'Ellen' outing hits home with gay, lesbian students

The explosions of laughter by gay and lesbian students who watched Ellen come out of the closet last night reflected an overall approval of the controversial "Ellen" episode.

"I think that this touched a chord with all of us because our experience and our culture was on TV and it was incredible to finally have that acknowledgment," said Jason Cianciotto, co-director of the Bisexual, Gay and Lesbian Association.

Cianciotto, with about 20 other members of BGALA, gathered at his house to share in the celebration.

Inside jokes during the hour-long episode of "Ellen" led to the much anticipated "coming out" of DeGeneres' character, making Ellen the first homosexual lead character in a prime-time network show.

In the beginning of the show, Ellen is seen in the bathroom getting ready for a date with a male buddy from college. Her friends wait impatiently for her, telling Ellen to "quit jerking us around" and "come out already."

"What's the big deal," she asked. "I've got an hour."

Oprah Winfrey guest stars in the episode as a therapist who helps Ellen figure out her sexual orientation. After the discussion of whether she is attracted to men or women, Ellen decides to reveal to Susan, a lesbian she was introduced to during the show, that she too is a lesbian.

"This is so hard," Ellen says. "I, I, I think I've realized that I . I can't even say the word. Why can't I say the word? Why can't I just say it? What is wrong? Why do I have to be so ashamed? Why can't I just say the truth and be who I am? I'm 35 years old and I'm so afraid to tell people."

When Ellen finally gets the courage, she leans up against a switch for a microphone and tells the whole airport, "I'm gay."

BGALA members said last night that they could relate to the difficulty of coming out.

"I think it will help kids to see shows like this on TV so it won't be such a 'hush-hush' subject," said Dana Cianciotto, a senior at Sabino High School. "They will become more comfortable talking about their feelings."

In addition, Sarah Kraemer, an employee at the Rape Crisis Center, said it was important for young people to see the episode and realize it is OK to have the feelings they may be experiencing. She said that the suicide rate among homosexual teenagers is 3 times higher than among straight students.

There was mutual agreement among the group that the issues and situations Ellen encountered while discovering her sexual orientation were similar to what they had experienced.

Joy VaVeen, an animal sciences junior, said her roommate was supportive when she revealed that she was a lesbian, but still decided to move out because she felt uncomfortable.

"I just came out to my dad last week and he was very supportive," said Angel MuŽoz, a student at Prescott College and a Rape Crisis employee.

But she said that when she came out to some of her friends, she experienced mixed reactions and the dynamics of many of her friendships changed.

Members of the Newman Catholic Student Center said they were not offended by the portrayal of a lesbian character on national television.

"I think having a lesbian character on a sitcom is important," said Scott Caputo, president of the Newman Catholic Student Center's Student Ministry Team. "It will show they are real people with real problems just like everyone else. But as a Catholic, I would not agree with the character's decision if she were to decide to become sexually active."

Brother Bryan Kromholtz of the Newman Center said the Catholic church believes homosexuality is not sinful because it is not freely chosen, but acting upon one's homosexual orientation is morally wrong.