Students consider reaction to Proposition 8

At the sparsely attended forum, titled “University Community Forum: Prop 8 and LGBT Civil Rights,” participants discussed five possible actions to counter the proposition: fundraising to support LGBT organizations, submitting an amicus brief to the California Supreme Court, raising awareness on campus, organizing protests and gathering support via letter-writing, phone banks and petitions.

One possible action, submitting an amicus brief, is on the USG elections ballot. If the referendum passes, the USG will formally petition the University’s Board of Trustees to file an amicus brief condemning the proposition.

“It could change the University’s reputation … in ways that could be quite positive,” said a preceptor who participated, who asked to remain anonymous because she said she did not think it would be appropriate for her views to be public.

Participants acknowledged that submitting an amicus brief would not tangibly affect the Supreme Court decision, though it would be good for publicity.

“I think Princeton is the best stage to do any kind of political activity because we’re prominent, we’re near many big media networks, and we have a history of apathy,” James Coan ’09 said. “So when we do something, it’s a big deal.”

Several participants observed that the University often shies away from making big moves.

“I think Princeton needs to invite some controversy,” said Tehama Lopez, a program coordinator at the Carl Fields Center. “I don’t know why there is such timidity about discussing issues.”

Some participants discussed whether an article in The Daily Princetonian about apathy on campus toward the proposition helped incite action. LGBT members at the forum said that they had been out of town for an LGBT retreat shortly after the election, leaving them little time to organize an immediate response.

Matt Carcella, a program coordinator at the LGBT Center, noted that, while many on campus had opinions on the passing of Proposition 8, it is important to actually respond.

“You can have an emotional response to it,” he said. “But what are we going to do about it after the fact?”

Participants debated the merits of protests, which would forge “a connection between this movement and other civil rights movements,” another participant said. There are concerns, though, that a protest would polarize supporters and feed into stereotypes.

Participants also raised the possibility of some not-yet-defined action against the Princeton-based National Organization for Marriage (NOM), the biggest financial supporter of Proposition 8. Conservative politics professor Robert George is a co-founder of NOM.

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“Although I don’t agree with most of [George’s] views, he is a brilliant professor,” Ashley Mitchell ’11 said. “His support of NOM is wrong, but he is entitled to his own views.”

The forum ended with talk of forming a coalition among Ivy League institutions or with other local universities and holding an intercollegiate LGBT conference. “I feel like we could do something groundbreaking, spark a broader national student movement for LGBT,” one participant said. “We’re entering a fairly progressive political era.”

Participants agreed to push the University administration to support a bill expected to be introduced to the state assembly in January by Garden State Equality — a political organization that works for LGBT civil rights in New Jersey — to turn civil unions into marriages.

The forum was sponsored by LGBT Center, Pride Alliance and Queer Graduate Caucus.