Supporter of the Day; Maxine Sugarman

After signing the Letter to the Commissioner of Higher Education and the Board of Regents, Maxine Sugarman had this to add;

"Higher education is crucial to the future of our state. Every student should feel safe from discrimination and hate."

And, check out what Debbie had to say;

 "Consider providing equal protections for all students and setting a positive example that other universities will follow; It is simply the right thing to do. "

Have you signed the letter? If not, click here! It takes 35 seconds (although, we were recently told that this was inaccurate; one student informed us that it only took her 20 seconds). Thanks!

Via Fair is Fair Montana. 2013.

Caitlin's Story

Caitlin began volunteering with Pride Foundation’s Montana efforts in 2006 and came on staff in 2011. She has a master’s degree in journalism from the University of Montana. Caitlin was the first openly LGBTQ person elected to the Missoula City Council in November 2011. She enjoys hiking, skiing, and riding her bike 100 miles or more for good causes. She can be reached at Caitlin@pridefoundation.org or 406.546.7017

Growing up in Nampa, Idaho, I didn’t know any out lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender people. I finished high school in 2000 and attended the College of Idaho, which had a student body population of about 850. There was no gay-straight alliance at my high school and if there was at my college, I didn’t know about it. Besides, I was in a relationship with a guy I’d dated off and on since 8^th grade.  It wasn’t until I ended that relationship and came to Missoula to attend graduate school at the University of Montana that I felt I could truly come out.

I’ve thought back as to why Missoula, Montana, felt so much safer than home. My immediate family is not religious, and my mom is an alternative high school teacher turned college professor and very liberal. Even so, being LGBTQ was never talked about in my family, and I grew up stereotypically thinking that lesbians were women who looked like men or at least liked to play with trucks when they were little. I loved theater and was on the dance team in high school and college, so even though I’d felt same-sex attraction since I was 9 or 10, I didn’t think I could actually be gay. But in Missoula, there were lots of LGBTQ people, especially, it seemed to me, women. A lot of them held leadership positions in the nonprofit and business world.  There were also a lot of straight people with gay friends. It was normal, even acceptable, here. 

I think I began to see that coming out didn’t doom me to some sort of unsafe, horrible, or at least invisible life. I began volunteering with the Western Montana Gay & Lesbian Community Center (www.gaymontana.org) to edit their newsletter, which morphed into the statewide publication, Out Words. I helped review grants and scholarships for Pride Foundation (www.pridefoundation.org). As a master’s degree student at the School of Journalism, my professors knew about and generally supported my activism. By the time I finished my degree in 2007, I knew I wanted to be an activist more than a journalist, so I applied my writing skills to my first “adult” job doing marketing and communications for the YWCA Missoula (www.ywcamissoula.org). Working for the YWCA was life-changing. I developed strong relationships women (some LGBTQ) mentors and my self-confidence, something I’d always struggled with, grew immensely. If not for the YWCA, I would never have had the courage to run for political office and become the first openly LGBTQ member of the Missoula City Council.

Today, in addition to City Council, I work full time for Pride Foundation, the world’s largest LGBTQ community foundation serving Alaska, Idaho, Montana, Oregon, and Washington. Part of my job is to inspire a culture of generosity that can connect, strengthen, and develop the LGBTQ leaders of the future. Pride Foundation is the largest provider of LGBTQ scholarships in the nation, and last year we awarded nearly $20,000 to Montana students. These scholarships are crucial to students, many of whom grew up in a town similar to mine, where they had no role models.

Universities give students the chance to be exposed to all the beautiful diversity that exists in our world, and for them to discover who they are and how to live their values. In a day and age where LGBTQ youth are still four times more likely to commit suicide than their heterosexual peers, universities should serve as a light at the end of the dark tunnel that too often represents adolescence for members of our community. I ask the Montana Board of Regents to include sexual orientation and gender identity to its non-discrimination policy to show that our universities value all students, faculty, staff, and alumni, regardless of who they are or who they love. 

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Special thanks to Caitlin for her honesty, time, and willingness to share her experience with us.

If you are a Montana University System LGBTQAI or Ally student, staff,  Alumnus, or faculty, we want to share your story, too! Email us at 703equality@gmail.com

Adrienne's Story

We at 703 Equality want to thank Adrienne for her honesty, time, and willingness to put her experience out there for others to read.
If you are a Montana University System LGBTQAI or Ally student, staff,  Alumnus, or faculty, we want to share your story, too! Email us at 703equality@gmail.com

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Adrienne is a sophomore at the University of Montana studying Social Work and can be reached by email at Jacquelyn.adrienne.edwards@gmail.com.

Montana has some of the best people in the world, including the LGBTQAI community. I have never before come across a friendlier and open community that reaches out to those around them no matter the differences. As an ally I have had the chance to witness first hand from a point of view not many have the opportunity to access.

When people think of the LGBTQAI community they often form their opinion based on what they see in media, movies, and the press. The truth is these people are no different from any other group in Montana. The short time I have spent with this community has been the best time I have had in my life. They are open and caring people who accept everyone for who they are no matter their affiliation or identity.

As the Media Marketing Director of LAMBDA at the University of Montana I have met fantastic people who have the most wonderful views of the world.

They are accepting of those beyond their community, even more so than most, and that has made me strive to be a better person. It can be hard for people to accept those who are different than they are but the LGBTQAI community has shown me that reaching across boundaries and social differences is better than staying within the safety and comfort of their own borders. Boundaries build fear because we don’t know what is beyond the wall of our understanding, so we rely on rumors and whispers to tell us instead of finding out for ourselves what it is like on the other side.

The point is that we need to learn to understand that everyone is different and that being different is not wrong. I have learned that individuality and differences are what make the LGBTQAI community what it is; a wonderful and fantastic community to be a part of. Which is why the Montana University System needs to allow for basic human rights protections; to not do so is to deny safety to an amazing part of the state of Montana.

Supporter(s) of the Day; Alumni!

We here at 703 Equality have been very inspired by how engaged and interested the Montana University System Alumni are. Here's a fantastic example from Daniel Hinkle when he signed the letter to the Commissioner and Board of Regents;

"As an alumnus and former staff member of Montana State University - Bozeman, I strongly urge the the Commissioner of Higher Education and the Board of Regents to include gender identity and sexual orientation or preference to the Board of Regents Non-Discrimination Policy 703."

Another Alumnus from MSU had this to say;

"I am proud to be an open-minded Bobcat and Alumnus and support those students spearheading this initiative."

We are so grateful for our Alumni. You guys are incredible!

Supporter of the Day; Milly Allen

Check out what Milly had to say when she signed the letter to the Commissioner and Board of Regents;

"The Montana University System should be a safe space for all that attend; students who live on campus should feel at home. By not extending basic human rights to everyone, regardless of their sexual orientation or gender identity, the well being of students is compromised. Please include gender identity and sexual orientation/preference in Non-Discrimination Policy 703."

When we contacted Milly about sharing her comment on our blog, being the rockstar that she is, this was her response;

"I'd like to set a standard of people not being afraid to attach their name to their opinions, especially on issues like this. We shouldn't be judged for who we support!"

If you want to be a rockstar too, click here to sign the letter and stand for equality in the Montana University System!

See the rockstar glint in her eyes?

Jerry's Story

We at 703 Equality want to thank Jerry for his honesty, time, and willingness to put his experience out there for others to read.
If you are a Montana University System LGBTQAI or Ally student, staff, or faculty, we want to share your story, too! Email us at 703equality@gmail.com

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Jerry Wachal, 2013.
Jerry is a junior at the University of Motana studying journalism. More of his musiings can be found here, at http://mylifetowelcome.blogspot.com/

We all have something that defines us. Whether it be red hair, being a girl, a boy, having big ears, small feet, weird fingers; for me it was being gay. Something that has taken a lot of time to accept in not only myself but the others around me. Now I'm not here to bore you all with my tragique life of being a lonely gay boy in small town Montana. That's not my story, that's not what defines me. What defines me is the fact that I've grown from being a lonely gay boy in small town Montana, and only hope for others to grow as well.

By grow, I mean open up. Sure, growing up gay in a part of Montana was difficult, but I didn't let it get me down. I had been called names from the very uncreative fag, to the still very uncreative (however, a bit more creative than just the normal fag and queer,) Fairy Jerry. I had letters stuffed in to my locker telling me how what I was doing was wrong, and how I'm going to hell. I even had a pair of scissors thrown at me from a bus. Which I'm sure is not their actual use, except for when trying to hit queers on the side of the street.

However angry these things made me feel, however hurt I was by the bullying and tormenting of my high school peers, it only made me stronger. Cliche, I know, but it is  cliche for a reason. I went through some dark times back in high school, not unlike every other teen, especially one's struggling with finding themselves in a confined environment such as the one I was in. Yet, at the end of the day I still had amazing, supportive friends that helped me through a lot of it.

I didn't ever really get to experience much of the 'gay lifestyle' until I moved to Missoula to attend the University in the fall of 2011. Before, the closest I got to it were late nights of watching RuPaul's Drag Race and a Skrillex concert. It was not until I went to my first Lambda meeting where I felt that I had a place to feel accepted. I wasn't seen as weird, instead I found that most of the people there were more weird than I. It was releiving to know that I could geek out with people like me.

For the first time in my life I didn't have to be worried about finding friends because I was too flamboyant; I now had friends I was completely comfortable around and it was wonderful. It was all that I had been waiting for.

It was because of the University's Lambda Alliance that I got to see that, going back to the cliché's, it does get better. I didn't have to worry about being alone for the rest of my life. I had hope for my future now that I had friends that I could talk to about certain stuff. I had friends who looked out for me if there was a guy interested, and they showed me the way.

Living in Montana should be that way for every young Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgendered or Questioning adult. The Montana University System should be a safe place for all young LGBTQ adults, and they should see that they can be accepted no matter their sexual orientation or preference. It's true what your elementary school teachers always said; It's what's on the inside that counts.

So that's it. No sob story, no my life sucked because I was gay, no traqigue ending. Only a young adult who wants to see others flourish in a community like the Queer community in Missoula, to realize that life is… eh… not that bad, but it's better when you can be you.



You Begged to Help, So Here's How!

Thanks to so many of you, the support for changing the Board of Regent's Non-Discrimination Policy #703 has never been clearer. We are overwhelmingly grateful for all of you. The exciting part though? The vast majority of you have asked for more ways to help!

So, here is a short list of a few things you can do that take ten minutes or less. Promise.

1. Get in the know. Click the image below to find out all of the details on past and current support.

Via Kiah Abbey, 2012

2. Write a letter. That's right, a real, legit, snail-mail letter. Because, for the first time in the history of bureaucracy, there exists a really engaged and responsive group of a public officials that want to hear your personal opinions and stories about why this policy change is important to you! Scroll down to "draft letter" in this link for details on how.

Via WiseGeek

3. If you have not already, sign the online letter! It takes 35 seconds. That's real. We timed it.

4. Share, share, share. This is pandering, and we know it. Sorry. But, it's important for as many people as possible to find out how to get engaged with sharing their opinions on the 703 policy change. Help us do that! 

Again, thank you all for your support of 703 Equality. Let's keep this momentum up!!

Supporter of the Day; Elizabeth Wilmerding

When signing on to the online letter in support of changing Policy 703, Elizabeth Wilmerding had this to say;

"I'm am alum living out of state but this issue is incredibly important to me. Let me know if there are other ways I can help with this."

Elizabeth has done her part by signing onto the letter! Have you had a chance to yet? 

If not, Click Here to show your support!

The Rose (2008) by Cy Twombly
via Artoserved, and "30 LGBT Artists You Should Know"

Supporter of the Day; Richard A. Sattler, Ph.D.

This is what Dr. Sattler had to add about adding sexual orientation and gender identity to the Board of Regents' Non-discrimination policy703;

"those who differ from the social norm harm no one else. All human beings deserve to be protected from discrimination based on who they are."

Thanks to Dr. Sattler, we continue to move forward in equally protecting all students, staff, and faculty of the Montana university system.

Are you an LGBTQAI or ally student in Montana wanting to share your experiences? We want to publish them! Write in your stories to 703equality@gmail.com and they may be featured on our blog!

Via http://cheekyhooligan.tumblr.com/

Supporter of the day; Ben Goldstein

Here is what Ben thought about the change to policy 703;

"This issue should be a top priority of the BOR in the spirit of genuine inclusion"

Other supporters that sent letters onto the Commissioner and Board of Regents said;

"As a student who not only currently attends, but also is employed by Montana State, I would like to be protected as a student who identifies as being a lesbian. Please alter the policy to protect minorities like myself who enhance the diversity of Montana State."

Thanks so much to everyone that has submitted their additions to the ongoing letter! If you have not had a chance to sign-up yet, now is your chance!!

Click HERE to show your support!

(via http://reclaimingbeauty.com/2011/10/18/come-together/)

Sign the Letter!

TODAY-- the form letter to the Montana Commissioner on Higher Education and the Board of Regents went live.

Don't miss out! Take 35 seconds to voice your opinion and don't forget to share it with your friends!

SIGN HERE

Tell Us Your Story!

Are you an LGBTQAI/Ally student on a Montana University System campus?

We want to hear from you!

Email us your story about what your college experience has been like and we will publish it on this page! 703equality@gmail.com

Share you story to help us all move forward with equality. 

Happy Holidays and Merry Christmas!

President Obama: It Gets Better