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March 2, 2011

Women’s BBall Team

Prepares for Post Season

Page 14

ver the Edge

Volume 17, Issue 12

Snookie Learns to Read

Page 10

Vandals Deface UNBC Pride Centre

Pride Centre wants Positive Space Program to not only help students but teach them

as well

SHELBY PETERSEN
EDITOR IN CHIEF

For many people university has been stereotyped a bubble
where students are accepting and liberal in their beliefs.
The outside world sees university students as radical and
invigorated with the need to make change and participate
in the political system. One only needs to think back to the
string of protests at universities like Columbia, Berkeley,
and Penn State to see where this notion takes root. While
universities are often platforms for change and radical
opinions they are by no means exempt from real world
problems like racism, bigotry, and homophobia. In fact,
issues of both visible and concealed prejudice are alive |
and well on campuses across the nation.

Unfortunately, UNBC is neither exempt nor innocent when
it comes to issues of both racism and homophobia. On
February 22 the UNBC Pride Centre was the victim of a
very hateful vandalization.

While it is not known who wrote the homophobic slurs
on the door of the Pride Centre, it is not the first time an
incident like this has happened, “There has been one other
case of vandalization and we also had our flag stolen,”
says Pride Centre President Marli Leibovitch, “we didn’t
come forward the first time because we didn’t want any
students to think that it was unsafe to access the Pride
Centre.”

While an incident such as this cannot be tolerated, it allows
for furtherdiscussion to be broached about homophobia
here at UNBC. The UNBC Pride Centre is the only facility
of its kind in all of Northern British Columbia. As such, the Pride Centre has a lot
of work ahead of itself both at UNBC and in the greater Prince George community.
Being a newly founded organization, the Pride Centre is greatly lacking in the funds
and resources that other university Pride Centres have at their disposal.

At almost every university campus across the country Pride Centres have helped
put in place a program called the Positive Space Program. The UNBC Pride Centre
hopes to add UNBC to that growing list of universities who participate. The Positive
Space Program establishes a comfortable place for gay, lesbian, trans, and queer
(LGBTQ) students by increasing the visibility and presence of LGBTQ staff, student,
and faculty members as well safe places for LGBTQ members to be. In addition,
the Positive Space Program provides a way for interested campus members to
become involved in creating a more supportive and inclusive environment for LTBTQ
members on campus and in the broader community. Participation in the Positive
Space Program is completely voluntary and would be open to all students, staff, and
faculty members at UNBC. To participate in the program each person would have to
participate in a two hour workshop session and upon completion are given a Positive
Space sticker/sign to post in their work, office, or study environment.

Implementing a Positive Space Program at UNBC in conjunction with the presence
of the Pride Centre would show LGBTQ members from the North that they do not
need to leave and move to more urban areas to attend university in order to be
themselves, and above all be safe.

However, in order to implement this program the Pride Centre needs to increase
its funds as a part time staff person would be needed to organize training sessions,
volunteers and other services. As it stands the Pride Centre has one practicum
students, who puts in 40 hours a week. However, without a staff person in the centre
to supervise in the coming years, the invaluable service of a practicum student will
be lost. Because of this a more permanent staff position is desired. The plan is to
hire a program coordinator for 10 hours a week with a $500 a month honorarium
totaling $2000 a semester to oversee 24 volunteers with which to put on this Positive
Space Program. Currently, the Pride Centre does not have it within its means to fund
such a project.

SHELBY PETERSEN

On February 22 vandals defaced the Pride Centre door.

Knowing that UNBC is one of Canada’s only major universities without a Positive
Space Program, the Pride Centre approached the UNBC Provost office to ask
for a grant to fund the $2000 per semester it would cost to employ a part time
program coordinator/practicum supervisor. While the provost office has been quite
generous in the past with funding student endeavors such as attending conferences
and providing office equipment, the Pride Centre’s proposal was denied outright.
The Provost office stated that while they support the Pride Centre this was not the
platform for such a discussion. Unlike other UNBC services like NUGSS and Over
the Edge, the Pride Centre does not receive any money from student fees nor does
it have other sources of income. Instead, the Pride Centre runs mainly on volunteer
work. If the recent vandalization events are any indication, UNBC is in dire need of
the Positive Space Program and more importantly LGBTQ students need to know
that they have the

support of their university to ensure that they enjoy the same degree of safety and
stability as do other students who attend UNBC.

The Pride Centre and the Positive Space Program are services which will not only
help the students who are members of the LGBTQ community but also help foster
tolerance and alliance within the greater student population and the Prince George
community. Students who are offended by the recent Pride Centre vandalizations
need to stand up and show the university administration as well as their fellow peers
that actions such as those will not be tolerated at UNBC or anywhere else. It is
time that university students live up to their legacy and continue to act as forces
of change just as those students who in the past saw the inherent injustices of
segregation and

The Pride Centre is currently holding a letter writing campaign aimed at gaining
the attention of UNBC President Dr. George lwama to show him just how much
support here is for a Positive Space Program here at UNBC. If you would like to
make your voice heard, please send President lwama a letter please send it to:

ATTN Dr. George Iwama University of Northern British Columbia 3333 University
Way Prince George, British Columbia V2N 4Z9 email: rushton@unbc.ca