Campus GSA offers a safe space for all

Can you openly walk into school holding the hand of your signficant other? When asking someone out on date are you confident you won't be rejected based on perceived soceital norms? Do you ever feel others are judging you and need somewhere to turn? Have you ever been made fun of because people perceived you as being "different?"

The LBCC Gay Straight alliance (GSA) is a campus club that welcomes all LBCC students and faculty who are part of, or are sympathetic to the needs and concerns of the LGBT community.

According to the U.S. Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA; an agency within the U.S. Dept. of Health and Human Services), bullying is defined as "aggressive behavior that is intentional and involves an imbalance of power or strength," and often "is repeated over time."

The HRSA has produced an entire website designed to educate students and parents with regard to bullying, how to recognize it, and how to diminsh the occurance and it's effects. That website can be found here.

The HRSA informational material points out that according to The National School Climate Survey,

"three-quarters of the high school students surveyed heard derogatory and homophobic remarks “frequently” or “often” at school, and 90 percent heard the term “gay” used generally to imply someone is stupid or something is worthless. Bullying around issues of sexual orientation, non-conforming gender behaviors and dress was the most common form of bullying, second only to issues of appearance (e.g., body size and disability)."

In another 2005 poll,

"60 percent of students (aged 13-18) had been verbally or physically harassed or assaulted during the past school year because of real or “perceived race/ethnicity, disability, gender, sexual orientation, gender expression, or religion." Over half of these incidences were thought to be based on sexual orientation alone."

and in another survey of teens conducted by the National Mental Health Association (NMHA),

"78 percent of teens reported that kids who are gay or who are thought to be gay are teased or bullied in their schools and communities; 93 percent hear other youth use derogatory words about sexual orientation at least once in a while, and 51 percent hear these words every day."

For individuals in need of help and encouragement, please watch the videos from the It Gets Better Project, and maybe post one of your own as well. There are currently over 1 million youtube.com channel views and over 14,000 subscribers to this project.

Currently in her second year as campus advisor for the GSA, Karelia Stetz-Waters says that "One of the reasons why this club is so important to me right now is because of the findings of a recent study (2010: The State of Higher Education for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender People; a national college climate survey conducted by the Q research institute for higher education) that shows students who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender do not feel much more comfortable on college campuses now than they did 30 years ago."

When asked about the GSA's primary purpose and goal, she replied "I want the GSA to be a safe place for students, staff, and faculty of all sexual orientations to meet, make friends, and talk. Next, I would like to see the club work to make the entire campus community a safe place for everyone. Homophobia and the ensuing bullying doesn’t just hurt gays and lesbians. It hurts everyone, because it makes the campus unfriendly and unsafe."

The campus GSA needs participation from the straight community as much as it needs participation from the LGBT community to bring people together to help focus on the things that make us the same, de-emphasize our differences, and help us all come together as a community.

If you are concerned about any of these things or are concerned about people who are, the GSA needs you!

At a glance box:

The Gay-Straight Alliance

Purpose: To provide a place for like minded people to meet and discuss the concerns of the LGBT community.

When: Mondays at 2 p.m.

Where: The Diversity Achievement Center (DAC), Forum room 220

Upcoming events: National Coming Out day, Oct. 11th; Bullying presentation at 12-12:50 in the DAC

Advisor contacts: Karelia Stetz-Waters & Greg Mulder