Duke in Pics: Coming Out Day Celebration

Several thousand students, faculty and staff passed through the Bryan Center Plaza Thursday as part of a celebration for Duke’s annual Coming Out Day, an event to recognize the campus’ commitment to diversity and inclusivity for gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, queer and questioning (LGBTQ) issues. 

Duke community members began lining up around 11 a.m. to get their hands on free “Love=Love” T-shirts, regularly one of the most popular giveaways for students and employees. Above, Amanda Rozycki, a social worker with the Department of Pediatrics, shows off one of the shirts she volunteered to hand out during the event. About 1,600 T-shirts were distributed in three hours. 

“I have a lot of friends that are out, and I want to show support for any type of love,” said Raquel Harris, a convenience store coordinator at Central Campus’ Uncle Harry’s General Store. She stopped by to pickup a pink Love=Love shirt. “It means a lot to see so many people show that it doesn’t matter who you are. If you love someone, you should be able to love them.”

Sponsored by the Center for Sexual and Gender Diversity, this year’s Coming Out Day had a carnival theme, which included dancing groups, popcorn and artists providing caricatures.

“It’s easy to get caught up in planning for this event, but when I’m out here on The Plaza with all these people and the weather is beautiful, it’s an amazing feeling,” said India Pierce, program coordinator with the Center for Sexual and Gender Diversity. “So many people have come out to celebrate love and the diversity of our community.”

Below, students pose with a whiteboard being passed among the crowd so campus community members could show why they wanted to attend the Coming Out Day event as allies to the LGBTQ community. For additional photos from the celebration, visit the Working@Duke Facebook page.