GUSA unanimously passed a resolution formally supporting the creation of a Gay, Lesbian, Bi-sexual and Transgender re-source center at their meeting Tuesday. The resolution was presented by Anthony House (COL ’03) on behalf of the GLBT community and co-sponsored by GUSA representatives Mary D’Ariano (NHS ’03) and Trey Street (SFS ’03).

“The resolution officially lends the GUSA’s support and endorsement of a staffed GLBT resource center,” a GUSA press release said.

At the meeting GUSA President Ryan DuBose (COL ’02) asked House whether or not the GLBT community has met with Vice President for Student Affairs Juan Gonzalez to gauge the administration’s interest regarding the creation of the resource center.

House said that they are meeting with Rev. Brian McDermott, S.J., the director of the Jesuit community next Monday to try to get the administration’s support for the creation of the resource center.

In a proposal to Gonzalez, members of GUPride asked the university to hire an administrator to deal with GLBT issues as well as look into the creation of a resource center. While the university has acknowledged since 1988 that GLBT students, especially undergraduates, have special needs, the administration has been unresponsive on both issues, according GU Pride’s board.

According to House, objections to the center are based in Georgetown’s Catholic identity and the fact that no other Catholic school presently has this kind of resource center. “Twenty-five out of the top 50 universities in the U.S. News and World Report survey have GLBT resource centers,” House said. “No other Catholic universities right now have resource centers.”

According to House, GUPride did extensive research and argues that Catholic teaching says that sexual orientation is not against God’s will. There is a difference between sexual activity and sexual orientation, House said.

In an effort to formally educate the university community about its proposal, GUPride held an informational meeting Wednesday to express what they would like to see happen concerning their plans.

The five students spear heading the proposal are House, Danielle DeCerbo (COL ’03), Theo Greene (COL ’02), Joe McFadden (COL ’02) and M.S. (COL ’02).

GUPride members said they want to address problems at the root rather than after they occur, centralize current university programming, put the responsibility for student welfare into the hands of the university, collect statistics, offer resources, act as an intermediary, produce educational programming and provide community service and outreach.

According to GUPride representatives, the primary role of the resource center is to alleviate the problems associated with having a GLBT identity. “Depression, eating disorders, and slurs affect the community,” DeCerbo said. “The resource center would deal with these problems in a preemptive way.”

According to House, “Part of the role of the resource center would be helping integrate GLBT students into the university community as well as provide educational programs that would unite the two communities.”

GUPride President McFadden added that “The purpose of the center is not to isolate but instead to address issues that exist. GU addresses issues after they have become major issues. A resource center would address the issue before they become problems for students who want to take advantage of that.”

House said that the center would also keep statistics that are not currently recorded at Georgetown. “There aren’t currently statistics kept from year to year about anti-gay harassment, roommate issues because of sexual orientation,” he said.

“[The center] would provide a voice within the administration for GLBT students that currently is not there for GLBT students where it is there for women students, students of various faith backgrounds, racial and ethnic minorities, and students with physical handicaps or learning-disabled students,” he added.

In an attempt to gain student support for the project, GUPride circulated a petition that received over 1000 signatures last month. According to Greene, the only negative reaction came from students who said they felt that these kinds of resources already existed on campus. “What we are trying to prove, however,” said Greene, “is that these resources are not adequate at this time.”