The Gay Straight Alliance (GSA) at Lewis University held an event Jan. 27 to discuss controversial issues facing the gay community. Lewis faculty members, Dr. Clare Komoroske Rothschild, assistant professor of the theology department and Dr. George Miller, professor and chair of the philosophy department, enlightened attendees about the Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender (GLBT) struggles and myths for a better understanding to help set aside prejudice on college campuses.
Christians are taught through Bible teachings that God did not approve of homosexuals. Rothschild gave an account of the religious interpretation of the scriptures relating to the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah.
The compelling accounts of Rothschild’s religious interpretation paved a way for Miller to account for myths that are commonly associated with the gay community. Attendees of the GLBT presentation on the myths and fallacies were further intrigued with statistics of hate crimes against the gay community. In over 1,500 hate crimes, it was the gay individual who was the victim and not the attacker. Miller then asked, “Where are the gay gangs causing destruction in Romeoville?”
In many cases, it is the gay community that is constantly subjected to discrimination within American society. In 29 states, it is allowable for potential
employers to discriminate against an individual based on his or her sexual orientation. That is why Miller will tell anyone that he is not a gay activist, but rather a human rights activist.
According to stateline.org, there are currently six states that recognize same sex marriages. In 1996 Congress passed the federal Defense Of Marriage Act barring federal recognition of same-sex marriages and allowed states to ignore gay marriages performed elsewhere, which gave state legislation the right to deny basic human rights.
The institution of marriage goes beyond the sexual parameters and extends towards the emotional bonds of two individuals. When the bonds of marriage are performed, the state and federal government affords couple’s rights that are otherwise denied to domestic partners.
Miller asked the audience to shed the superstitions that individuals inherited from past opinions and to start recognizing the discrimination of gays as a human rights epidemic. Withfinger pointing of who is to blame prevalent in society and on college campuses across the nation, the question to be asked should be: “What can we do?” Miller’s response is simple: education. He insists that the multicultural education on diversity should be embedded within the curriculum in schools to educate the youth about the truth in relation to homosexuality and to expel many of the fallacies that resonate from the heterosexual community.
Society looks towards the
academic and religious sectors for advice and guidance on social issues plaguing the global spectrum. It is the responsibility of those authoritative positions to act in an un-bias and respectful way. It is said that individuals fear what they know little about, so it makes sense in this situation that educating will dispel the myths and fallacies of homosexuality.
Tonya Peterson
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