More Low-Income, Young People of Color Identify as LGBT; College Fraternity Prints Sexist Tee

Fraternity Near Amherst’s Campus Prints Sexist Tee. An offensive T-shirt printed by an off-campus fraternity has fueled a fiery debate about sexism at Amherst College. The shirt depicted a scratched and bruised woman, strung up across a fire with the caption reading: “Roasting fat ones since 1847”. Controversy surrounding the college as surfaced recently when Angie Epifano, a rape survivor and former student of Amherst, came forward with her story. With the spotlight now on the school and administration, students are hopeful that by speaking up, the culture of sexism will begin to change. [Huffington Post]

New Poll Shows More Young, Poor People of Color Identify as LGBT. A recent Gallup survey finds that LGBT identity is highest among people who are younger, non-white and low-income. Gary Gates, the report’s lead author, stated that the results counter some very inappropriate stereotypes about the LGBT community, saying, “[i]f you spend a lot of time watching network television, you would think most LGBT people are rich white men who live in big cities. These data suggest the LGBT community reflects more of the diversity in the U.S. population.” The report’s findings also suggest that politicians should steer away from tactics that attempt to pit LGBT causes against the interests of communities of color. “These findings," said Rinku Sen, president of the Applied Research Center and Colorline.com’s publisher, "Show that Latinos aren’t going to be as easy to mobilize against gay marriage as the right might wish.” [Colorlines.com]

Syracuse University’s Money Awareness Program A Success. Universities and colleges around the country have taken it upon themselves to reduce student loan debt. Syracuse’s initiative, the Money Awareness Program (M.A.P.) has reduced the debt of around 100 students by about $21,000 each. M.A.P. is a two-step program: "[t]he first part is the replacement of student loans with grants, and the second part requires each participating student to complete a financial literacy session once a semester. The goal of the financial literacy component is to help students understand credit and basic financial management skills." To deter students from racking up more debt with private lenders, the University is giving them direct grants as an incentive. [Huffington Post]

Calvin College Students Strive For A Welcoming LGBT Environment.  Alumni and current students of the institution have created a petition on change.org in an effort to bring attention Calvin College’s ranking as 11th on the Princeton Review’s list of top 20 least welcoming schools for LGBT students. Shirley Hoogstra, vice president for student life at Calvin, stated that “hospitality is a core Christian virtue, and being on that list undercuts a Christian virtue that is important to us.” At this point the college doesn’t have a clear plan on how it will build a more accepting culture but with 1,052 signatories on the petition the issue is being brought to the forefront and support is mounting for making the campus LGBT-friendly. [Mlive.com]

Aaron Brennan is a Communications Intern with Campus Progress

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