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The Queer Stories of 'Cuse podcast series was created by the LGBTQ Resource Center at Syracuse University (SU), in collaboration with The SENSES Project, to curate an oral history archive telling queer stories in an authentic light. This series features interviews of past and present SU students, staff, faculty and community members of the Greater Syracuse area who are passionate about queer issues and advocacy work.
Special thanks to:
The SENSES Project Program Coordinator, Nick Piato
Director of SU LGBTQ Resource Center, Jorge Castillo
Associate Director of SU Office of Supportive Services, Amy Horan Messersmith
Co-hosts: Bushra Naqi, Rio Flores & Sebastian Callahan
Sebastian Callahan 0:05
Hello, my name is Sebastian Callahan and I am a junior at Syracuse University and as a research assistant for the LGBTQ Research Center, we're working here to establish our first queer oral history archive. A few of our goals for this project include amplifying marginalized voices that are often wrongfully spoken for or over. I'm pleased to be here with you. And I would like to extend all my gratitude to you for taking the time out of your schedule to participate in this interview. Please know that you may revoke your consent at any point during, during or after this interview. If you're feeling uncomfortable, or want to take a break, just let me know. Because your safety and well being is of our utmost priority. And we definitely want to make that clear.
Thank you so much for taking the time to share your story with us. And we really appreciate it. And without further ado, we'll dive into some questions.
Brian Stout 1:03
So sounds good.
Sebastian Callahan 1:05
Yes. Well, thank you, Brian. So can you tell me what's your name? And what are your pronouns? If you'd like to share them?
Brian Stout 1:14
My name is Brian Stout, and my pronouns are he/him.
Sebastian Callahan 1:20
And can you tell me where and when you were born?
Brian Stout 1:23
When I was born, I was born in Cincinnati, Ohio, we'll just say the mid 80s. I don't want to date myself too much.
Sebastian Callahan 1:34
And in what places did you feel most accepted? And who would you say you were around?
Brian Stout 1:41
Sorry, can you say that again? And what places did you feel most accepted? And who were you around? And like? Is this your home to yourself? And how do you navigate finding a home? So I'm just trying to figure out what what do you consider home? And who were you around that caused it to feel that way?
Brian Stout 2:00
Are you talking about like at Syracuse or beforehand, just in your life?
Sebastian Callahan 2:10
Yeah, it'll get more towards Syracuse towards later in the interview.Yeah, right now, I'm just curious about you honestly, and if it is Syracuse, then yeah.
Brian Stout 2:19
Yeah, so I mean, I was born in Cincinnati, but I grew up most of my life in suburban Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, which by itself is a very nice city, I grew up in a pretty close minded, conservative
suburb. So you know, it was pretty sheltered, I would say, you know, growing up, I got a nice sense of probably like home and friends and whatnot, through, you know, elementary school, and maybe even the beginning of middle school and, and, you know, things kind of get get tougher as kids kind of start to notice the,
Brian Stout 2:58
you know, kids who may stand out for being a little bit different. And for, you know, particularly back then growing up in the,
Brian Stout 3:05
you know, the 90s, early 90s No, definitely wasn't cool to be gay, or queer or anything like that. And, you know, we didn't have even formalized acronyms, like LGBT, at least not that, you know, most people heard over, we're least talking about.
Brian Stout 3:22
So it was definitely,
Brian Stout 3:24
you know, a challenge kind of, you know, growing up and kind of navigating those middle and high school
Brian Stout 3:33
years in this kind of very conservative bubble, that I lived in. So that was sort of my life before Syracuse.
Sebastian Callahan 3:45: how did your life change once you came to Syracuse?
Brian Stout 3:48
Well, it changed really dramatically. I mean, I remember having a bunch of schools to pick from and, for me, like, actually one of the deciding factors of Syracuse, where they're probably two things, like, you know, one is, was, you know, new house for sure, at the time, I really wanted to go into broadcast journalism, and, you know, that was obviously the place to go. But really, the other deciding factor was the fact that they had an LGBT resource center. You know, I remember, like, I think the first day I got the campus, like, I walked through this back when it was still up on Comstock, and, you know, walked up on that hill, and like, just to see that was such it was just such a feeling of like, relief and home and safety and comfort and excitement, because I never had anything like that, you know, like, and that whole kind of, sort of side of me, at least, you know, growing up was sort of something that had to be kind of like repressed and head in and so to kind of come and even see like the letters LGBT, like on a sign. I mean, was just like, you know, really exhilarating. So I think like, for me like that really was kind of the start of
Brian Stout 5:00
of how,
Brian Stout 5:01
you know, things kind of changed at Syracuse and then just,
Brian Stout 5:06
you know,
Brian Stout 5:08
got super
Brian Stout 5:10
just sucked into in a good way into all of like the liberal arts education in terms of like, my Women's Studies classes, my sociology classes was my, you know, education classes because Cultural Foundations of Education, I mean, there were so many really cool different classes and professors that I had that just opened my eyes up to, like, just really like all of the kind of
Unlearning that the kind of thing needed to happen based on sort of this very sort of like, sheltered upbringing that I, you know, was the way in which I grew up.
Brian Stout 5:47
And it was just sort of, like, you know, moment after moment of kind of, like, you know, your eyes being open to like, wow, like, I didn't realize I grew up like, so sheltered, and so, you know, conservative and so to kind of like, see and be with all these people that had these, you know, much more progressive and diverse points of views was just really, it was really liberating.
Sebastian Callahan: 6:10
Yeah, I'm glad the center did that. It's great to hear Yeah, I've been working, those are my years and the early years of the LGBTQ Center from when it opened. So from 2001 to 2006, are the years I've been studying.
Sebastian Callahan 6:25
And yeah, of course, I came across your name. I'm not sure somehow. But yeah, if you want to tell me a little bit more about, like, what your connection is to Syracuse, and how you're affiliated with Syracuse, like, did you come here for undergraduate or as your masters?
Brian Stout 6:43
Yeah. So I came in, as an undergraduate and,
Brian Stout 6:48
you know, came in
Brian Stout 6:51
thinking I was going to do broadcast journalism, and had a bit of a change of heart, I ended up
Brian Stout 6:56
graduating in advertising in a new house and still work in advertising today. So that was my, my connection to Syracuse.
Sebastian Callahan 7:07
Wow, yeah, that's really cool. And
Sebastian Callahan 7:12
so can you tell me about what your role what would you say your role was in Syracuse, or whatever that means to you?
Brian Stout 7:22
I would say, you know, I really kind of took on the role of,
Brian Stout 7:28
you know, activist and connector, if you will.
Brian Stout 7:34
You know, I think just, you know, when I first
Brian Stout 7:38
I first got to Syracuse just a couple of weeks into my freshman year, I had invited a guy to go to a guy, obviously a gay guy, to go to a, you know, a party with me on like, a Friday, I think it was a Friday night. And, you know, he ended up getting attacked and a pretty bad anti gay crime, like, literally right in front of me and my friends. And, um, that was pretty, that was pretty traumatic. And, you know, but the university like all really kind of like, came together. And it was like a,
Brian Stout 8:11
I don't know, it was like a very bittersweet experience, because obviously, it was like dramatic, but also then to see, like, just all these people sort of, like, come out, and like, in support of like, hey, you know, we're not going to accept this here was, was just a very different thing to be able to see and witness, especially for somebody like myself coming from a very, like, just extremely conservative, white upper class suburb, where like, you know, nobody could even say anything. Gay. So that was sort of like my first I think, like, the sort of like birth, like my role of having a really active presence with the Syracuse LGBTQ. Community.
Brian Stout 8:55
And like I said, that was kind of like the, that was the start of it. But like I said, like, really, you know, having my eyes further open by like, a lot of the things I was learning in my classes, even just conversations with professors,
Brian Stout 9:08
you know, really kind of motivated me to just expand my perspective and do more, you know, I mean, I remember, I was just like, chatting with one professor one day, like, after class, and, you know, I think we were talking about like, oh, it's Isn't it crazy that these anti gay people say that, like, being gay is a choice. And I think that's what I said. And I think she said, Well, I just don't understand. Even if it was a choice, why is that a choice you can make? And like that just like blew my mind. Like, that was just like such a, it was just such a progressive point of view, and just like so different than like, anything I would have ever even like, you know, follow up and it was just such an interesting
Brian Stout 9:45
and kind of like, Pivotal,
Brian Stout 9:48
probably moment for me.
Brian Stout 9:51
And then just kind of like also having my eyes open to the fact that like, you know, we really, we really weren't all that
Brian Stout 10:00
We really aren't all equal, and especially back at that time, and, you know, this is the, what's the, like the mid 2000s, early to mid 2000s.
Brian Stout 10:11
You know, Bush was about Bush was president and, you know, tried to get this defensive Marriage Act thing passed and, you know, really kind of tried to divide the country and,
Brian Stout 10:24
you know, basically trying to ban gay marriage, you know, at the same time, you know, even at Syracuse, we, at the time didn't even have
Brian Stout 10:36
gender identity and gender expression covered as part of the benefits for faculty. That was one of the first things that, you know, I kind of wanted to help,
Brian Stout 10:46
you know, take on and, you know, we also wanted to help pass
Brian Stout 10:50
you know, sexual orientation and gender expression of non discrimination laws, you know, in New York State and ultimately, we also wanted to kind of fight for you know, marriage in New York state there are a lot of, there's just a lot of things to be,
Brian Stout 11:04
you know, to kind of be done. And as I kind of got more passionate
Brian Stout 11:11
I think one of the first things that I kind of did with with some friends was my believe it was my second year, my sophomore year at Syracuse.
Brian Stout 11:23
I think it was like in the beginning of, you know, that year That's September, I was sitting with, you know, some of my LGBT friends in the Schine Student Center and I think we were saying like, Oh, it's so good just to be back and be here we're like it's just such a welcoming community
(CUT OUT from 11:42-12:42) CUT
Brian Stout 11:49
Brian?
Brian Stout 12:05
Brian
Brian Stout 12:09
Brian.
Brian Stout 12:43
So one of my,
Brian Stout 12:46
probably earliest and best memories of you know, my kind of LGBT involvement at Syracuse was organizing this rainbow bridge across the quad. I remember a couple of friends and I were,
Brian Stout 12:59
I think, my sophomore year at the beginning of the year sitting in the Schine students center and saying how good it was to be back. And you know, how great it was to be somewhere so welcoming. And, you know, we were thinking about how National Coming Out Day was coming up in October. And my one friend Jones said, you know, I just want to get my rainbows out and skipped out on the quad and kind of inspired this idea of, you know, what if we did this, like giant human rainbow bridge across the quad on National Coming Out Day, and we organized, you know, we said, hey, everybody come during, you know, this particular class change time when everybody's walking around the quad. And, you know, we put we put the fliers out and the word out in the Daily Orange saying, hey, everybody who wants to come show support, dresses, one of the colors of the rainbow and come during this class time. And you know, we thought maybe we'd get, I don't know, 20 to 25 people, and we got a lot. I mean, it was like a full on, well, over 100 people kind of lined up. And it was really cool. You know, you had people kind of doing with running down down the Rainbow Bridge doing cartwheels and just like taking pictures. And you could really just see it, like lighting up a lot of people's eyes. And to me, one of the greatest things afterwards was like, I got a couple of notes from you know, students who said, you know, I'm closeted, I've never come out. I've never seen anything like this before. Like, this was life changing for me. And actually, one of those students was a guy named Eric, who ended up being one of the people who co founded Outrage with me, which was the LGBT activism group that I had actually started. And we actually became roommates. And we're still we still keep in touch today. But yeah, that was probably one of my earliest kind of biggest memories of Syracuse.
Sebastian Callahan: Oh, wow. That's where I knew your name from Yeah, you started outrage.
Brian Stout 14:45
Can you tell me more about Outrage actually.
Brian Stout 14:50
Yeah, so outrage was a group that was sort of born from myself and a couple other students.
Brian Stout 15:00
wanting to just have a outlet for LGBT Q activism on campus?
Brian Stout 15:10
You know, I think, as I
Brian Stout 15:14
sort of realized how much injustice there still was,
Brian Stout 15:20
you know, against the LGBTQ community at the time, and how much we were really being thrown under the bus for political reasons, you know, at the time, President Bush was trying to, you know, pass the Defense of Marriage Act, and it just felt like, I mean, it really, really felt like we were under attack and just being dehumanized, and every which way. So there were definitely like, massive, just ways in which I felt we all felt, you know, like, we needed to do something, you know, we need to make some change, we needed to, you know,
Brian Stout 15:54
do some community organizing, and then stand up to this. And I think there were big things like that. And then there were also small things, you know, there were things that we felt like, you know, we had an opportunity to make a difference. And in terms of like, you know, making curriculum in the Syracuse area, you know, more LGBTQ inclusive, in terms of getting
Brian Stout 16:15
gender identity and expression, non discrimination passed at Syracuse, in terms of doing that, as well, in a broader state level, there were a lot of things that kind of, there's a lot of work that I think a lot of us felt like needed to be done, and a lot of people who wanted to, you know, kind of be part of a group that fought for that. So that was really kind of like the birth of outrage. And we had a really, really just incredible
Brian Stout 16:44
faculty advisor. Her name was Margaret Himley,
Brian Stout 16:53
Yeah. So I remember.
Brian Stout 16:58
You know,
Brian Stout 17:00
I think she was just very involved with a lot of like, the campus LGBT, LGBT, you're gonna start with and I had met her, and I really liked her. And I remember just being very nervous, because I, I got nervous to ask somebody to be a faculty advisor for something like this, especially at the time, it's a big commitment. It's not the most vanilla of organizations, you know, we want to start a campus activism group, right. But she was all for it. And like, you know, I, it was funny, I actually think I was in one of the Daily Orange articles where they had like, kind of interviewed me about after I started this organization, and I kind of relayed the story of when I was asking Margaret to be the faculty advisor. I was kind of downplaying it, I was saying, you know, you know, don't worry, you know, we're not going to be, you know, turning over any tables, we're not going to be storming any buildings. And she looked at me, and she said, why not?
Brian Stout 17:52
And I said, Okay, I guess you're in.
Brian Stout 17:55
So,you know, and, you know, we didn't, we weren't about this, we weren't about, you know, violence or anything like that. But it was really awesome to be met with
Brian Stout 18:06
a faculty advisor, not just in Margaret, but in other faculty members, and, you know, the leadership of the LGBT Research Center, and what have you, who gave us a home, and gave a space and who gave us the night of the week to meet and
Brian Stout 18:24
helped us with fliers, and, you know, all sorts of things. And, you know, I think,
Brian Stout 18:29
you know, wasn't looking back on my group, you know, we did a lot of really cool things that, you know, I'm really proud of, and we're all we're all really proud of, I mean, we had, like, you know, really kind of, for the time really kind of like thought provoking, you know, exhibits in the, in the student center that took a lot of, you know, pulling together, we had a lot of, you know, just programming that we went out and presented around campus, on everything from like, you know, what LGBTQ biases to like, how to be an ally. And then we did a lot of work partnering with a lot of the other great organizations like, you know, pride union open doors, it was just a really, it was a really
Brian Stout 19:10
welcoming, and just cool time and place to be kind of doing that kind of work and to be just, you know, did we succeed in everything that we set out to do now, but, you know, we moved the needle. And, and that's what, that's what the work is about, you know, like, that's what,
Brian Stout 19:27
you know, making an impact is about, you know, you're never going to solve everything, but if you can kind of advance things in the right direction and, you know, do your small goals, small little part and kind of creating some change, then, you know, that's a win and to be able to do that with other like minded people, but who are from very kind of diverse backgrounds and bring diverse experiences and thoughts to the table. I mean, that's just, that's really the essence of what an awesome college experience should be about.
Sebastian Callahan 20:00: Yeah, it is. Yeah. I actually just pulled up those flyers And that in your article you were actually just talking about.
Brian Stout 20:04
And they're Oh, wow, they actually hold on to them.
Sebastian Callahan 2:07 They're in the archives. And yeah, it says, Wow, okay, that's awesome. I can read you the first paragraph. Actually, I feel like it'll remind you, it's actually very nice.
Sebastian Callahan: 20:18
During the summer, Jr, Brian stout was fed up with feeling useless in the fight for gay rights. He was fed up with meeting people who had so much passion and energy to offer for the cause, but little to do to make change. He decided to form outrage, a political campus organization designed to promote activism surrounding the LGBT and gender expression rights, unlike pride union or other LGBT groups, outrage may not necessarily provide comfort or assistance in coming out relationships and other issues and, and other personal issues that said,
Brian Stout 20:52
and yeah, and the groups timing could not be any better.
Brian Stout 20:57
That's awesome. Yeah, definitely brings back definitely brings back, you know, memories, and I'm there, you know, there was obviously some, you know, kind of resistance of, you know, the, we need another group or whatnot. But ultimately, everything, you know, kind of worked out, you know, really well. And, um, you know, I do think that there was a need for the group at the time. And, you know, particularly I remember in our very first meeting, and, you know, there were definitely some faces in that group that, you know, I think, you know, clearly hadn't felt like they had an outlet or kind of, like a, exactly kind of like the right, you know, in I guess if that, if that makes sense to kind of be, you know, a visible part of the community. And that was really cool. I remember sitting on the couch and hearing from them, and kind of like, why they came and, you know, I don't even remember what like our first idea was, or our first like, thing is that we decided to do, but I remember like, you know, grabbing like a blank piece of paper and like a pen and saying, Okay, if you want to be part of this first thing, like just write down your name and your email address, or whatever it was, and like everybody signed up. And that was pretty cool.
Sebastian Callahan 22:10: Yeah, I actually found the flier for the first first meeting, right here, actually, I have it in front. And actually, it's great what you guys were doing, and like so like, really intelligently. By spreading the word like here, I see. Just like a big fact. And it's a really interesting fact about homophobia in American reads. 19 states have no hate crime laws covering sexual orientation. And then it goes on to name the 19 states from Alabama to Wyoming. And the other one talks about how transgender employees can be fired on the basis of their sexual orientation in over 40 states. And like, it's crazy to think about the numbers and how that wasn't that long ago, actually.
Brian Stout 22:51
Yeah, yeah. And, you know, it's, it's so interesting is now here, I am almost almost like … years later. Been working in advertising for quite some time. And actually, this past year, I had the privilege of working on a pro bono campaign for the Human Rights Campaign for the Equality Act, which basically tries to close like a lot of these loopholes that actually still exist here in 2022. In terms of, there's a lot of states where, you know, you can still be fired for being gay or, you know, transgender.
Brian Stout 23:31
You know, there was some recent, a recent Supreme Court ruling, you know, prior to some of the these recent kind of conservative Trump appointees entering the Supreme Court, there's a recent ruling that kind of, you know, started to maybe, you know, shift that a little bit, but there's still, you know, quite a lot of states where you can pretty legally discriminate against, you know, LGBTQ people. And that's kind of what the Equality Act would, you know, basically kind of
Brian Stout 23:57
tried to, to address and try to close the loopholes at a national level. So, you know, it's so interesting that, yes, we've made we've made so much progress, I think since then, but it's, it's, it seems like it's always two steps forward. One really, really big step. One really big step back, you know,
Sebastian Callahan: 24:16
very well put, yeah, I mean, yeah, it's really interesting to think about, and well, thank you for doing that work, honestly, too pro bono. And, yeah, I'm sure. I'll look around for it.
Sebastian Callahan: 24:31
Okay, so actually, if we want to shift back right now, should we shift back to Can I ask, When did you come to terms with your queerness or queer identity? And do you feel comfortable sharing the ways you identify?
Brian Stout 24:48
Oh, yeah, so we probably should have started with that. So yeah, yeah. I mean, identify identify as gay and,
Brian Stout 24:54
um, I mean, I probably
Brian Stout 24:58
accepted that in
Brian Stout 25:00
In high school, I would say, you know, I mean, I always knew I was, I always knew I was different, even since I can remember being a little, little kid.
Brian Stout 25:10
But I probably, you know, it's kind of interesting because everybody kind of like, comes to terms with it on their own kind of timetable. But, you know, when you kind of maybe start to act a little bit different, or start to just feel like you're not maybe necessarily into the same kind of thing, as other boys are growing up.
Brian Stout 25:27
You know, society kind of begins to label you as different or others who you know, before you even really know, what exactly is it that makes you an other? Or, you know, you're not exactly like everybody else. And I guess that's sort of what the whole concept of like heteronormativity and everything is about.
Brian Stout 25:48
But yeah, probably around in, in high school, when I really kind of like, I remember this actually, I remember in eighth grade, the first day of eighth grade, her eighth grade English teacher said, you know, everybody's growing up. The hormones are or sorry, was the seventh grade. Yeah, I think it was seventh grade, or seventh grade English teacher. Hormones, or hormones are kicking in, you're noticing people of the opposite sex.
Brian Stout 26:11
And for me, that was like, a like, that was like, sort of like a, that was sort of like the first time I really hit me like, oh, maybe something's really wrong. You know? Because like the other kids I remember, were really like, chuckling like going away like, yep, like that resonates. And I was like, nope, not resonating.
Brian Stout 26:31
Wow. So can you tell me about how your work intertwines with your queer identity? Or if it does at all?
Brian Stout 26:39
Yeah, well, I think for a while it did. And, you know, I think for you know, for a while,
Brian Stout 26:45
you know, it didn’t. I didn't really figure out how to connect them, like I was definitely doing, I moved to Dallas after I graduated from my first job, but advertised and was fortunate enough to meet some awesome, you know, an awesome group of friends and awesome outlets for, you know, LGBTQ activism there.
Brian Stout 27:06
You know, I was a member of the Dallas Stonewall Young Democrats,
Brian Stout 27:10
it was a, you know, that we organized everything from like, you know, community streetlight campaigns, to marches to, you know, a whole, you know, foundation that raises money for HIV AIDS every year. So I, I, you know, initially in my career was kind of finding these things to do outside of work, but I never really could find, like, a way to bring it into work, you know, particularly because, you know, I think,
Brian Stout 27:37
back then, you know, it took a pretty progressive client to even be able to kind of, like, bring this up, you know, or bring up, you know, LGBTQ people without sort of feel or fear of like, you know, what are they going to think, but as time went on, and kind of got easier. And, you know, I moved to Chicago a couple years into my career and took a job at Leo Burnett. Interestingly, the time I was maintaining Bhagu, on like, kind of LGBTQ advertising, and what different brands were doing for people in the LGBTQ space. And interestingly, a creative director at Leo Burnett found my blog, and was like, I also work at your same company, and I work on the Allstate account. And I've always really wanted to do like this big, you know, LGBT campaign for all state, like, would you want to partner with us? I was likeYes, that'd be great. And so that was sort of like my, in in terms of, like, you know, sort of figure, oh, okay, we can actually, you know, bring our, our perspectives and our experiences to the table for
Brian Stout 28:42
clients and kind of use their kind of use their scale and resources to, you know, create sort of mutual value, you know, both for the clients and these brands, but also, in terms of like, you know, creating visibility for the community and kind of benefiting the community at large. And so that was my first kind of, like, you know, foray into it. And, you know, I think, since then I've just felt more comfortable, you know, pushing clients and kind of bringing up the,
Brian Stout 29:10
you know, opportunities to, you know, reach our community. And, you know, it's, I think, as kind of time has gone on, it's even less about just doing right by the community, but it's just doing right by people in general, because I think, you know, people in general, and particularly, you know, younger millennials, and Gen Z, you know, they demand the brands, you know, they know that brands have a lot of power and society, you know, and you know, they're really putting their dollars with brands that are, you know, creating positive change in society and, you know, doing things beyond just looking after their bottom line. And that really includes, you know, all kinds of marginalized communities who are treated, you know, equally or don't have the same thing.
Brian Stout 30:00
You know, rights and access as others do. So it's, it's become, I think, just such a key and big opportunity for brands just to be
Brian Stout 30:13
part of even if they're not trying to do something for the LGBT community, you know, just to, you know, have been good standing, you know, with with, with people, you know, by, you know, helping to create positive change in the world. That's what consumers are looking for.
Sebastian Callahan 30:29
Well, yeah, thank you for such a nice long answer. That was actually like, you answered all my questions I would have had. So sure, can you tell me about how and I guess now that we're winding down to our last couple of questions, asked a pretty good one and a really big one. And can you tell me about how historical events like HIV AIDS or other esoteric happenings of the world that affected the LGBT ? Well, the entire population of the LGBTQ plus community, and how have they affected you? Or you know, anything else? Like,
Brian Stout 31:07
the trying? Yeah, the marriage rights?
Brian Stout 31:12
Yeah. I mean, probably the biggest thing, you know, is certainly later on after Syracuse, but probably the biggest thing in my lifetime that probably got me most riled up. After Of course, the whole push DOMA thing when I was in Syracuse, but later on was the probate vote,
Brian Stout 31:33
which
Brian Stout 31:34
was basically
Brian Stout 31:36
when Catalunya marriage equality on the ballot, and you know, the Mormon church, you know, actually funded a, you know, massively massively, you know, funded a, you know, a propaganda campaign, basically, like tricking people into like, you know, this sort of idea that, like, if we allow gay people to marry, then, you know, they'll come after your kids, and, you know, all this other kind of nonsense. And fortunately, it passed, and California, like the most liberal state in the country, ban gay marriage. And I, for me, that was like, just another big kind of, like, turning point, like,
Brian Stout 32:17
you know, obviously, you know, college is a time where, like, a lot of people are, you know, kind of, like, have the time and kind of, like, have the,
Brian Stout 32:24
you know, I guess I'm sort of in the mindset to kind of be a little bit more of like an activist, you know, mindset, I certainly, probably want more than just what the average person did on that front. But, you know, then I entered the corporate world and world and things were a little bit quiet for a year or two, but then Prop Eight happened, and it was like, Oh, shit, like I am, I am back like that, that side of me that had been just sort of, like,
Brian Stout 32:48
you know, kind of repressed a little bit since I had graduated and enter the corporate world, like, I was, like, I need to get that back. Because like, that is, that is, like, you know, that is a big part of like, my, my purpose, you know, like, kind of making connections in a way that kind of leave the world and leave the LGBTQ community in a better place than it was previously. And, you know, particularly when people try to, you know, take us backwards or try to do so for their own,
Brian Stout 33:16
you know, gains in terms of politics or power, like that just irks me to know. And so, that was probably like a really big turning point for me in terms of like, why I got back into, you know, activism and, you know, really being an advocate for the community, you know, well, after my time in Syracuse.
Sebastian Callahan 33:39
Well, thank you so much for all your activism, honestly, like, you've definitely set a precedent for other students at Syracuse, who are, you know, like, I think outrage I hope when this interview comes out it to I hope we have another outrage. And I'm excited, like for everyone to be able to hear all these stories and hear about what life and Syracuse was like as a student back in 2000 2006. And how it's changed. And I'm glad and yeah, you'll be there with missa or with Professor Margaret Himley. I'm interviewing Professor Minnie Bruce Prattt soon there's gonna be so many other people.
Brian Stout 34:21
that's just one of my heroes. I love Minnie Bruce. Yes.
Sebastian Callahan:34:22
You'll be right there with them.
Brian Stout: And many many Bruce Pratt Andrew London Adria Janek l. I mean, a lot of just so many people. There were just so many people who you know, some of them are still there, some of them not but I'm just had such an impact on me and so many others. And you know, my hope is that, you know, even if there isn't ever another like organized outrage per se, that you know, future students will, you know, find the outrage and you know, whatever the injustices of the day are and feel like Syracuse is a, you know, welcoming and supporting place where they can foster that outrage.
Sebastian Callahan: 35:03
Yeah, exactly. Is there anything else you'd like to add about your overall experience as a queer person in Syracuse?
Brian Stout: 35:15
Anything else I'd like to add about my overall experience? I don't think so. To be honest with you, well, thank you so much for taking the time out of your day to let me interview.
Sebastian Callahan:
I'll stop the recording right now.
Transcribed by https://otter.ai