QNOC Digest 2009.07.12

Queer News On Campus [QNOC] Articles Digest
For the week ending 2009.07.12

Brought to you by the Consortium of Higher Education LGBT Resource Professionals. http://www.lgbtcampus.org

Archives of the QNOC Digest can be found at http://queernewsoncampus.blogspot.com

Reminder: If you come across articles that should be included in the digest, please email a link to the article to articles@lgbtcampus.org


1. Chicago Sun-Times - Men, women share U. of C. rooms
2. Colorado Daily - CU's 'Transgender 101': Born in the wrong body
3. The Times of India - Govt for gay-bashing ban on campuses
4. Diverse Issues in Higher Education - Non-Discrimination Policies and Support Groups Help Ease Campus Life for Gay and Lesbian Students at HBCUs
5. Minneapolis Daily - Obama needs to move on gay rights
6. Inside Higher Ed - Rights for Some People
7. 365Gay.com - NEA calls for LGBT rights
8. Inside Higher Ed – Quick Takes: Gay Students Respond to Anti-Gay Prof With Call for Discussion
9. Inside Higher Ed - Long Distance Mom: Gay Pride


1. Chicago Sun-Times, July 6, 2009
350 N. Orleans St., 10th Floor, Chicago, IL 60654
http://www.suntimes.com/news/education/1653231,CST-NWS-mixedsex06.article
Men, women share U. of C. rooms
By Dave Newbart

Charlie Barlow plans to room with one of his best friends next semester at the University of Chicago: Lauren "Lulu'' Danzig.

The two are among 50 students who will take advantage of a new policy allowing male and female undergraduates to room together -- something that was forbidden throughout the 117-year history of the Hyde Park school.

For 19-year-olds Danzig and Barlow, it's not a romantic thing: She already has a boyfriend on campus. She says she simply prefers to live with men, and Barlow is a very close friend.

"I tend to get along better with guys,'' she said. Still, she said, she couldn't imagine sharing a dorm room with her boyfriend.

Although the policy is not aimed at romantic relationships, boyfriends and girlfriends aren't prohibited from living together because the U. of C. will not ask why students want to be roommates, officials said.

The change in policy was debated for the last couple of years after advocates for transgender students pushed the university to allow "gender neutral'' housing. They said some transgender students feel uncomfortable rooming with students of the same biological sex when they actually identify with the opposite sex.

After a series of public forums and campus study, the program was piloted last semester with 10 students, although it was dubbed "open housing'' and was only for upperclassmen. Freshmen are still assigned roommates of the same sex.

Matthew Kennedy, the past student government president who helped craft the policy, said the program allows older students the option to live with whomever they choose.

"People can really seek out the living arrangements that make them feel the most comfortable,'' said Kennedy, 22, of Glen Ellyn.

Katie Callow-Wright, U. of C.'s director of undergraduate student housing, said although a handful of alumni and others complained when the school was formulating the policy, since it has been in effect there has been "no complaints, no issues, no concerns.''

Said Kennedy: "For most students it doesn't matter too much to them what's happening in the room next door.''

Danzig, of Seattle, said some of her friends have joked with her about living with a guy, but she has gotten generally positive reactions. She said her roommate choice doesn't make a difference to her parents. And she said she often gets dressed in a single-sex bathroom

In some respects, the program is not that big of a change. Coed floors -- in which men and women live in separate suites on the same floor -- already existed in some residence halls on campus, as did coed bathrooms. There are still single-sex dorms, and only those who choose to participate will have a roommate of the opposite sex.

And if problems arise, a student can request an emergency transfer to another room -- just as any student could.

Kennedy said the policy shows that U. of C.'s reputation as a conservative campus is overblown.

"What the university stands for is serious inquiry, and it is open to change when change is called for,'' he said.

2. Colorado Daily, July 6, 2009
1048 Pearl Street, Boulder, CO 80302
http://www.coloradodaily.com/news/2009/jul/06/born-in-the-wrong-body/
CU's 'Transgender 101': Born in the wrong body
By Christy Fantz

BOULDER, Colo. — An insecure man in his early 30s had been lost in the discomfort of his own body since puberty.

But in 1996, a glimpse of contentment surfaced when he -- dressed as Patsy Cline -- and attended a transvestite ball with his wife in Durango.

"When I got home from the ball, I just couldn't get out of those women's clothes for about two hours. I was just so excited and keyed up. It was the most amazing feeling of my life."

Seven years later, thanks to sex reassignment surgery, that man became Angela Palermo.

"It's been great. It's been the best decision of my life and I have no regrets at all," said Palermo, who works at the University of Colorado's Norlin Library. "I was ostensibly a heterosexual male, but not very happy and not very well-adjusted."

CU health officials hope to spread that kind of hopeful message to the campus and Boulder communities at 11 a.m. Tuesday with a Transgender 101 workshop in Willard Hall.

The event will include a 90-minute screening of the Sundance Channel's "TransGeneration," an eight-episode documentary series that depicts the lives of four transgender college students in the 2004-2005 school year, including CU student Gabbie Gibson, who transitioned from male to female.

Jan Johnson, a CU psychologist and organizer of the workshop, said after that after the documentary is shown, there will be a facilitated discussion and information about resources.

"I felt like there is interest here on campus because 'TransGeneration' follows one of our students," Johnson said. "You can get a glimpse at the different kind of issues Gabbie faces while being a student at CU and also being transgender."

Steph Wilencheck, CU's Gay Lesbian Bisexual Transgender Resource Center director, said it is important to educate the public on transgender issues.

"I think trans folks are extremely discriminated against and marginalized in our society," Wilencheck said.

Wilencheck said that, just like any minority on a college campus, the added pressure of being repressed can make school difficult.

"Our campus needs to become more trans-inclusive and a safer environment so more folks can come out as trans or express their gender identity in ways that match who they are," Wilenchek said.

Palermo, the transgender CU employee, said it is important to educate people because trans individuals are part of the human population.

"We're not scary people. We're just human beings. We deserve equal treatment and full civil rights like every other American citizen," Palermo said.

"There are still huge issues," she said. "We don't have the same rights as everyone else. The religious right talks about, 'They want special rights.' No, we want the rights that everybody else has. It's not special -- you guys have the special rights, we don't have anything."

3. The Times of India, July 8, 2009
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Kolkata-/Govt-for-gay-bashing-ban-on-campuses/articleshow/4750900.cms
Govt for gay-bashing ban on campuses
By Jhimli Mukherjee Pandey and Somdatta Basu

If ragging is a crime on on campus, so is gay bashing. With that in mind, the state government has decided to introduce regulations that would make college and university campuses sensitive to the needs of gay students. The decision comes days after a landmark Delhi High Court judgment on the amendment of Article 377.

The state higher education department will seek the opinion of the universities, both affiliated and non-affiliated, on adding new clauses to the Anti Ragging Law, to help stop atrocities against gay students, if at all.

State higher education minister Sudarshan Roychowdhury said that the anti-ragging law, which is in already place, also includes within its ambit the protection of homosexuals on campus. "However, if the universities tell me that the problem of homosexuals is completely different and that they are being regularly ostracized on campus, we will certainly introduce separate regulations for them. We have to ensure that every student leads a peaceful and happy life on campus and that his/her sexual preferences should not lead to ostracization," Roychowdhury said categorically.

He, however, felt that regulations alone will not improve campus situations because it needs largescale awareness drives and sensitive handling of homosexuals by authorities. "I would want authorities to investigate on their own and tell me how deep the problem is on their respective campuses and in their affiliated colleges," Roychowdhury said, adding that teachers and authorities should look at the problem sympathetically.

The matter will come up for discussion at the West Bengal Higher Education Council also. "The court order has created a landmark and has been an eye-opener. The matter will certainly be discussed at the council and I want the vice-chancellors to use their sources to investigate how things stand in their respective campuses. This will convince them about the magnitude of the problem. All this while gays might have shied away from complaining, but I believe this court order will now embolden them," said Subimal Sen, vice chairman of the council.

Porjonyo, a former student of Scottish Church College is happy that finally authorities are getting sensitized towards the issue. Since he did his PG from Jadavpur University he has a more experiences to share. "While I was in college. there were frequent instances of harassment. Homophobia was rampant. During one of the seminars, I wanted to present a paper on gay and lesbian rights, but many were apprehensive. Someone suggested that presenting a paper on the subject might show the English department in a negative light. Hence it was scrapped," he says. Since he made no bones about his sexual preference, it made his life more difficult.

JU executive council member Partha Pratim Biswas feels that the university has a progressive campus and has always been sensitive towards gay rights. "JU is inclusive, especially towards gay students. I laud the HC order and also congratulate the state for planning separate regulations to address the needs of gays. If they are teased or taunted in class, the offenders would be severely punished," he added.

Asutosh College principal Dipak Kar says, "I am aware of ragging rules and I admit that it does cover harassment faced by gays. But a separate clause specifying punishment for harassing gays on campus is needed. If any gay student complains of harassment on campus I will certainly haul up the offenders."

Calcutta University vice-chancellor Suranjan Das was was not prepared to believe that the problem was of any great magnitude yet. "I am not aware of any such incidents of ragging of gays or even any compliant registered with us. However, we will abide by any law framed by the state."

4. Diverse Issues in Higher Education, July 7, 2009
10520 Warwick Avenue, Suite B-8, Fairfax, VA 22030-3136
http://diverseeducation.com/artman/publish/article_12697.shtml
Non-Discrimination Policies and Support Groups Help Ease Campus Life for Gay and Lesbian Students at HBCUs
By Lekan Oguntoyinbo

Earlier this year, a group of gay and lesbian students at Winston-Salem State University, a mid-sized historically Black institution in the conservative Piedmont region of North Carolina, petitioned the school’s administration to add sexual orientation to its nondiscrimination policy. The proposal was actually warmly received by many of the college’s faculty, students and administrators, according to Michael Evans, a junior at Winston-Salem State and active member of the school’s Gay Straight Student Alliance

The board of trustees voted to approve the policy and Evans says many of the group’s members feel empowered by it.

“You can actually walk to class and not feel threatened,” said Evans, a 20-year-old junior majoring in molecular biology. “At Winston-Salem State, you don’t see a lot of gay bashing but you hear a lot of remarks. This protects us from that.”

Winston-Salem State University is among a growing number of historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs) that now include sexual orientation in their non-discrimination policies. In the past six years, HBCUs have updated their policies or enacted rules to broaden the rights of gay and lesbian students and workers. These colleges include schools, such as Howard University, Spelman College, Morehouse College, and Fisk University.

The changes are a reflection of nation’s growing acceptance of homosexuality in political, social, and even religious circles. But they have also been sparked by an aggressive effort by the Human Rights Campaign (HRC), a Washington, D.C.-based gay rights advocacy group, to reach young people on historically Black campuses. The impetus for this plan came more than five years ago after several reports surfaced of violent attacks on students who were perceived to be gay on three historically Black campuses.

The plan had several components, according to the HRC.

“One strategy was ensuring that these young African-American men and women could find a safe space on their campuses and become part of a larger lesbian gay bisexual transgendered (LGBT) movement and community,” said Joey Gaskins, student diversity coordinator for HRC. “The other thing was to make these historically Black colleges into more welcoming campuses. This involves having non-discrimination policies, equal opportunity, anti-harassment policy and creating lesbian gay bi-sexual and transgendered resource centers. Research shows that LGBT students have a harder time developing into more functional adults if they don’t have this kind of support.”

HRC says 18 historically Black colleges and universities now have this policy. A total of 23 of the nation’s 115 HBCUs either have the policy or have active student organizations for lesbian and gay students, or both, said Gaskins.

“The ultimate plan is to get to every campus,” he added.

Many students on campuses where these policies exist say they notice a difference in the social climate.

“One of the changes I’ve seen is more people are comfortable openly expressing their sexual orientation,” said Michael Brewer, 23, who graduated from Morehouse with a degree in political science in May and who served as president of Morehouse SAFE SPACE, the Morehouse’s gay student group. “At the Morehouse that I entered in 2004 there were very few openly gay people. Now there’s more of a presence of the queer experience on campus.”

But Gaskins said gay students and faculty still have a long way to go. Despite the political and social gains made by gays and lesbians in this country, many segments of the African-American community frown on homosexuality and are uncomfortable discussing the subject publicly. In many African-American Christian denominations, same gender relationships are considered a sin.

Concerns expressed by African-American religious leaders like Bishop Harry Jackson, pastor of Hope Christian Church, a large evangelical church in Beltsville, Md., are common. While Jackson said he respects the right of gay and lesbian students and employees to be treated with dignity and with fairness, he is concerned about veiled attempts to promote certain lifestyles and to equate it with the struggles of ethnic minorities.

“The issue is, is gayness an immutable unchangeable characteristic?” said Jackson, who has previously led a campaign against gay marriage in Washington, D.C. “I don’t think it is. I now know a lot of people who were formerly gay who have come out of that lifestyle. I don’t know anyone who is formerly Black.”

This cultural backdrop, say observers, is an even bigger challenge than whether a college institutes a policy.

“I actually did my senior thesis on being gay or lesbian at an HBCU and what I found was that it wasn’t Howard’s environment that made people not want to come out but the fact that we have labeled the Black community as homophobic so people are afraid of rejection,” said Victoria Kirby, an openly lesbian and recent graduate of Howard who was elected the undergraduate representative to the university’s board of trustees her senior year.
At the end of the day, Gaskins said, the real empowerment comes not from policies but from ensuring that people are well informed.

“It doesn’t necessarily matter that they have policies,” said Gaskins. “Sometimes students and faculty don’t know it exists and if they do know, they don’t know how to use it as a resource. That’s why it is important that education continues.”

5. Minneapolis Daily (University of Minnesota), July 7, 2009
2221 University Ave SE. Suite 450, Minneapolis, MN 55414
http://www.mndaily.com/2009/07/07/obama-needs-move-gay-rights
Obama needs to move on gay rights
By The Daily Nebraskan (University of Nebraska)

President Obama recently hosted 250 gay rights leaders at the White House to commemorate the 40th anniversary of the police raid on the Stonewall Inn, a gay bar in Greenwich Village . While there has been a vast improvement from the active denial of gay civil rights during the Bush administration, many advocates continue to find themselves frustrated and hurt by the current president’s inaction to address the discriminatory policies of decades past.

The gay community flocked to the polls in droves to vote for this “fierce advocate” of gay rights, only to find themselves taken aback by a recent Department of Justice brief defending the 1996 Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA). The Obama administration has thus far failed to repeal the much criticized “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” policy barring openly gay servicemen and servicewomen from serving in the military, despite a recent rash of uniformed comings-out and the subsequent well-publicized courts martial.

A New York Times/CBS News poll recently showed that 57 percent of people younger than 40 support same-sex marriage, compared to only 31 percent of the 40-plus crowd. A whopping 75 percent of all age groups support the repeal of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” and the ban on homosexuals in the armed forces. Six states have already legalized gay marriage.

It’s time for the federal government to do the same. President Obama can’t simply wait for Congress to dither over the repeal of DOMA. The administration needs to take action. Part of that includes an order repealing “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” from our commander in chief.

If President Obama wants to expand health care coverage in this country, he could start with the thousands of gay couples living in states that specifically deny such benefits to same-sex partners. The same goes for survivor’s benefits, inheritance, the ability to adopt children and make medical decisions.

This editorial, accessed via UWire, was originally published in the Daily Nebraskan at the University of Nebraska. Please send comments to letters@mndaily.com.

6. Inside Higher Ed, July 8, 2009
1320 18th Street NW, 5th Floor, Washington, D.C. 20036
http://www.insidehighered.com/news/2009/07/08/nyu
Rights for Some People
By Scott Jaschik

Should someone who teaches human rights back human rights for all people?

That's the question being raised by some students at New York University's law school, who are upset that a visiting professor in the fall semester, slated to teach human rights law, is Thio Li-ann of the National University of Singapore, an outspoken opponent of gay rights. Thio has argued repeatedly and graphically that her country should continue to criminalize gay sexual acts.

In a speech to lawmakers in Singapore, Thio said that gay sex is "contrary to biological design and immoral," argued that gay people can change their sexual orientation, said that anal sex is "like shoving a straw up your nose to drink," and rejected arguments based on a diversity of sexual orientations by saying that "diversity is not license for perversity." (The text of her talk is here, and YouTube video is available in three parts -- here and here and here.)

NYU OUTLaw, a group of gay and lesbian students at the law school, last week sent an e-mail message to all students drawing attention to Thio's statements, saying that it was crucial to "raise awareness of anti-gay statements made by an NYU visiting professor" because "it is important for LGBT students and allies to be aware of her views in order to make fully informed decisions regarding class registration."

The letter does not call for the invitation to Thio to be rescinded. Ethan Park, co-chair of the group, said that the organization wanted to gather reactions before deciding what it was going to ask NYU to do, and that discussions were taking place electronically as students are scattered for summer internships.

"One of the options would be to take a strong position and demand that the law school rescind the appointment, but others say that this could be an opportunity to teach about why we have somebody at the law school who promotes hatred," he said. Park said that the group has been receiving many strong reactions from students and alumni. He said there is widespread anger over Thio's appointment, but a range of views about what to do now.

In an e-mail interview, Thio said that those who are attacking her are engaged in political correctness.

"Everyone is entitled to their opinion, free conscience, free thought -- that is a cardinal principle for every academic community. I hold to it, in my own law school, and I would expect the NYU law community to do so as well. We can be united in commitment to this principle, without slavishly bowing to a demanded uniformity or dogma of political correctness set by elite diktat. I cannot say I am impressed by this ugly brand of politicking which I hope is not endemic," she wrote.

Thio added that she "was encouraged when the president of an NYU student organization committed to free debate wrote to welcome me and to point out that the negative, prejudicial and frankly, hostile views expressed are not representative of everyone in the student body. While I am disappointed at the intolerant animosity directed at me by strangers who do not know me and have decided to act on their own prejudices, forged from whatever sources, I am nonetheless glad that there are still some at NYU, who uphold a commitment to academic freedom and who entertain dissent with respect. As a recent NYU graduate, a Muslim friend of mine said, one must have courage in the face of bullying."

On the substance of her views on gay rights, she argued in the e-mail that plenty of Americans may agree with her, and those who don't have no right to impose their values on other countries.

She wrote: "Do some Americans by appropriating the rhetoric of human rights assume they can impose their views on another sovereign state? Is there a human right to sodomy? Is this a core right or a contested one? There are countervailing views that this is the wrong way to characterize the issue -- so do students who dislike this view refuse to engage with dissenting views? Or seek to censor views they disagree with? That's hubris. I think certain Americans have to realize the fact that there are a diversity of views on the subject and it is not a settled matter; there is no universal norm and it is nothing short of moral imperialism to suggest there is. Correct me if I am wrong, but there is no consensus on this even within the U.S. Supreme Court and American society at large, even post Lawrence v. Texas." (The court case is the 2003 Supreme Court ruling that barred states from criminalizing consenting sexual acts between adults of the same sex.)

Thio will be teaching at NYU under a program that brings legal scholars from all over the world to the campus as visiting professors. John Beckman, an NYU spokesman, said that faculty panels review and select candidates based on "a record of excellent scholarship and fine teaching." He added: "Professor Thio was selected on the basis of her published academic scholarship, not on the basis of the statement she made to the Singapore Parliament as a member of that body. We believe that she will make a valuable contribution to our global classroom and to the intellectual life of the law school when she is here this fall."

Beckman also noted that the law school at NYU "has a long record of opposing discrimination based on sexual orientation, and we are well known for being a supportive home for an activist lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender community. Many in our faculty, staff, and student body will be in sharp disagreement with Professor Thio on the content of her speech, and we expect there will be a dynamic exchange on these issues."

Cary Nelson, national president of the American Association of University Professors, said that he would not advise NYU to rescind the invitation to Thio to teach there. But he said that it would be legitimate to raise questions about whether she should be teaching human rights.

"Academic freedom protects you from retaliation for your extramural remarks, but it does not protect you from being prohibited from teaching in an area where you are not professionally competent, and there are doubts on whether she has the competency in human rights," Nelson said. He said that there is in fact an "international consensus, save a few countries like Iran" that gay people should not be treated as criminals.

Nelson also said that in a tenure decision, he would judge a candidate -- however offensive his or her views on unrelated subjects -- only on a question of whether the person's scholarship and teaching in his or her discipline met appropriate standards. But in a hiring decision (whether for a visiting or permanent position), he said, it is appropriate to consider other factors, and the reality is that it's impossible to know what professors are really thinking when they vote one way or another.

Professors can appropriately ask prior to appointments, he said, whether hiring someone whose views on certain subjects are "poisonous" could limit "the department's ability to do its business."

7. 365Gay.com, July 8, 2009
http://www.365gay.com/news/nea-calls-for-lgbt-rights/
NEA calls for LGBT rights
By Jennifer Vanasco

(Washington) The National Education Association adopted two resolutions calling for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender rights at its annual conference last week.

The resolutions say that the organization opposes the “discriminatory treatment of same-sex couples and its belief that such couples should have the same legal rights and benefits as similarly-situated heterosexual couples.” They also call for the “passage of a federal statute prohibiting federal discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity and expression.” The NEA also committed itself to supporting the enactment of LGBT equality at local, state and federal levels.
The NEA falls short of asking for gay marriage - instead, it says:

“NEA does not believe that a single term must be used to designate this legally recognized “equal treatment” relationship, and recommends that each state decide for itself whether “marriage,” “civil union,” “domestic partnership,” or some other term is most appropriate based upon the cultural, social, and religious values of its citizenry.”

The National Education Association is the nation’s largest professional employee organization with over 3.2 million members. Members work at every level of education — from pre-school to university graduate programs.

Read the resolutions yourself, under “New Business Item E.”

8. Inside Higher Ed, July 9, 2009
1320 18th Street NW, 5th Floor, Washington, D.C. 20036
http://www.insidehighered.com/news/2009/07/09/qt#202997
Quick Takes: Gay Students Respond to Anti-Gay Prof With Call for Discussion

For the last week, gay and lesbian law students and their supporters at New York University have been debating what to do about the hiring of a visiting professor from Singapore, Thio Li-ann, who was hired to teach human rights law despite her record saying that gay people can have their sexual orientations changed and that gay sexual acts are appropriately treated as crimes. On Wednesday, the board of NYU OUTLaw, a gay student group, issued a statement in which it asked the administration to condemn her views, but rejected the idea of demanding that the job offer be rescinded. A statement from the group's board said that it "thinks it best to fight Dr. Thio's offensive views not by silencing her but by engaging in a respectful and productive dialogue about the boundaries of human rights. This fall, we plan to hold events to explore issues of academic freedom, LGBT rights, and human rights in Asia, and we look forward to Dr. Thio’s participation in the discussion. We very much appreciate the comments from students, alumni, and other concerned parties, and we expect the passion and interest to continue as we plan our events for next year. President Obama recently invoked Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. to affirm his belief that the 'arc of the moral universe is long but it bends towards justice.' From the cornfields of Iowa to the street markets of India, history is moving towards equality for the LGBT community. We are confident that tolerance and diversity will triumph over hatred and bigotry."

9. Inside Higher Ed, July 8, 2009
1320 18th Street NW, 5th Floor, Washington, D.C. 20036
http://www.insidehighered.com/blogs/mama_phd/long_distance_mom_gay_pride
Long Distance Mom: Gay Pride
By Elizabeth Coffman

On June 28th I found myself picking up my two teenagers in New York City to spend the rest of the summer with me in Chicago. It happened to be the 40th anniversary of the Stonewall riots and a big Gay Pride weekend. My friend, community activist Isabel Grayson, and I decided to take our kids up to Greenwich Village to see the parade.

We emerged from the train right across from the Stonewall Inn and quickly became aware of how times have changed. The announcer shouted out that Governor Paterson was in attendance, followed by Mayor Bloomberg and other city council members. Then we saw gay police officers marching and, most impressively from the announcer’s perspective, the NYC police marching band in full uniform.

The atmosphere was joyous, peaceful, happy and creative. People were selling rainbow flags on every sidewalk. (My daughter bought two.) Only the occasional protester wondered out loud why New York state recognizes gay marriages performed in other states, but has not yet legalized them in their own.

Times may have changed since Stonewall but the U.S. is still very much in the transition phase for the full acceptance of equal rights for lesbians, gays, bisexuals and transgendered people. As states battle over the gay marriage issue, and political parties, religious institutions and universities tangle with it, educators retain a crucial role in helping to end the prejudice against LGBT students and families.

After the parade, my teens and I ate brunch with a group that included a grown lesbian woman and her parents, who had attended the march with their daughter. One of the other women at the table had not yet 'come out' to her parents about her lesbian partner, and she was worried about their possible reaction to her news. The table offered her suggestions and encouragement for speaking openly with her parents while my teens listened.

Children are aware that cultural attitudes about sexuality have not yet changed completely. My son describes how his male friends frequently say “fag” and “gay” to each other, both in jest and in anger. I remind him of how 'white boys' in the '60s and '70s stopped saying “nigger” in the same manner that his friends now say “fag.” (And then we have a discussion about rap music and postmodern irony…). Importantly, my son points out that his public high school, similar to many others, now has a GSA (Gay-Straight Student Alliance), and that many students feel safer and more comfortable with being open about their sexuality at younger ages.

We can teach the history of Stonewall to our students and our children, but it won’t make a big social difference until we can help them to change their friends’ inappropriate behaviors (which is probably connected to their parents’). When parents participate in marches or insist on integrating private country clubs or protecting the safety of the gay neighbors on the block, they provide important role models of respect and equality. As civil rights movements have demonstrated throughout the past century, vocal, non-violent and creative forms of protest eventually do make a difference. Especially for our children…

_________________________________________________________________
In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107 regarding fair use of copyrighted work, this material is distributed without profit for information, research, and educational purposes. The Consortium has no affiliation whatsoever with the originators of these articles nor is the Consortium endorsed or sponsored by the originators.

Questions or concerns should be directed to articles@lgbtcampus.org