2008 Woodie Awards
New organization 'working against its own cause'
John Scarry
Issue date: 4/8/08 Section: Opinion
What's the deal with this "Safe Zones" thing? You might have seen those stickers emblazoned with a rainbow inside a triangle exclaiming "THIS ZONE IS SAFE!"
What is every office and room without that little sign armed with a bomb or concealing a sniper? Maybe the booby trap is only triggered if a gay or lesbian walks into a room not sanctified by the Safe Zones mark. After all, it is only given to professors who have sat through an hour and a half of a Safe Zones training session where they're "educated" on how gay people should be treated.
That's right, evidently gays are so oppressed and maltreated on this liberal arts campus that some felt a special program should be offered; a program that could "teach" professors or anyone else how to behave around gays or lesbians.
Wait a second…. Aren't most homosexuals, bisexuals and any other "-sexual" struggling to prove they're no different from anyone else? During the 60s, virtually every minority, including gays, in America said, "Hey, I'm just like you!"
With this Safe Zones organization, it seems that some are saying gays aren't like everyone else - that they're very different and require particular treatment. And here I am thinking we've made progress since the Civil Rights movement. Silly me.
What I find to be more surprising, than the fact that such an organization even exists, is the number of professors who have actually sat through one of these sessions.
According to the Safe Zones Web site, more than 80 professors have been successfully taught how to treat gays. Were there so many professors at our university who saw themselves as incapable of dealing with gays that once they found out this program was offered they couldn't wait to be enlightened? I doubt it.
My guess is that they feared being branded "insensitive" to homosexuals if they didn't sign up to be "certified" as someone who really knows how to behave in the presence of gays. Of course, as I said, that's just my guess and I could be wrong, but I doubt that, too.
The point I want to make is the same point Safe Zones, I believe, is trying to make: We all have our differences, but we're still the same. Most of us realize that, but Safe Zones has seemed to work against its own cause.
I say, if people really are no different, no one needs to be to run through an hour-and-a-half program and hand out stickers to make it clear. Am I wrong? Again, I doubt it.
What is every office and room without that little sign armed with a bomb or concealing a sniper? Maybe the booby trap is only triggered if a gay or lesbian walks into a room not sanctified by the Safe Zones mark. After all, it is only given to professors who have sat through an hour and a half of a Safe Zones training session where they're "educated" on how gay people should be treated.
That's right, evidently gays are so oppressed and maltreated on this liberal arts campus that some felt a special program should be offered; a program that could "teach" professors or anyone else how to behave around gays or lesbians.
Wait a second…. Aren't most homosexuals, bisexuals and any other "-sexual" struggling to prove they're no different from anyone else? During the 60s, virtually every minority, including gays, in America said, "Hey, I'm just like you!"
With this Safe Zones organization, it seems that some are saying gays aren't like everyone else - that they're very different and require particular treatment. And here I am thinking we've made progress since the Civil Rights movement. Silly me.
What I find to be more surprising, than the fact that such an organization even exists, is the number of professors who have actually sat through one of these sessions.
According to the Safe Zones Web site, more than 80 professors have been successfully taught how to treat gays. Were there so many professors at our university who saw themselves as incapable of dealing with gays that once they found out this program was offered they couldn't wait to be enlightened? I doubt it.
My guess is that they feared being branded "insensitive" to homosexuals if they didn't sign up to be "certified" as someone who really knows how to behave in the presence of gays. Of course, as I said, that's just my guess and I could be wrong, but I doubt that, too.
The point I want to make is the same point Safe Zones, I believe, is trying to make: We all have our differences, but we're still the same. Most of us realize that, but Safe Zones has seemed to work against its own cause.
I say, if people really are no different, no one needs to be to run through an hour-and-a-half program and hand out stickers to make it clear. Am I wrong? Again, I doubt it.
Viewing Comments 1 - 3 of 3
Maddie Randall
posted 4/10/08 @ 5:18 PM EST
For an organization that is five years old here at Winthrop University, Safe Zones is not an "in your face" organization. It is a program designed to provide equality and understanding across our liberal arts campus. (Continued…)
Christopher Bennett
posted 4/11/08 @ 11:34 AM EST
Those little stickers do more than most people realize...
In a perfect place, under conditions that don't exist , individuals are recognized on a level that looks not at the superficial aspects of a person but instead ignores those and sees the person for something much more, human. (Continued…)
Andrew Osbirn
posted 4/16/08 @ 7:14 PM EST
Oscar Wilde said, "There is so much to be said in favor of modern journalism. By giving us the opinions of the uneducated it keeps us in touch with ignorance of the community. (Continued…)
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