Student passion must be met with university commitment
At a recent rally against Amendment One to the North Carolina State Constitution, more than 100 students, faculty and staff showed up protesting the unfair disregard for the rights of LGBTQ citizens throughout the state. While the rights enjoyed by the LGBTQ community at Elon are not to be questioned, they have not been fully realized, because of the delay of the opening of the LGBTQ office, currently coordinated by Kirstin Ringelberg, associate professor of art history. In an interview with The Pendulum after taking over the position in August, Ringelberg acknowledged the challenges posed by the lack of a physical space. “The lack of visibility on campus is one of the things that allows our population to be invisible, and therefore to not be supported in the same way that it would be if it was more visible,” she said. That is not to say the LGBTQ community of students has not led the charge of the movement. This semester in The Pendulum, you’ve read about the Vote Against movement drumming up opposition to Amendment One, which would more strictly define marriage as only between a man and a woman. You’ve heard from junior Laura Sturm, who is single-handedly coordinating a proposal for gender-neutral housing to present to the university administration. You’ve scrolled through the QueErLON Blog, featuring real stories from your peers and professors about the LGBTQ community and its allies. But what remains noticeably absent is the physical office space promised to the Elon LGBTQ community.
