IN A TIME of increasing discussion of women's and Third World people's oppression, there still remains enormous ignorance about the second-class citizenship of gay and lesbian people. This segment of the population, which includes members of every race, religion, and social class, is subject to legal restrictions on employment in 50 states, and on sexual activity in 29. Unwritten but culturally approved discrimination, contempt, and fear are barriers which gays and lesbians, whether open or closeted, must encounter every day. For the numerous gay students at Harvard and Radcliffe, these obstacles help to create a hostile environment for open dialogue about gay people and their concerns.

Among the greatest enemies of gays and lesbians on campus and in the society at large are insensitivity, ignorance, and indifference. Gay and Lesbian Awareness Day, a series of lectures, films, and discussions at the Science Center on April 13, is an effort by Harvard and Radcliffe students to educate the University community about issues which affect both gay and straight people. The Crimson welcomes this event as a necessary challenge to homophobia, and urges all members of the Harvard-Radcliffe community to attend.