It’s the funniest thing, this annual fashion show.

Every year when Jeans Day comes, most NIU students hit the closets and look for anything but jeans. They’ve got their sweats, their skirts, their shorts, their camouflage pants and their dressy pants.

What happened to all their jeans?

Despite the lack of them denim blue thangs, and what many Jeans Day supporters might think, the day was an ultimate success. It was something that affected the entire campus and brought them to their feet, good or bad.

Most people wear jeans everyday. Most of them never even think about it. They get up from bed and pull ‘em on. No thought involved.

On Jeans Day, though, it’s a different case. Whatever it is about this day—this day meant to raise human rights awareness—they search their drawers for anything but jeans.

That’s the first sign the day is doing something: They changed their routines and didn’t wear jeans.

But is this what the Gay/Lesbian Union wants? Everyone apparently knows about their cause but so few are supporting it. Is Jeans Day working?

Could be. The few people that did wear jeans Wednesday were the victims of a subtle ostracism. They had to endure strange looks, stares, hidden mumbles and repressed laughter.

The GLU has found an interesting way to foster that feeling. So few people know what it’s like to spend every day as some sort of sideshow attraction—the center of everyone’s glare because you’re….”different.”

If all goes well, the reverse is true. Maybe the people who spent all day checking to see who wore jeans and who didn’t will sit back and realize what they’ve done.

They tried to single out people because of a difference. They probably didn’t even realize what they were doing, but they did it. There were the funny looks, the gaping mouths and inside, the doubts:

“Is that person gay? Why’d they wear those jeans? Don’t they know what day it is?”

And, of course, the greatest misconception of Jeans Day made itself known: Anyone who wears jeans on Jeans Day must be homosexual. Wrong.

People wear jeans on that day to support gay rights. Just because there’s a pair of jeans running down those legs doesn’t mean those legs are attached to a homosexual.

The real problem with Jeans Day is many students feel trapped. They don’t want to wear jeans because they’re afraid of the ostracism and criticism. On the other hand, they don’t want to wear non-jeans because they’re afraid they might look like a bigot, or someone who doesn’t support the cause.

And, when stuck in a situation like this, most will opt for the non-jeans alternative. They were able to avoid the discrimination. How nice.

The thing is, gays and lesbians just can’t change their jeans. The other thing is, gays and lesbians can’t change at all. They’re what they are, just like heterosexuals are what they are. It’s time to learn that.

So even if it seemed like Jeans Day was a flop, it wasn’t, because everyone got a chance to walk in another person’s jeans. And there’s no better way to learn.