Sexual Abuse and the Institutional Conspiracy of Silence
By Warren J. Blumenfeld

The allegations of sexual abuse and surrounding scandal, resulting in the firing of legendary football coach, Joe Paterno, and the president of The Pennsylvania State University, Graham Spanier, and the placement on paid administrative leave of assistant coach Mike McQueary, highlights in clear relief an overarching corporate/institutional culture of silence and cover up.

Whether it be allegations of sexual abuse of young boys over a 15-year period by former Penn State coach Jerry Sandusky; convictions of sexual abuse on young boys and girls by priests that has rocked the Catholic Church; allegations of sexual harassment by Herman Cain, former National Restaurant Association CEO and current presidential hopeful, and reported NRA cash settlements to his female accusers; or the estimated one-in-three female soldiers who experience sexual assaults by their male counterparts and higher-ups within the military establishment, institutions frequently close ranks to protect alleged perpetrators at the expense of alleged sufferers. As they model a culture of conspiratorial silence, institutions send the defiant message that they care more about their institutions’ reputations than the alleged targets of sexual harassment and assault.

On an individual level, this is also apparent, for example, in episodes of schoolyard, community-based, as well as electronic forms of bullying. According to the American Medical Association definition: “Bullying is a specific type of aggression in which the behavior is intended to harm or disturb, the behavior occurs repeatedly over time, and there is an imbalance of power, with a more powerful person or group attacking a less powerful one.”

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UPCOMING CAMPUS PRIDE WEBINAR
REGISTER NOW -- http://cplookingbeyond.eventbrite.com/

Wednesday, November 16, 2011
Looking Beyond Transgender Day of Remembrance: Educating Campus Communities about the Lives of Transgender People

Moderator: Shane Windmeyer, Campus Pride

Guest Presenters: Genny Beemyn, Ph.D, Director, The Stonewall Center, UMass Amherst & Nancy Jean Tubbs, Director, LGBT Resource Center, University of California, Riverside

3 p.m. EST - $95 per site includes web recording

Description: Although transgender and gender nonconforming people have become more visible on college campuses and in the media and popular culture over the last decade, many cisgender (non-transgender) faculty, staff, and students lack even a basic understanding of the lives of transgender individuals. Clearly work must be done to educate campus communities. This webinar will focus on how institutions can implement a campus-wide transgender ally training program or offer transgender ally training sessions for specific departments and offices. The presenters, who have extensive experience conducting transgender-focused trainings and presentations on college campuses, will discuss their strategies for educating different audiences and share the handouts and exercises that they use in different training sessions.

Participants will gain knowledge on:

DEADLINE EXTENDED UNTIL DECEMBER 5, 2011
APPLY NOW

More info online at www.CampusPride.org/VoiceandAction

National award recognizes outstanding contributions of college student leaders across the country; Application process closes on December 5, 2011

CHARLOTTE, NC; November 10, 2011 – Today Campus Pride (www.campuspride.org) is reminding everyone that there is still time left to submit applications for the Voice & Action National Leadership Award, an honorary recognition highlighting the extraordinary contributions of young adult leaders at colleges and universities across the United States. For the fourth year, the national award is the only one nationally focused on the work of undergraduate college students who are creating positive change for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender (LGBT) and ally issues. The application process closes on Monday, December 5, 2011.

“Young adults have always been a force locally in communities and on college campuses creating systemic, long term change -- but seldom are they recognized for their efforts nationally,” said Shane Windmeyer, Executive Director of Campus Pride. “The Voice & Action Award gives ongoing visible national recognition where it has long been overdue.”

Shane Windmeyer, LGBT activist and co-founder of Campus Pride, came on the show to discuss a variety of LGBT issues that impact students on college and university campuses.

Topics for the show included: ROTC on campus as it relates to DADT, Lady Gaga and university administrators, roommate matching and campus housing, the It Gets Better project, NC State and free speech, and some of Campus Pride’s initiatives. Overall, it was an info-packed episode of Student Affairs Live!

Go to http://higheredlive.com/tag/campus-pride/

Campus Pride Favorite New Books
THE LIVES OF TRANSGENDER PEOPLE

by Genny Beemyn and Susan R. Rankin
NOW AVAILABLE
Buy online at http://cup.columbia.edu/book/978-0-231-14306-6/the-lives-of-transgender-...

Responding to a critical need for greater perspectives on transgender life in the United States, Genny Beemyn and Susan (Sue) Rankin apply their extensive expertise to a groundbreaking survey—one of the largest ever conducted in the U.S.—on gender development and identity-making among transsexual women, transsexual men, crossdressers, and genderqueer individuals. With nearly 3,500 participants, the survey is remarkably diverse, and with more than 400 follow-up interviews, the data offers limitless opportunities for research and interpretation.

Individuals, Celebrities, Media Figures and Corporations Joining Forces
to Support LGBT Youth

Last fall, the nation mourned after the suicide deaths of more than a dozen young people who were LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender) or perceived to be LGBT. These tragic losses and the reports that these youth were bullied because of their sexual orientation or gender identity sparked a nationwide conversation about bullying, especially with regard to LGBT young people. Their stories also inspired a movement toward encouragement, which included Spirit Day (10/20) and the "It Gets Better" Project.

Unfortunately, many LGBT young people continue to face bullying and harassment:

• A 14-year-old boy from Williamsville, NY, named Jamey Rodemeyer died by suicide last month. He endured near-constant anti-gay bullying at school and online.
• In early October, a teenager at Sequoyah High School in Madisonville, Tenn.,says he was physically assaulted by his own principal for wearing a shirt that supported the formation of a Gay-Straight Alliance at the school.
• Last Friday, the LGBT teen son of a City Councilor in Ottawa, Ontario, died by suicide.
• Just this weekend, vandals spray-painted the words "F*GS BURN" and "DIE" on the entrance to the LGBT center at North Carolina State University.

These stories are why this year’s Spirit Day is just as important as last year’s.

"Hate crimes conjure up gale forces of controversy in pretty much every setting. Some say hate and discourtesy motivate most crimes, so there’s no need to make distinctions between motivations. Others find this mindset entirely too broad and believe a hate crime should be considered anywhere discrimination against sexuality, race, ethnicity and/or disability plays a significant role in deciding who gets targeted. Just about the only thing everyone agrees upon (except conspiracy theorists, of course) is the fact that many perpetrators do actually select victims on biased, -ism-oriented bases, they just argue over the exact definition. And legalities, of course.

Everyone can jump at each other’s throats all day, but it doesn’t change the fact that, right now, the American government recognizes hate crimes, and punishes those found guilty of them harsher. As long as criminals get convicted under such terms, articles such as this will keep sprouting up. Regardless of one’s opinions on the justice components, that doesn’t change the fact that some horrible people still laser-guide their hate towards minority demographics. Seeing as how 11.4% of hate crimes happen on college campuses, students must absolutely receive a thorough education regarding their causes and prevention.

With each week that passes, I read of another college campus that is either looking into or implementing changes to current policies in order to enhance trans-inclusion on campus. I posted a blog in late July about USF offering trans-inclusive housing, this blog is now an update of campuses that I've found have recently made steps in a positive direction for their transgender students.

I was happy to see another college in the Midwest begin making improvements to their housing policy when I read that Grand Valley State University in Michigan has added "gender neutral" as an option to the student's housing form. The article stated, "students can now request a specific person to room with regardless of gender, or be matched with others who check the option.' The article noted that 50 small-universities nation-wide now have a gender-neutral or gender-blind policy in order to improve students sense of safety within their housing structures. UCLA also announced this week that they are looking into this policy as well.

In bigger news, I've now learned of three Universities that have passed student health insurance plans which will include coverage of transition related needs, meaning therapy, hormones and surgeries needed for treatment of GID (Gender Identity Disorder). While attending WPATH (World Professional Association for Transgender Health) Conference in Atlanta, Georgia three weeks ago the President of the college spoke about the process their campus went through to include transition-related health coverage within their student policy for Fall of 2011.

EXCERPT -- Read the entire AP Story online at http://news.yahoo.com/most-us-colleges-not-asking-sexual-orientation-084...

By TAMMY WEBBER - Associated Press

ELMHURST, Illinois (AP) — Gary Rold didn't necessarily consider himself a pioneer when he decided that Elmhurst College would begin asking applicants about their sexual orientation.

"I thought from the recruitment standpoint we might be more proactive" in attracting gay and lesbian students, said Rold, admissions dean at the small, private liberal arts school tucked in a middle-class Chicago suburb. He also wanted to make sure the students got any help they needed. "I realized that many of them come to college feeling really isolated and alienated."

Rold's decision touched off a flurry of publicity after advocates for gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) students lauded Elmhurst as the first in the nation to ask applicants about sexual orientation — an idea that has gotten little traction elsewhere. Now the question is, will other colleges follow suit?

Advocates say that besides being a recruiting tool to help diversify campuses, openly assessing a school's LGBT population would make colleges more aware of needs such as finding tolerant roommates and providing appropriate health care. And it would send a positive message to prospective students who may have faced discrimination in high school.

But officials at other colleges, especially those that are large and well-known, say they don't need to ask because they already have reputations for being diverse and inclusive, and a student's sexual orientation would have no bearing on admission. Others wonder if some schools worry about the controversy such a question might generate.

Nevertheless, the idea of asking about sexual orientation is not likely to go away.