December 3, 2015, marked the 15th annual Lighting of the Lawn. The event is a chance for the UVA community to come together before finals to watch a light show on the Rotunda while donning Christmas attire and drinking lots of hot chocolate. The tradition began in 2001 in response to the 9/11 attacks.
Unfortunately, this year some students made homophobic comments during the "Good Old Song." A group of college-aged guys reportedly sang a "not gay" chant after the line "where all is bright and gay" and then harassed two men who had been affectionate during the event.
The couple then left the event. Scott Rheinheimer, one of the men, posted on Facebook saying this would be his last event he would attend at the university until graduation because he and his partner felt unsafe.
President Teresa Sullivan later released an official statement, affirming that the University does not support this type of behavior in any way.
Similar instances with the "Good Old Song" have happened in the past, and the one that occurred on Thursday night proves that we still have work to do. It’s easy to get wrapped up in thinking that colleges always harbor for open-mindedness and progress when it comes to fighting racism, sexism, homophobia, you name it. But the reality is that UVA is no more immune to any of these problems than any other college in America, and we should keep this in mind.
Later Rheinheimer posted again, saying he is very grateful for the amount of support he has received from the UVA community. He wrote: "I got to see UVA stand in solidarity for the field I have dedicated my career to, the fight I (and so many others) have given so much time to, and, most importantly, the LGBTQ community. Within 24 hours, I went from feeling so alone to knowing there is a vast UVA community that is stronger than any terrible chant."
If you hear any comments of this nature the next time you’re singing the "Good Old Song," I challenge you to respectfully speak out. Singing “not gay” may seem trivial, light-hearted, and insignificant, but it’s actually extremely offensive and contributes to the marginalization of the LGBTQ community. If we want our grounds to be a safe place for all, we need to put an end to chants of this nature and sing the "Good Old Song" correctly.
