Russia has become increasingly famous for not only hosting the winter Olympics, but also for the increased violence towards their LGBTQ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer/ questioning) community since a law passed that outlawed openly gay people. This anti-gay policy brings up the question of how the LGBTQ community is treated at LSU.
A group on campus called Spectrum is dedicated to providing education about the LGBTQ community to those who may not understand. They also focus on promoting a safe social space for LSU’s LGBTQ community from the intolerance present in other areas of the world such as Russia and in their own backyard.
The President of Spectrum Melanie Stapleton, explains that their organization is dedicated to bettering the LGBTQ community at LSU and in Baton Rouge.
Spectrum’s Education Advocacy Coordinator Michael Beyer explains that there is a lot of misunderstanding about the community on campus, particularly pertaining to the transgender population.
Beyer shared a personal story of a time where he asked to see an LSU therapist who was “queer friendly.” The counselor told him that 50% of gay men are lying about being gay because they were sexually abused as kids and that made them gay. He stated that it seems like the administration doesn’t always consider queer issues when approaching such situations.
Blair Brown, the Events Committee Co-chair explains that on LSU’s campus there is a dichotomy. Half of LSU seems to be accepting of the community and the other half are not so open and typically use derogatory language towards members of the LGBTQ community.
To try and bring those parts of LSU together, Spectrum holds educational panels for classes at LSU and around the state. They also host Annual Queer Conference which this year will have Mason Davis, the executive director of the transgender law cent, as the keynote speaker.
Brown explains that they are not trying to change anyone’s mind, but give people the vocabulary to be able to talk about these issues in an educated way.
Spectrum also helps by getting involved in legislative issues. They support the Employment and Non-Discrimination Act and Fair Housing Bill which would provide fair treatment for members of the LGBTQ community in employment and housing.
LSU Office of Multicultural affairs website also offers a program called First Contact which will provide a counselor of sorts to anyone who may be treated in a negative way due to their sexual orientation. This and more information can be found on the office’s website as well as Spectrum’s Facebook page.