Thursday, December 9, 2010

Local: Safety Message to WSU

http://thecenter.wsu.edu/Content/Documents/giesorc/giesorc%20statement.pdf

This is a letter that GIESORC sent out to the community in 2008 in response to 5 separate hate crimes that were committed in the Palouse area.  These events, while separate, appeared to have the common thread of hated toward the LGBT community.  The events ranged from anti-gay vandalism to physical assaults on three individuals.  Washington State and the University of Idaho were outraged at this violence and acted immediately to notify the public that this behavior is neither tolerated nor acceptable.

As part of the immediate response, many departments on the WSU campus held informational meetings and raised awareness.  These departments included Residence Life, the Center for Fraternity and Sorority Life, GIESORC, the Women’s Resource Center, Counseling Services, Health and Wellness Services and many more.  It was around this time that the WSU community really began to be a voice for the GLBT.  Women’s Transit, once only open to females, became affirming and allowed members of the GLBT community to use their free resource so no one would be left alone in the dark.  Other initiatives that stemmed from these unforgivable acts included SafeWalk which is sponsored by ASWSU and was started in Spring of 2009, Cougar Security and WSU Police began patrolling more frequently, and WSU installed more Blue Lights in less trafficked areas.

While we are not perfect, WSU takes pride in the amount of security they offer, which has led to Washington State University campus being named as the Safest Campus in the PAC 10, according to www.thedailybeast.com and is the safest campus in the state of Washington.


 -Brianna Tottenhoff

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