President Tilghman and University professors Kwame Anthony Appiah, Cornel West GS '80 and Edmund White recently joined five Nobel Prize winners, six Academy Award winners, 10 Pulitzer Prize winners and hundreds of other individuals and organizations in a global campaign to decriminalize homosexuality.
The campaign seeks a United Nations-mandated "universal abolition of the so-called 'crime of homosexuality', of all 'sodomy laws' and laws against so-called 'unnatural acts' in all countries where they exist." It was spearheaded by French academic Louis-Georges Tin, president and founder of the International Committee for the International Day Against Homophobia (IDAHO).
White, a creative writing professor, became involved in the campaign against the criminalization of homosexuality after being approached by a friend who is a gay rights advocate in Israel. White is one of the founders of the Gay Men's Health Crisis and has authored multiple books concerning homosexuality.
"I have written 20 books, 15 of which had something to do with being gay," White added.
White said the recent petitioning events were precipitated by the execution of two young Iranian homosexuals this past July.
"I believe that homosexuals are punishable by death, often in the most crude of methods such as pushing off a cliff or crushing against a wall with a bulldozer, in 12 countries worldwide," he said. "I believe that the two Iranian lovers had their heads cut off."
White introduced the petition to Tilghman, who said she signed it "as an individual and not as a representative of Princeton University."
"Growing scientific evidence has shown that sexual orientation is something that an individual cannot choose," Tilghman said in an interview. "Criminalizing people for something over which they have no control is highly discriminatory."
The campaign includes two main components: a push to raise awareness through the media and an effort to change minds in the United Nations Council on Human Rights.
"It is obvious that the battle to get the UN to pass such a resolution is a difficult one," Tin said on IDAHO's website. "Despite this, we are counting on the UN's own preceding jurisprudence in this matter."
"This petition asks for nothing complicated, but merely for the most primitive," White said. "It asks to stop killing people."
Read More
‘A brilliant young contemporary writer and a beautiful human being’: Remembering Lauren Blackburn ’26
Victoria Davies and Caitlyn TabladaBlackburn was found deceased by authorities on April 25, several days after he was reported missing. He was 23 years old at the time of his death and is remembered by friends and mentors as a brilliant writer, voracious learner, and loving friend. A family obituary said he passed away after a “courageous battle with bipolar disorder.”
Blackburn was found deceased by authorities on April 25, several days after he was reported missing. He was 23 years old at the time of his death and is remembered by friends and mentors as a brilliant writer, voracious learner, and loving friend. A family obituary said he passed away after a “courageous battle with bipolar disorder.”
GSG approves audit, delays budget approval after ‘insufferable’ meeting
Nikki HanThe final Graduate Student Government (GSG) meeting for the semester lasted more than an hour and a half when discussions over the proposed budget for the next year and a proposed Student Life Fee of $100 turned controversial.
The final Graduate Student Government (GSG) meeting for the semester lasted more than an hour and a half when discussions over the proposed budget for the next year and a proposed Student Life Fee of $100 turned controversial.
Effort to restore chapel’s pews slowly progresses
Ben GoldstonHead carpenter Jim Sullivan has been restoring the Chapel pews over the last year. The dry atmosphere of the Chapel has warped the wooden pews over the years.
Head carpenter Jim Sullivan has been restoring the Chapel pews over the last year. The dry atmosphere of the Chapel has warped the wooden pews over the years.