the same halls, the same classrooms, the table in the cafeteria. I just want everyone to see that our differences make us the same. We're not all the same person, even straight people aren't the same. But we all love, and that's what brings us together.
They'll name a city after us
And later say it's all our fault
Then they'll give us a talking to
Then they'll give us a talking to
Because they've got years of experience
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