Earlier this year, a group of gay and lesbian students at Winston-Salem State University, a mid-sized historically Black institution in the conservative Piedmont region of North Carolina, petitioned the school’s administration to add sexual orientation to its nondiscrimination policy. The proposal was actually warmly received by many of the college’s faculty, students and administrators, according to Michael Evans, a junior at Winston-Salem State and active member of the school’s Gay Straight Student Alliance
The board of trustees voted to approve the policy and Evans says many of the group’s members feel empowered by it.
“You can actually walk to class and not feel threatened,” said Evans, a 20-year-old junior majoring in molecular biology.
Winston-Salem State University is among a growing number of historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs) that now include sexual orientation in their non-discrimination policies.
The changes are a reflection of nation’s growing acceptance of homosexuality in political, social, and even religious circles.
The plan had several components, according to the HRC.
“One strategy was ensuring that these young African-American men and women could find a safe space on their campuses and become part of a larger lesbian gay bisexual transgendered (LGBT) movement and community,” said Joey Gaskins, student diversity coordinator for HRC. “The other thing was to make these historically Black colleges into more welcoming campuses. This involves having non-discrimination policies, equal opportunity, anti-harassment policy and creating lesbian gay bi-sexual and transgendered resource centers. Research shows that LGBT students have a harder time developing into more functional adults if they don’t have this kind of support.”