SORP Amendment

The proposed draft of the student organization recognition policy (SORP) includes an exception to the requirement that recognized student organizations at Iowa State University do not discriminate in their membership criteria on the basis of a student's race, color, age, religion, national origin, sexual orientation, gender identity, sex, marital status, disability, or status as a U.S. veteran. The proposed policy is available through the Student Activity Center website at http://www.sac.iastate.edu/organizations/?at=recognition .

The problem stems from the fact that some student organizations at ISU do not approve of people that identify as gay, lesbian, bisexual, or transgendered. So why would a gay, lesbian, bisexual or transgendered person ever want to be involved in a student organization that doesn't approve of such people?

The opposition to the SORP draft begins to make sense with the realization that in the not-so-distant past the same question must have been asked about women being denied entrance into universities. Why would those women want to enter an institution that didnt want them? The same question was undoubtedly asked about African Americans that wanted to dine or shop in "white" establishments but who were denied because the color of their skin. If the owners of those establishments didnt like them, why did they fight to prevent those owners from denying them access?

The answer is this: Every human being deserves consideration beyond the classes that make up that person's identity. We deserve to be considered beyond our skin color, beyond our religious status, beyond any disabilities that we may have, and beyond who we're inclined to love or what gender we're inclined to express. We deserve consideration as individuals.

We deserve to define for ourselves what being African American means to our political beliefs. We deserve to decide how being gay, bisexual, or straight affects our religious beliefs. We all deserve to reach our full potential without anybody telling us that we're ineligible because of what they think our identity means.

We agree that any student group whose purpose is to express and promote a certain set of beliefs has the right to limit its membership to those who subscribe to its beliefs and goals. The proposed policy clarifies that right. But the proposed policy also implies that religious groups would be able to limit membership on the basis of social identities in ways that violate the ISU non-discrimination policy. Such violations should not be tolerated or allowed by Iowa State University.

Iowa State University's current non-discrimination policy rightly protects its students, faculty, and staff from the dehumanizing effects of unjust discrimination based on social identities. The legal background provided does not justify the abandonment of a policy that ISU is committed to upholding.

We do not believe that a possible lawsuit is sufficient justification for reducing that commitment to nondiscrimination and, in the process, putting at risk the human dignity of ISU students.

We petition Iowa State University to consider more closely the implications of permitting exceptions to its non-discrimination policy.

We petition Iowa State University to adopt a policy that respects the right of expressive organizations to limit membership on the basis of shared beliefs and goals, but not to limit membership on the basis of status identities protected in the ISU non-discrimination policy.

We petition Iowa State University to stand up for human dignity and continue to prohibit unjust discrimination in all parts of the Iowa State University community.

Together, our voice will be heard.