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Huskers
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Marathon Oil Tuesday
mq.QI 30 18
I U9 91 A chance of light
snow or freezing
- drizzle today.
Wednesday, cold 1 -
Pag® 7 with h'9h around 30
Gay greeks take skeletons out of closet
‘Straight’ society
poses challenges
By Mike Lewis
Staff Reporter _
In a sense, David Fellows lived in one of the
smallest rooms of his fraternity house.
It was a closet.
Fellows, 23, never told anyone he was gay
during the five semesters he was a University of
Ncbraska-Lincoln fraternity member.
From the fall of 1988 to the fall of 1990,
Fellows attended fraternity meetings, parties
and other activities. He lived in the house his
first year. He built strong friendships with his
brothers. But he kept his sexual orientation
secret.
Today, the senior biology major from Oma
ha is both out of the closet and out of his
fraternity.
His memories of greek life are mostly pos
itive. ,,
“I had a great time,” Fellows said. “It was
probably no different from anyone elsc’s expe
rience, except I wasn’t dating women.
“I have people who arc still friends now.
We’re going to be friends forever.”
No one knows how many gays belong or
have belonged to greek organizations at UNL.
Most keep their sexuality quiet while they are
in fraternities or sororities, Fellows said.
“I could probably name alumni (who are
gay) from every fraternity house,” Fellows
said.
Jayne Wade Anderson, director of greek
affairs at UNL, said she knew greeks both
locally and nationally who were gay.
“I’m sure I know a lot more who choose not
to identify themselves,” Anderson said.
The experiences of gay greeks differ from
person to person, just as the experiences of
heterosexual greeks do.
Some gays feel uncomfortable belonging to
a system in which many social events arc
geared toward heterosexual interaction. Some,
for whatever reason, choose to leave their
sororities or fraternities.
Others, like Fellows, have a lot of fun and
make a lot of friends.
They may get involved in leadership posi
tions.
Paul Moore, a gay man from Loup City and
a former UNL speech communications major,
served as rush chairman and pledge educator
when he belonged to Acacia Fraternity at UNL.
“I really liked (the fraternity),” Moore, 27,
said. “It gave me a lot of opportunity to grow.”
Moore was an active member from the fall
of 1987 to the spring of 1991. He lived in the
house his first three years and became an Aca
cia alumnus after his fourth year.
Moore said the fraternity helped him devel
op interpersonal, communication and leader
ship skills. He also said he made great friends.
“I felt like I fit in perfectly,” he said.
Cut Moore and Fellows, 1 ike most gay greeks,
faced some unique challenges.
Both went along with gay jokes and gay
slams to keep their sexuality hidden.
“I was scared ... wasn’t confident with my
self at that time,” Moore said. “It was a way to
protect myself.”
Fellows said he expected the gay jokes when
he joined his fraternity, which he declined to
name.
“It didn’t scar me,” he said. “I just took it in
stride.”
But being in the closet was tough, Fellows
said.
“Basically you re lying to everyone—ottcn
times yourself included,” Fellows said.
Fellows said he was attracted to some people
in his fraternity, but he had no strong feelings
for anyone.
He said when he was a pledge, he made a
pass at the fraternity president. They were both
drunk. Fellows said. But that incident didn’t
affect their friendship, he said.
“He never brought it up again,” Fellows
said.
Moore said he also found some members of
his fraternity attractive, but he had no romantic
interest in anyone.
“That’s the furthest thing from my mind,” he
said. “The whole context was that these people
were my good friends.”
Coming out
Moore said he kept himself so busy with
extracurricular activities that he didn’t have
time to think about romance with his fraternity
brothers.
“I became a workaholic so I wouldn’t have
to deal with it,” Moore said.
He joined activities such as the Union Board
and the Nebraska Human Resources Institute.
In the process, he became widely known on
campus.
So when he finally came out of the closet
during his fourth year in Acacia, he came out
not just to his fraternity but to the entire cam
pus. He publ icly revealed his sexual orientation
during an October 1990 meeting of the Assoc i
See GAY GREEKS on 6
William Lauer/DN
Paul Moore, a former member of Acacia fraternity, came out of the closet
during an October 1990 ASUN meeting. Moore said his announcement was
controversial but received support from his fraternity members.
MU students jailed for statue theft
By Jeff Zeleny
Senior Editor_
A weekend outing for about
25 University of Missouri
students turned into an ex
tended stay for five men, when they
were arrested and sent to jail for
stealing an Abraham Lincoln stat
ue.
The five students remained in
custody Monday night and faced
felony charges in connection with a
weekend theft from the Sheldon
Memorial Sculpture Garden.
All five men were arrested for
criminal mischief and theft of the
3-foot-tall statue early Sunday
morning. A county judge has not
yet set bond for the men.
The students were scheduled to
be arraigned Monday afternoon,
but at the request of the county
attomey’sofTice, the hearings were
delayed until Tuesday.
The Missouri students arrested
were Jason Mott, 19, Jason Meyer,
18, Richard Daniel, 18, Brad
Schuster, 18, and Craig Rehmert,
18.
University of Nebraska-Lincoln
Police Sgt. Bill Manning gave the
following account of the incident:
A Lincoln police officer saw
five men carrying the statue down
the sidewalk near 30th and Y streets
at 3 a.m. Sunday. The men told the
officers they found the statue, but
the officer confiscated it.
UNL pol ice discovered the stat
ue was missing at 7 a.m. Sunday
and notified gallery officials.
The five students, all members
of Farmhouse Fraternity in Mis
souri, were visiting the Lincoln
chapter, Manning said.
See STATUE on 3
NU back Jones named father in suits
From Staff Reports
NU running back Calvin Jones
has been named as the father
of two children in paternity
suits, according to petitions filed in
Douglas County, an attorney for Ne
braska Child Protective Services in
Omaha said.
Patty Jacobs-Kivett, lead counsel
for paternity cases filed in Douglas
County, said both Marguerita Rena
Watson and Zaneta Rae Green named
Jones as the father of their children.
Watson gave birth on Jan. 23,1988,
and Green gave birth on May 9,1991.
Both women were residents of Dou
glas County at the time the petitions
were filed, Jacobs-Kivett said.
She said the case was ready to go to
trial. She could not confirm the trial
dates, but said the case probably would
be heard in January.
Jacobs-Kivett said little had been
done with the case against Jones at
this point.
“I don’t think Calvin Jones can be
cast in a negative light because there
has been no legal determination at
this point,” she said.
Jones is a junior human develop
ment and the family major at the
University of Ncbraska-Lincoln.
Jones’ lawyer, Richard Lydick,
refused to comment on the case.
“1 don’t want to create a story on
this,” Lydick said.
Nebraska football coach Tom
Osborne and NU Athletic Director
Bill Byrne could not be reached for
comment Monday.
If genetic tests and court testimony
determine Jones is the father of the
two children, he will be forced to pay
child support to the two women.
Judge to determine
Baldwin’s treatment
By Dionne Searcey
Senior Reporter _
Scott Baldwin’s need for both
physical and mental treatment
may require a special treatment
plan to be created just for him, an
attorney said.
Carol Pahlke, attorney for the De
partment of Public Institutions, said
Lancaster County District Judge Paul
Merritt Jr. planned to issue an order
for Baldwin’s treatment later this
week.
Baldwin, a former University of
Nebraska-Lincoln football player, was
found not responsible by reason of
insanity in the January 1992 beating
of Gina Simanek. In a subsequent
psychotic episode, Baldwin was par
alyzed from the waist down when
Omaha police officers shot him in
September 1992.
Baldwin has been committed to
the Lincoln Regional Center, a state
mental hospital. He is under control
of the Department of Public Institu
tions. Officials at the regional center
refused to comment.
The department has recommended
Baldwin be placed in the Madonna
Rehabilitation Hospital, which deals
with physical rehabilitation only,
Pahlke said.
Baldwin’s case is special, she said,
because he requires mental and phys
ical rehabilitation. Few centers in
Nebraska deal with both elements,
Pahlke said.
If Baldwin is committed to the
hospital, she said, he will need to seek
mental treatment elsewhere.
Baldwin has requested to return
home to New Jersey to seek treat
ment. AH decisions on Baldwin’s
placement are pending, Pahlke said.
The judge said at a hearing Thurs
day he would decide where Baldwin
would be placed.
If Baldwin remains committed to
the Department of Public Institutions,
Pahlke said, he could lose Medicaid
or Medicare payments.
Peggy Hain, public relations coor
dinator for the Madonna Rehabilita
tion Hospital, said arrangements for
security and liability would be made
by the judge.
“Our mission is to help people to
get to the highest level of functioning
they can. we would help anyone on
that,” Hain said. “It’s not our mission
to judge who the people are.”