Chances are, if you're out of the broom closet, you may have to deal with discrimination. This can range anywhere from taunting, crosses or pentagrams drawn on your door, anonymous proselytizing in your e-mail, or something even more violent (Hey, you never know what kids will come up with nowadays). This is not to scare anyone. I'm openly Pagan, and pretty proud of it. I don't bother shouting "PAGAN POWER!" from my window, but if someone asks my religion, I have no problem telling about it. You shouldn't be afraid to worship the way you want.

However, in those instances that you DO get harassed, if you know the person, try to talk to them about it. If you don't feel comfortable with that, at least talk to your RA or an advisor or someone who can contact the person. Ask the person why they did what they did, and gently tell them to stop. Also, tell them that if they don't stop, you will report them. Don't hesitate to report them, especially if you feel threatened!

If you don't know the person, report the incident immediately. Make sure the proper authorities know what has happened. If, for example, you are getting harassing phone calls, your campus phone services may be able to have the number traced (resulting in a penalty to the person who made the call) and blocked.

Before you run off screaming that it's harassment because of your religion, really analyze what happened. If it's fraternity hazing, chances are your voice won't be heard for religious rights, but a red flag will go up on frat "Hell Week," and your fraternity probably won't be too happy about it. (This is not giving a nod of approval to hazing, though!)

If you feel that even the adults aren't respecting you for your beliefs, try to seek out a "World Religions" professor and Interfaith student groups. A professor who teaches more than one religion will generally be more sympathetic and will probably be able to put you in contact with the right authorities who will give you support. Interfaith groups will give you student support and, as a group, will contact a student-level set of authorities.

If its coming from people you know, but not well enough that you want ot speak to them, DON'T. Just ignore them. They're not worth your time. While in Paris, the other kids on my program used my religion as an excuse to not invite me along to go drinking every weekend. Frankly, I'd rther spend my money on making phone calls to my REAL friends. The kids here pulled a shallow move, and I'd rather swallow broken glass laced with cyanide followed by a big gulp of lemon juice than spend an extended period of time with them, anyway. Of course, it backfired on them, because I'm hardly secretive about my religion. People know, and when I talked to them, they began to dislike the kids who were trying the smear campaign. I didn't have to lift a finger against them beause they burned their own boat!

Don't be afraid to take a stand on your rights. There is no reason for you to feel intimidated by another just because you choose a different religion. If you're worried that reporting a student is "wrong," just think of it as the Three-Fold Law giving the person the Karmic kick in the rear that they deserve for hurting you, but keep it under the law of "Harm none." This may sound contradictory, but there's nothing wrong with defending yourself by being mature and going to those who will deal with the situation. It would be wrong if you received one harassing phone call and demanded that the person be kicked out of school by the end of the week. Don't lie about what happened; just stick to the facts. In one way or another, the God and the Goddess protect their own.