From: Ana Roca CAMPUS NETWORK Florida Coalition for Equal Rights in Education Volume 1, Issue 1 Fall 1993 Co-editors: Ana Roca and Helena Alonso WILL REED LEAD? WHAT HAS YOUR CHANCELLOR DONE FOR GAY RIGHTS AT OUR STATE UNIVERSITIES? Florida Board of Regents (BOR) Chancellor Charles Reed, at the Tallahassee July 31, 1992 pioneering meeting with the Florida Coalition for Equal Rights in Education (FCERE) and members of United Faculty of Florida (UFF), questioned the existence of discrimination against gays or lesbians. His reasoning? His office had not been receiving reports or complaints on this issue. By the end of the meeting with students and faculty from all over Florida, the Chancellor agreed to work with Coalition and to support legislation protecting gays and lesbians. he asserted that he could not, however, offer protection via a nondiscrimination university system policy because such protection isn't included in state or federal laws. Faculty and top ranking administrators supportive of the requested change, are now frustrated because of the lack of significant interest, legal research, or lobbying by the BOR in this area, and especially by the lack of leadership on this important civil rights issue on the part of the Chancellor. The Florida Coalition for Equal Rights in Education is a grass-roots, all-volunteer, statewide network of supporters (faculty, administrators, students, and other allies) for equal civil rights in education. One of the primary goals of the group is to get the BOR to include protection to individuals based on sexual orientation. That kind of official protection would help safeguard not just students, but also state employees and prospective students. At the first-of-its-kind meeting with gay/lesbian rights advocates, Dr. Reed said, that he did not "condone or want to tolerate" any kind of harassment. He added that students, professors and advisers have a duty to report any cases they know of, promising to step in if the allegations were not taken seriously. In the meantime, while Reed avowed that he did not know of any discrimination against homosexuals in Florida's nine state universities, James Parry, the associate vice-chancellor of labor relations for the SUS--as reported in Tampa Tribune--acknowledged that discrimination against homosexuals does exist on state campuses. However, Parry added that he had not heard "a parade of horribles" that lends a sense of urgency to the issue. While acknowledging the need to document anti-gay/anti- lesbian harassment and discrimination, FIU professor Ana Roca pointed out to Reed that, because of the lack of protection, people are afraid to come forward and report such occurrences-a real Catch-22. Professors fear denial of tenure or promotion; administrators are afraid of further harassment from peers or of getting a lower grade from a professor who is homophobic. Florida Atlantic University professor of communications, Fred Fejes, described to Reed the often hostile atmosphere on campus. He said that gays and lesbians are subject to taunting and sometimes to violent attacks and emphasized that the issue is the "bigotry and hatred that exists on campuses." The Florida Legislature did pass a bill amending the State Hate Crimes Act. This new legislation broadened the Act to include more severe penalties for any felony or misdemeanor which evidences prejudice based on race, color, ancestry, ethnicity, religion, sexual orientation, or national origin of the victim. The nondiscrimination polices that the Florida state university system have in place offer protection from discrimination based on all of the above categories, plus age, marital status, and handicap. However, they do not include sexual orientation. Chancellor Reed has denied expansion of the nondiscrimination policies to include sexual orientation by saying that the BOR is not allowed to enact protection beyond existing state or federal laws--he uses the argument that he cannot give something away that he does not have, and insists that without state or federal law he cannot grant the request of the Coalition. the Coalition, however, has pointed out that the University of North Florida protects persons from discrimination based on political affiliation and that other state universities offer protection base on union membership, both provisions not spelled out in state or federal laws. Coalition organizer Ana Roca, of FIU, has shared with Dr. Reed and Nancy Stepina, Esq., Director of Governmental Relations (BOR), the long list of both public and private colleges and universities and entire state university systems that have enacted policies which often go beyond the laws of their states. Write Chancellor and ask him to take a real leadership role in this area, like many of his counterparts have done all across the nation. Let him know that you support a BOR approval of expansion of the nondiscrimination policy in the SUS and that you would like his governmental relations office to lobby the Florida Legislature for equal protection under the law. Write to: Dr. Charles B. Reed, Chancellor, Board of Regents, State University System of Florida, 325 West Gaines Street, Tallahassee, FL 32399-1950. Send a copy of your letter to your university president, to the United Faculty of Florida, and to your legislators. by Ana Roca, Department of Modern Languages Florida International University ARE YOUR RETIREMENT BENEFITS REALLY YOURS? MAYBE.. Disparate treatment between persons who are married and single (or divorced/widowed) is not uncommon in American society. Take, for example, that annual task demanded by our nation, filing your income tax. Overall, married persons pay less when filing jointly than those of us who are single. Or consider the U.S. military, an institution that has elevated such distinctions to an art form with respect to housing, meal allowances and health care. It has recently been brought to my attention that even the State of Florida treats its single and married employees differently when it comes to the state retirement program. (Note: this does not apply to optional retirement plans.) I share this information with you as a word of warning and as a call to action. It is well known that state employees are generally paid significantly less than our private-sector counterparts. But, as legislators are quick to point out, we enjoy health and retirement benefits that are implicitly meant to compensate for our dismal wages. Retirement benefits are especially important to us. This is our "nest egg," an investment in our future comforts. Furthermore, a retirement is some thing we earn over the tenure of our employment. Reaching that "vested" benchmark means eligibility for those benefits at some point in the future. But single state employees in Florida are not treated equally under certain aspects of our retirement system. Once an employee is vested, it is generally agreed that they will be eligible for some level of benefits upon retirement. But what happens to those benefits if, after being vested and prior to retirement, you unexpectedly pass away? If you are married or have financial dependents (generally, minor children), your spouse and dependents are eligible to draw on the "nest egg" you have earned. But, if you are single, divorced or widowed without financial dependents, no one--not your mother, your adult children or your lover regardless of wills or beneficiary statements--will ever enjoy the toils of your dedication to the State of Florida. In fact, it will be the State who reaps your benefits as they revert back to the state coffers. As you might imagine, gay and lesbian state employees especially suffer from this policy. Perhaps by sharing this information with our heterosexual colleagues who are single, widowed, divorced or simply interested in issues of equality, we might be able to garner support to bring pressure on the state legislature. Incidentally, the appropriate legislature committee is well aware of this disparate treatment and would just as soon "keep it quiet" since they view it as a fiscal measure. Until there is a policy change, however, we must take care of our own. Colleagues who are terminally ill should generally not be encouraged to "remain on the payroll" by using sick leave if they are eligible for retirement under the state system. By doing so, they risk losing entitlements to the state coffers and may leave their survivors without the "nest egg" they have earned over the years. State employees should also be aware that there is "lag time" between filing the retirement paperwork and the actual date of retirement. As always, you should consult your personnel office prior to making any decisions, but be sure that you ask "the right questions" given your status as a single person. by Rebecca Mae Salokar, Department of Political Science Florida International University UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA ORGANIZES GAY/LESBIAN/BISEXUAL CONCERNS COMMITTEE A newly appointed committee at UF is focusing upon the concerns of gay/lesbian/bisexual students, faculty, and staff. Appointed as an advisory committee to Provost Andrew Sorensen, it is chaired by Dr. Sheila K. Dickison, Associate Dean of Liberal Arts and Sciences. Committee members have worked primarily on constructing a survey to gather information about quality of life issues for GLB students, faculty, and staff. It was felt that we need to document discrimination the prejudice in order to build a case for including "sexual orientation" in the university's nondiscriminatory policy. The committee has been encouraged to believe that UF top administrators will support an effort to include sexual orientation in our nondiscrimination statements, understanding, however, that change needs to be made on a SUS wide level. The office for Student Services at UF also has a Committee on Sexism and Homophobia. This committee has been instrumental in bringing workshops to campus on homophobia and programming on GLB issues during People Awareness Week. The Division of Student Affairs recently sponsored a staff development workshop on GLB issues in which Dr. Nancy Evans (co-editor or Beyond Tolerance; Gays, Lesbians, and Bisexuals or Campus) was a guest presenter. The workshop was attended by over 70 people representing various student affairs staff, such as financial aid counselors, career resource personnel, counseling center and housing staff, and athletic association representatives. The workshop emphasized how heterosexuals can become "allies" in fighting the oppression which is directed against GLB people. Gay rights is a "hot" issue in the Gainseville community, and the best and worst of local government has been displayed. County commissioners were asked by the local chapter of NOW to include sexual orientation in Alachua county's antidiscrimination ordinance. The commission conducted a series of hearings over a period of a year, and finally voted "yes" to include sexual orientation in the county's ordinance this spring. Last summer, Gainesville city commissioners countered by voting against the proposal, and passed a statement against including sexual orientation, implying that doing so would open the door to such deviancy as necrophilia and bestiality. by Mary A. Fukuyama University of Florida GAY/LESBIAN STUDIES COURSES ENRICH CURRICULUM AT FLORIDA ATLANTIC UNIVERSITY Since January 1993, FAU has witnessed a number of gay/lesbian affirmative events and activities. In the Spring 1993, a gay/lesbian students course was offered by the Communications Department. Although it was added on short notice and not well-publicized, 15 students signed up and completed the course. During the summer, a graduate course was offered in the History Department on Afro-American Identify/Gay- Lesbian Identity. This course was over-enrolled. Also last summer, the university library exhibited books, articles and materials on gay and lesbian studies. During the week of October 10, Lambda United, the Gay and Lesbian student group at FAU sponsored a week of Lesbian/Gay awareness which was funded in part by the student government. Among the activities taking place was a concert by the cabaret team of Romanowsky and Phillips. There was a gay and lesbian teach-in, in which various gay and lesbian faculty talked about their work and other issues associated with being gay or lesbian in academia; and a speech by Jose Zuniga on gays in the military. FAU President Anthony Cantanese created a special task force on bias-free communication, charged with drafting guidelines for official university publications and communications. Relying heavily on a similar document compiled at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, the task force drew up a five-page document which includes sections on gender, race and ethnicity, age, and disability, and a section on how to communicate in a non-hetrosexist manner. The guidelines are now a part of the official University policy and are published in the FAU catalogue. Also, the University's Cultural Diversity Committee conducted a survey of 750 University students and staff (4,000 questionnaires were distributed) dealing with issues of perceptions and relations among various groups on campus. A number of questions dealt with gays and lesbians. Both students and employees indicated a strong belief in nondiscrimination of gays and lesbians; however, 505 of the students objected to having a roommate with a different sexual orientation. by Fred Fejes, Department of Communications Florida Atlantic University GET WITH THE PROGRAM, FLORIDA! Among the many colleges and universities which already have official nondiscrimination policies including protection for gays are: Massachusetts Institute of Technology, New York University, City University of New York (includes 17 campuses), University of Michigan, University of California (includes all 9 campuses), California State University (includes all 23 campuses), Amherst College, Barnard College, Brown University, Yale University, Ohio State University, Cornell College Dartmouth College, Harvard University, Princeton University, Radcliffe College, Rutgers University, Stanford University, University of Illinois-Champaign- Urbana, University of New Hampshire, University of Wisconsin at Madison, Williams College, the University of Pennsylvania, the University of Chicago, the University of Nebraska, and the University of Iowa. Among the corporations who support the lesbian and gay rights movement and have a nondiscrimination policy including sexual orientation, are: General Motors Corps., Miller-Brewing Company, AT&T, Citicorp, IBM, ABC, Bank of America, General Cinema, Knight-Ridder Newspapers, J.C. Penny, Pitney Bowes, Rockwell International, Sears Roebuck, Union Carbide, American Express, Bell & Howell, Eli Lilly Co., Johnson & Johnson, Honeywell Inc., Scott Paper Co., CBS., General Electric., Merrill Lynch, SCM Corp., Eastman Kodak, Revlon, Hoover Co., Metropolitan Life Insurance, Mutual Life Insurance of New York, Adolph Coors Co., Chemical Bank, McGraw-Hill, People's Energy Corp., Oscar Meyer, Irving Trust Co., Firestone Tire & Rubber, and Colgate- Palmolive. ----------------------------------------------------- Campus Network is a grass-roots, volunteer-staffed publication of the Florida Coalition for Equal Rights in Education, a statewide network of individuals committed to equal treatment and opportunity in educated regardless of a person's sexual orientation or other irrelevant criteria. This publication is not published at the expense of the SUS. Campus Network is not copyrighted and the views expressed here are the views of the individual authors. The Florida Coalition requests that proper credit be given in the event of reproduction and that whenever possible, permission be obtained from the contributor/author. Contributors to this issue: Fred Fejes, Mary Fukuyama, Rebecca M. Salokar, Helena Alonso, and Ana Roca. We welcome submissions related to gay/lesbian/bisexual concerns in the Florida public education. To contribute to future issues of Campus Network, please contact Professor Ana Roca at: Department of Modern Languages, Florida International University, Miami, FL 33199; (305 348-2851; E-mail: Rocaa@servax.fiu.edu). Unsolicited material cannot be returned unless a self- addressed, stamped envelope is enclosed. Materials sent for consideration should be signed. Include your address and phone number and send hard copy along with a disk version (on an IBM-compatible format, using WP 4.0 or Microsoft Word). The deadline for the Spring issue is February 15, 1994.