Obama’s gay mentor speaks out

By LOU CHIBBARO JR, Washington Blade

As an 18-year-old undergraduate student at Occidental College in Los Angeles, Barack Obama was among a coterie of students who spoke regularly with Lawrence Goldyn.

Goldyn, an openly gay political science professor who served as a mentor and friend to many of the school’s minority students, said Obama joined him and other students in discussions about social and political issues at a time when Obama was beginning to develop an interest in politics and civil rights causes.

“He was one of those unusual, straight young men who was secure enough in his sexuality that he was not fearful of being associated with me, whether that involved taking a class or just talking socially,” said Goldyn, who also served as faculty adviser for Occidental’s gay student group.

Goldyn, who was at Occidental from 1978 to 1981, has since changed professions and now works as a physician and medical director for a clinic in Northern California, with a specialty in HIV medicine.

He decided to speak with the Blade about his interaction with Obama during their years at Occidental after Obama told the Advocate, in an April interview, that Goldyn had a “strong influence” in his understanding and perception of gay people and gay rights.

Find more after the jump...