Pedro Lander ’15

Name: Pedro LanderYear: SeniorHometown: Caracas, VenezuelaMajor/minor: Mass Communications: PR/ DanceRelationship Status: Single

HC (Her Campus): So you’re from Venezuela! What brought you to Winona?PL (Pedro Lander): I was in search of a better life opportunity. Leaving the country finding independence and kind of finding myself and looking at what will bring me the best life outlook.

HC: What activities are you involved with on campus?PL: Mainly dance. I am currently in rehearsals for two dance pieces for Dancescape which is in February. One piece with Kim Nofsinger, who is a guest artist, and one with Jackue Paulson, who is faculty, and I’m also choreographing for it so that takes six hours total a week. I’m also a Spanish tutor so that keeps my grammar in Spanish going.

HC: How would you describe your style?PL: I go with comfort but I think that looking good makes me feel good. So never sweatpants, never. I think you can find comfort in fashion forward clothing. Sneakers are a no-no for me. If you’re going to the gym, bring them in your backpack. I don’t wear my dance clothes to class.. I feel that you gotta look good, you know? And if you go to a big city that’s what happens. It doesn’t matter if its all crazy or if some days I’m feeling wearing printed pants or some shirts I find in the women’s section and its very gender neutral. It’s all about finding whatever feels good and looks good.

HC: Is there one thing that defines who you are today?PL: Wow, many things. I really can’t answer one thing. I feel that everything has informed the way that I do me. Everything. The friends that I’ve met, the ones that are not my friends anymore, those interactions. Basically, people, if I were to choose one thing, and how I’ve interacted with them. People have definitely shaped me.

HC: Lets hear about your ideal date.PL: I think the perfect date would be doing any kind of outdoorsy activity, either climbing, kayaking, or yoga. And in a sunset. Then after that you get the endorphins going and that enhances your chemistry, having some wine and cheese. After that you can get to know that person, so don’t sweat too much in the outdoor activity but just enough so you can get the pheromones going. And then wine. Wine is a must. If things go well you can go dance, depending on how much wine you’ve had.

HC: In honor of national coming out week, could you share your coming out story with us?PL: I come from a very Catholic family and they are very religious. My brother is studying to be a priest. I have always been a very sensitive person and instead of letting it out, I wrote down a couple times and subconsciously I kind of wanted that to be my way. My family is not very into speaking about issues but rather keeping them and pretending that nothing is wrong. So one day those papers disappeared so I was like, okay now I need to figure this out. I finally talked to my mom and I was like, “these papers disappeared and I know you have them.” It ended up being the lady that cleaned the house, that’s a Venezuelan thing where you have people coming in even if you’re middle or lower class, you still have people coming in to clean your house, so she took the papers and gave them to my sister, and my sister and I do not have a good relationship. So my sister freaked out, thank God she first talked to my aunt and my aunt told her to calm down, and then my aunt gave the papers to my mom. Then I talked to my mom. It was all this drama, a Venezuelan soap opera basically. After that I came out to my close family and before that I came out to my friends. I built a support system outside of my family and I had plan A, B, and C in case I were to be kicked out of my house. So I made all these plans before coming out to my family but they didn’t kick me out. Even though the situation right now is fuzzy and blurry, it’s still much better than when I started. It’s something we don’t talk about over dinner but it is something I continuously address when I’m with them. It’s still hard but I think that it would be harder if I just kept it to myself.

HC: What was your brother’s response?PL: He was the first one in my family that I came out to, the priest one, and he basically told me I was going to hell, I was going to be unhappy, I was going to be a drug addict, a nymphomaniac, that my sin was equally as bad as pedophiles, murderers, and robbers, so like, total douchebag. So that was really intense. So now I’m still working through those messages but thankfully I’ve focused on getting a support system. Wherever I go I create meaningful friendships. That’s what matters. And just focusing on myself and still understanding who I am supposed to make happy is myself.

HC: Do you have any advice for LGBT youth?PL: The most important thing is to be happy and love yourself and to spread that love. In the words of Ru Paul, “If you don’t love yourself, how the hell are you going to love somebody else?”

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