Tim Black Talks GSA

News

By 

Nora Palmtag

 on February 13, 2013 at 11:14 am

Breakdown of Bias Cases, from FBI.gov.

LBCC’s GSA, Gay-Straight Alliance Club, is open for everyone on campus. “The GSA, to my understanding, is a student-run club that brings together gay, bisexual, transgendered, questioning and straight students and staff to support each other and provide a safe place to socialize with a platform for activism to fight phobia towards anyone,” said Tim Black, the faculty mentor of the club.

What does he believe are the main challenges for gay, transgendered, bisexual or questioning students and the friends, family and faculty who support them? “Constant, unrelenting bigotry and persecution,” said Black.

According to Violence Prevention Works, “As many as 93 percent of teenagers hear derogatory words about sexual orientation at least once in a while, with more than half of teens surveyed hearing such words every day at school and in the community,” and over 30 percent of all teen suicides being committed by these students.

Metro Weekly, supplied with hate crime information from the FBI, reported that “20.8 percent resulted because of a person’s perceived sexual orientation.” However, even the FBI stated that these crimes are reported by local law enforcement voluntarily and the numbers of attacks are more than likely higher.

Where to Find Tim Black
Office: SSH-204
Phone: 541-917-4834
Office Hours: Mon./ Wed./ Fri.
10 a.m. – Noon

“One article I read dealt with a young man, really young, maybe seven or eight, who was so unrelentingly harassed. He took a gun and killed himself. That’s ridiculous,” said Black while describing his interest in becoming faculty mentor of the GSA. “Now, take that kid who took his own life. Maybe he was told by society, his parents, his friends, his neighbors, his teachers, his congressman, his gardener, his senator and his pastor that because of how he was born and how he feels, he is unworthy of participation in a relationship like the most important relationship he knows. Think of him hearing, ‘People like you can’t get married.
People like you don’t deserve to get married! You’re disgusting! God hates fags!’ Well, projecting that sort of hatred onto an innocent child is systemic, societal child abuse.”

“I can’t comprehend the pressures young gay people might feel, said Black. “That’s why I’m interested.”