LGBT Peace Corps Conversation for StoryCorps

Mid-November, John Finn, RPCV Korea, and I recorded our LGBT PCV and RPCV story for StoryCorps in San Francisco. StoryCorps is an independent nonprofit project whose mission is to honor and celebrate one another’s lives through listening. Many of you have probably heard clips from StoryCorps conversations on NPR. Each conversation is recorded on a CD to take home and share and is archived for generations to come at the Library of Congress. StoryCorps is one of the largest oral history projects of its kind, creating a growing portrait of who we really are as Americans.

Our local Peace Corps Office Public Affairs Specialist in Oakland, Hale Sargent (Armenia, 1998-2000 and an LGBT RPCV member), arranged for six slots for Peace Corps-related conversations, which were taped at the Contemporary Jewish Museum in San Francisco. He thought one of these slots should be filled by LGBT RPCVs who could talk about their experiences while in service and later as early founders of the LGBT RPCV Group. Both John and I have been involved with queer Peace Corps Alumni activities since 1991.

We are longtime friends and know much of one another’s Peace Corps experiences. It was fun to explore some of these again. The recorded conversations go on for 40 minutes, and at first I wondered how comfortable I would be in the sound booth speaking directly into a microphone, but the conversation just flowed.

John talked about the importance of his sexual orientation and the Peace Corps experience in his life, and the wonderful experience of having close gay and lesbian Peace Corps friends – many of them gained through LGBT RPCVs. He talked about his recent coming out to his 90-year-old host Korean mother, whom he hadn’t seen in over 30 years and by coincidence is now living in Los Angeles, in his non-fluent Korean. She told him she was not really surprised. John was heartened by her understanding and acceptance.

I talked about finding out at my 20th Peace Corps reunion (many years ago), that 8 out of the 40 men in my group turned out to be gay (an amazing 20%). And I had thought I was the only all those years ago in Malawi.

We both talked about the changes in Peace Corps and the progress that has been made but noted the current difficulties LGBT PCVs have in countries with highly homophobic cultures and laws.

I have no idea how many Peace Corps-related conversations are in the StoryCorps archives. They’ve recorded more than 50,000 conversations so far. If you ever have the opportunity to do this, John and I highly recommend the experience.

Check out StoryCorps website at http://www.storycorps.org/ You can contact Mike Learned at learned_mike@yahoo.com