New posters that read, "Homophobia: Stopping it means seeing it," adorn the hallways of Carmichael Hall. Next to the text is a picture of a blindfolded girl applying lip gloss in a bathroom and looking into a mirror covered with explicit homophobic slurs.
On Thursday night, the Carmichael-Wilson Residential Assistants (RAs) hosted a discussion group about the poster. This act was mostly a response to the administration forbidding the poster unless it accompanied an educational event, and was not permitted in other residential halls.
The problem: concern that the slurs would be hurtful to the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgendered (LGBT) community.
"Think about somebody who is struggling with their sexuality, and they're trying to come out," Associate Dean of Students Marisel Perez said. "What impact would those words have on them? That's what we are trying to think about."
For example, words used in a bias incident are not replicated in the subsequent incident report, Perez said. This is to prevent students from feeling "re-victimized."
Yet LGBT students are not necessarily troubled by the poster. "I think those words are shocking but also fine because we still hear them all the time," said junior Jonathan Adler, an active member of the LGBT community living in the Rainbow House.
Adler said the posters were "just spectacular. They have a great message about recognizing homophobia and the blindness so many people suffer."
Perez clarified that the poster was approved, but only for the sake of discussion. "It wasn't that we censored the thing. We just wanted people to have a chance to talk about their concerns," she explained.
The poster was created by a group of five students selected by the Women's Center as part of the Campus Violence Prevention Project. The program, sponsored by the U.S. Department of Justice, has awarded the Women's Center $1.3 million over the past eight years.
The project was advertised on TuftsLife.com, and students applied to design the poster.
This specific project was funded by money provided to the Women's Center by the University. "[The Department of Justice] didn't consider the poster to focus specifically on violence against women," said Susan Gilbert, a Project Coordinator with the Women's Center.
Members of the Bias Education and Awareness Team (BEAT), the five student creators of the poster, the Carmichael and Wilson hall RAs, and a few students attended the discussion. Some of the creators of the poster were quick to voice their surprise at the administration's reaction.
"The idea was clearly not to be offensive. We thought that it was a pretty clear message," said senior Jennifer Simon, who helped design the poster.
Alonso Nichols, a violence prevention educator with the Women's Center and contributing photographer, juxtaposed an everyday image with images related to issues like homophobia.
"We actually consulted members of the LGBT)] community, because if [the poster] was going to be hurtful, we wouldn't put it up, but the response was positive all around," said sophomore Jessie Chamberlin, who is pictured in the poster.
Gilbert did not disagree with the administration's decision. "I definitely support their decision. I think it's important that the poster be talked about in ways that examine the issues presented on the poster."
Nor does Gilbert think that actions such as these will in any way disrupt the flow of information about violence to students. Rather, she said, it would create an active campaign, as opposed to a passive one.
"I think more students might see the poster if we just put it up, but this way, students will actually think about the poster and talk about it in a way that's positive and productive," she said.
The Women's Center plans to schedule more residence hall meetings in the future so that the poster can be displayed and discussed on other parts of campus.
