By Jasmine Hoof / Staff Writer
Colleges may ask (Na’ilah Thomas / Staff Photographer)
By Jasmine Hoof / Staff Writer
We are all familiar with the usual school applications that are filled out every year and what the questions consist of. The common questions include name, date of birth, and ethnicity. But what if they added sexual orientation as a question?
Of course, like the rest of the inquest, it would all be voluntary. Though if you did answer, would you answer it honestly?
Unlike the other questions this subject is not exactly out there in the open for everyone to see like ethnicity. It is up to the individual to share that information, whether freely or to a select number of people.
I personally can say that this topic carries positive and negative outcomes in the end depending on that person’s willingness to tell what was or still may be a secret.
From a positive perspective, I think colleges would be the best place to conduct this experiment. It is the most open and nonjudgmental environment.
Students feel more comfortable expressing their views and choices during this time without the pressure of being ridiculed for it. This is when we are figuring out who we are and meant to become. Students would be more open to answering the question with honesty and without worry.
By asking this of students, we could put the information to good use.
“Collecting such data would help schools know whether they are offering enough services targeting the gay and lesbian population, such as support and counseling,” said KTLA.
Having more ways for the gay and lesbian groups to reach out and be accepted would definitely be a huge improvement that our society needs.
The most common reasons for depression are because of dealing with the challenge of sexual orientation. We need to prove that we are understanding of their struggles and are accepting and open.
Homosexual persons are no different than the rest of the world’s population and there are people who can help and who want to help.
Unfortunately you have to look at the negatives as well. First off, would people be willing to “out” themselves for a better cause? For many, they would see this as a way to single out students who are gay and ridicule them.
Also, could we trust people to answer honestly? There are still many who want to keep their sexual identity a secret and are not ready to be publicly recognized.
When it came down to asking students how they felt about a survey like this the outcome was very positive. Almost all agreed that this was a great idea and a great way to accept the homosexual lifestyle as a normal part in our society.
This is a perfect example of how our college community, gay or straight, are willing to try out new ideas and integrate all students.
All in all, in order for something to work without worrying about the consequences that could occur, we have to take precautions to make students more comfortable with releasing such personal information.
For instance, we could make these surveys anonymous to insure our students’ privacy. Let our campuses know the benefits of doing these types of things to show how important it is and make people aware of the benefits it could have.
With the college atmosphere being so open and accepting it should be no problem at all to perform a survey like this to make sure everyone gets their needs met and feels that there is at least one place that will always accept them.
Straight, gay, transsexual, or bisexual, all of our student population deserve equal representation in our schools to ensure an amazing college experience and a bright joyful future.
