As a resident adviser, Danielle Sutton can’t imagine how she would react if one of her residents committed suicide after being bullied about his or her sexual identity. 

As the president of Syracuse University’s Pride Union and someone who identifies as bisexual, the thought that it could happen here scares her. 

‘SU is safer for LGBT students than other campuses, but I still hear about people being homophobic, saying things like, ‘That’s so gay.’ I hear about people getting beaten up for their sexual identity,’ Sutton said. ‘It scares me, but it could happen anywhere.’ 

On Wednesday, Rutgers University in New Jersey disclosed the details of a Sept. 22 suicide of freshman Tyler Clementi, whose sexual encounter with another male was recorded by webcam and streamed online by his roommate. This was the latest of four youth suicides related to bullying based on sexual identity during September. 

Though none of the suicides have directly involved SU, the ripple effects and grief have been felt by the campus community. University officials and organizations are responding in kind. 

Thomas Wolfe, senior vice president and dean of student affairs, and Chris Sedore, vice president for information technology and chief information officer, sent a joint e-mail Saturday to the university community, expressing sorrow at Clementi’s suicide. 

‘Sadly, Tyler’s death suggests that communities of higher education take time to reflect on and discuss the issues of community, privacy, mental health, and inclusion presented by what has happened,’ the e-mail read. ‘As we have seen, actions that may be intended as ‘pranks’ or language used carelessly can have real and tragic consequences.’ 

October is National Coming Out Month, and SU annually plans events and speakers for the month, including chalking the Quad, film screenings and a keynote speaker. Though this year’s events were already planned, Pride Union and the LGBT Resource Center will try to incorporate dialogue about the recent suicides into the events, Sutton said. 

Coming Out Month is ‘more important than ever,’ Sutton said. ‘There’s the theory of chain reactions that people will commit suicide after hearing about others. I don’t necessarily believe in that, but if it were true, it would happen this month.’ 

A handful of students have come to Hendricks Chapel seeking counseling in response to Clementi’s suicide, said Tiffany Steinwert, dean of Hendricks. There have been some students who feel they are in crisis, but a number of students simply want to talk about the issue, she said. 

Though SU has received five out of five stars on the Campus Pride LGBT-Friendly Campus Climate Index for the past three years, that does not mean no work is needed to ensure SU is an inclusive community, Steinwert said.

Steinwert came to SU last semester after ministering at and co-founding the Cambridge Welcoming Ministries, a United Methodist Church open to the LGBT community. She and university officials and organizations are hoping to organize a panel discussion in response to the Clementi suicide that discusses how religious faith has been both a barrier and resource for individuals struggling with their sexual identity. 

‘Bigotry and intolerance often cloaks itself in religion, but Hendricks understands that not all religious people are homophobic,’ she said. 

Though the recent suicides are tragic, Steinwert said there is the possibility of opening a dialogue about issues of intolerance and showing a human side to the issue. People may disagree about the morals of sexual orientations, but they should agree to be against suicide, she said.

As far as Steinwert has seen, the administration at SU stands out from other universities in its response to the suicide. She has not heard of other universities sending e-mails to their communities or participating in discussions on how to end bias. 

The LGBT Resource Center is also hoping to take this tragedy as an opportunity to make SU a more inclusive campus, said D. Chase James Catalano, director of the LGBT Resource Center. 

‘We are hoping to collaborate on possible response programs that have a greater sustainability for the SU community,’ Catalano said in an e-mail. ‘As soon as we have the details to share, we will do our best to send them out to the SU community. Until that time, we hope faculty, students, and staff will attend the events of National Coming Out Month, so folks can see that they are not alone.’ 

Should something similar to Clementi’s suicide happen at SU, the university is prepared to support students, said Terra Peckskamp, director of the Office of Residence Life. She said ORL would act similarly to other deaths and reach out to students, provide therapists and work with the Counseling Center. 

ORL would also like to collaborate with other university organizations to discuss questions students might have about Internet security, policies and what’s appropriate, Peckskamp said. In the meantime, the office is talking with all RAs to ensure they are aware of the wider issues of bullying based on sexual identity. 

Clementi had apparently sought a room change and the help of an RA the night before he died, according to an article on CBS News’ website Monday. Sutton, the RA and president of Pride Union, said it hurts her to know Clementi sought help, but was not listened to. 

‘It’s disturbing that there have been so many suicides, especially with the stories behind what happened and why,’ she said. ‘It hurts to know that he couldn’t be out and proud.’

rhkheel@syr.edu

 

Published on October 4, 2010 at 12:00 pm