Fears and Biases

After reading "Student Life: A Dean's-Eye View" (Fall 1987) I feel the need to state my objections concerning lesbians. It's a sad day when the dean of students at Mount Holyoke thinks that "the campus community stands to learn much and benefit (my emphasis) greatly because lesbians are becoming more vocal and outspoken"; that "there have been some small numbers of students...who have reacted in an outspoken and negative manner to the presence and vocal nature of the lesbian population..."; that"we should be very careful to avoid allowing the fears and biases of a few people to make us appear to be a community which is intolerant of any kind of diversity."
Hooray for the students who are outspoken enough to show displeasure with this kind of lifestyle. I believe if all students were encouraged to take a stand, the vast majority would not condone these perversions. And what about the parents who are paying tuition? I believe the majority of them finds this kind of thinking deplorable. Dean Murphy seems to not only encourage but also to promote lesbianism as an acceptable lifestyle. Inviting lesbians into every residence hall to present a workshop on the lesbian experience is repugnant. College officials of this philosophy are doing a disservice to the moral fibre of our young generation and the future of society.
Betty Stark Brookhiser '42
Rochester, New York
We feel there was a misprint in the fall interview with Sheila Murphy, Dean of Students. When asked about lesbianism on campus, she replied, "We should be very careful to avoid allowing the fears and biases of a few people to make us appear to be a community which is intolerant to any kind of diversity." Surely she meant "perversity."
We stand by the apostle Paul who said that when people exchange the truth about God for a lie, God gives them up to "dishonorable passions," including women exchanging "natural relations for unnatural."
If lesbianism is not unnatural, then what is? How much must be tolerated in the name of "diversity?"
In the 1980s the worst mud one can sling at those who disagree is to call them a "vocal minority," as if truth can be measured in votes or strength of vocal cords. Call us what you will, no amount of "understanding" or "legitimate student organizations" can change lesbianism from what it is - a sin and an act of perversion.
However, we have seen the power of God to transform lives caught in this sin, but only when it is acknowledged as sin and repented of, not when it is discussed in workshops. The fears and biases towards lesbianism are a natural, God-given reaction to sin. It is lesbianism that is unnatural. Let's not confuse the two.
Laurie Underhill Wadsworth '71, Lebanon, New Hampshire
Margaret Hotchkiss Drye '80, Plainfield, New Hampshire
Jennifer Smith St. James '80, Lyme, New Hampshire

Editor's Note: Another perspective is that of the United Church of Christ which, following Paul who said that Christians are all "members of one another," and Jesus who called his followers to judge not lest they be judged and to love their neighbors as themselves, has adopted affirming resolutions in support of homosexual rights.

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