By Jamie Atkinson
The Pride Network in conjunction with the Office of Multicultural and International Student Programs (MISPO) sponsored a game show-style event Wednesday night in the Student Center Theater inviting students to test their “gaydar” and choose a straight male out of a group of five men, the remaining four of whom were gay.
The event gave students the opportunity to question five men of color in an investigative challenge to determine their sexuality based on their appearance, body language, answers to questions and reactions. The contestants included men from all over the tri-state area. Contestant five left his shift as an EMT to take part of the program, knowing that he could be fired for his absence. The program was a borrowed idea and has been used in universities across the country.
After an introduction from Ryan Greene, MISPO’s director, the audience engaged in over 45 minutes of questioning, asking the contestants everything from their ideal date to the current state of their fingernails. Host Christian Fuscarino, The Pride Network’s founder and President, then had the contestants to reveal their sexual identity. The two contestants on either side of the straight contestant revealed their sexual identities by kissing each other in a last minute stunt planned minutes before the program began.
“When we first talked about the kiss, none of us really wanted to do it because we didn’t really know each other,” said contestant two, Jose of Long Island. “But before the program, we knew we had to do something big and this just seemed to be it.”
“They [the contestants] told me right before we started the program, so I knew it was coming,” Fuscarino said, “But when I saw it, my heart popped out of my blazer. I’m so happy people saw that. I’m sure it broke down barriers [in] society.”
The Pride Network puts on programs seven days a week, more than any other on-campus organization. “Gaydar” was organized as a part of an ongoing series of MISPO events entitled “Diversity, Dialogue and Desserts.”
“We try to do a lot on campus and through The Pride Network website,” said Fuscarino. “We are always looking for people to help out.”
The Pride Network even provides a space to sell the music of local artists who support the LGBT cause. Juan and Travis, contestant one, are a part of a musical act, M.O.B. Stars, and sell their music on the website to donate a portion of the profits to The Pride Network.
“We’re constantly trying to get people out, anyone that can help,” said Jose. “Anyone from graphic designers to artists that support the cause.”
Each of the Pride Network’s programs has an average of 20 to 30 people. However, this audience tallied over 250 people, a combination of members from the Hofstra Community as well as members of the NAACP, who cancelled a meeting in order to attend the event.
“We were told not to expect more than 100 people and I wasn’t going to be satisfied until we had 200,” said Fuscarino with a tear in his eye. “When I was told that we had already hit 230 people in the audience, I felt like I could fly.”
The contestants surprised themselves with the importance they found participating in the event, admitting that even they didn’t realize who was the heterosexual at first.
“It’s not the sort of thing I’d normally do,” said Jose. “But I’m glad I did it because it’s important to show people you can’t tell who’s gay just by looking at them. I didn’t even know until halfway through the event that Juan [contestant three] was straight and, I mean, have that gaydar.”
“It was an experience to say the least,” added Juan. “To see how people asked questions with different ways of thinking, it was a learning experience.”
The contestants and hosts also showed a passion for their cause in a personal interview, explaining the stereotypes they hoped to break down and their personal life experiences.
“Walking down the street, people never expect me to be gay,” said Jose. “No one ever expects people of color to be gay. They think, ‘White guys are gay, black guys aren’t.'”
“Gay comes in different colors, different flavors” said Davon, contestant four. “We’re all over the spectrum.”
The event focused not on the relationships between people but on individuals. “It’s more than just two people being in a relationship,” said William Moriary, the Director of Outreach for The Pride Network. “It’s about just being a person and [having] people understand that.”
As Jose put it, “It’s not a gay community. It’s just a community. That’s what’s important.”
“An invisible culture” was the best way Fuscarino found to explain it. “Anyone can be LGBT, it’s not always something you can just see.”
Contestant one, Travis, answers a question about how he would charm a date.