When the Coalition for Gay, Lesbian and Bisexual Concerns held its first meeting last November 5, members designed an agenda comprised of four main goals. To date, the Coalition has seen three of its objectives at least partially achieved. What role does this lobbyist group play on the Dartmouth campus?
The Coalition, led by co-convenors Susan Ackerman, professor of religion, and John Crane, an administrative services librarian, began with the hopes of meeting four goals: establishing benefits for same-sex domestic partners; ending the Reserve Officer Training Corps program on campus unless the military lifts the ban on homosexuals; discontinuing College support for the United Way, which provides funding to groups that discriminate against homosexuals; and creating courses in gay and lesbian studies to further campus awareness of homosexual issues.
The Coaltion, which began with 36 members at its first meeting, has grown to include more than 100 members of the faculty and staff, both homosexual and straight.
The College is designing a plan to extend benefits to same-sex partners. President Clinton has taken first steps towards lifting the gay ban in the military. The United Way is reworking its equal opportunity policy to curb discrimination within its organization. And the College has approved a gay and lesbian studies course, though has not yet allocated funding for it. Something is going right for the Coalition.
The question that arises from the Coalition's advances is not necessarily how the group has achieved its goals or what the group will achieve next, but how the Dartmouth community and campus respond to such a group and the role it plays within the community.
The "tag line" of the Coalition is "an alliance of Dartmouth employees working for equality," Crane said. He added that he believes the strength behind the Coalition rests in the commitment of its members.
The Coalition is basically the only faculty lobbyist group on campus, and is unique in that it has attracted members from the entire College staff, rather than individual departments or groups of employees.
The varied membership produces a diverse array of opinions within the group.
"I like the multiplicity of voices," English Professor William Cook said. "I think one of the things is its clarity of purpose and, in particular, that it is very open to a range of views within the group. It isn't just one or two leaders."
According to Cook, who is a member of the group, this openness and absence of a "hard structure" is an important aspect of the Coalition.
Another factor that must be looked at regarding the Coalition is what Earth Sciences Professor Charles Drake refers to as "staying power."
"Staying power is probably the most important thing," Drake, who is not a member of the Coalition, said. "This is especially true in a university where you turn over every four years and by the time things get going, everyone is gone."
Staying power can only come after people express an initial interest, though. "In this case, I suppose if this group had not raised the issue of gay and lesbian partners and providing benefits for them, I suppose nothing would have ever been done," Chair of the economics department Jack Menge said.
"The question is whether in the long run, [the Coalition] will be able to sustain that type of interest and what it will cost in terms of other faculty," he added.
Though the group is young, members are optimistic about the future. "While much was accomplished this year, and we feel really good about it, there is a lot to do next year," Crane said.
The Coalition is currently designing an agenda for the coming year, which Crane senses will focus around educating the community and providing support for faculty and students, he said.
Some, like Cook, believe there are other issues on campus that call for the attention of a "strongly expressed voice" that can be found in an organization committed to providing education and support.
The Coalition is one of the first true lobbyist organizations to join diverse groups together in a common effort. But will it act as a catalyst for other lobbying groups?
"If I thought I was a member of a group that was receiving inequitable treatment, I might organize to work towards more equitable treatment," Menge said.
"The more publicity there is, the more apt they are to get some kind of response, whether it is positive or negative," he added.
But there is always the question of fragmentation within the community, and what effect the lobbyist group will have as a whole. "My personal feeling is that I don't much like groups and I understand the need for groups when there's an issue to be pushed, but the more groups you have, the more fragmented you are, and hopefully you can think of the more whole picture," Drake said.
For groups such as the Coalition, looking at the whole picture is something that points out the need for action. "The perception of gays and lesbians is that as things get better, they also get worse," Crane said. "As gays and lesbians become more visible, those that discriminate become more visible, and it's something that's very emotional," he added.
