Student Leadership and Activities

WOU Safe Zone Committee

The WOU Safe Zone Committee had its first meeting on October 11, 2006. The group was committed to starting a Safe Zone program on campus, but didn't know what that would look like. Ideas were thrown around everywhere! From that first meeting, the committee has evolved. People have come, gone, but the commitment to inclusivity and having WOU be a supportive and safe campus has stayed the same!

Today, the committee meets every 1-2 weeks to evaluate the program, discuss issues on campus and reaffirm our interest and commitment to GLBTQ issues on the WOU campus.

The WOU Safe Zone Committee established a logo contest during winter term 2007 with the hopes of getting designs from students that would work to create a unique WOU logo that sets a positive image of Safe Zone. Emily Nuding submitted the winning design from that contest.

After some feedback from the campus community and committee, we were able to create the official logo for Western Oregon University's Safe Zone program.

The logo has been used to create buttons, bumperstickers and is available to purchase on a variety of apparel and goods, the proceeds benefiting the Safe Zone program on the WOU campus.

Safe Zone Coming Out Party

The WOU Safe Zone committee only thought it fitting to have a "Coming Out' party for the new WOU Safe Zone logo and tell the campus community about the efforts and training. It was held on April 30, 2007 and was attended by over 60 people. There was a Safe Zone cake, a giant placard signed by people in attendance and support from the WOU President, faculty, staff and students. THis marked the first public display of the program. Since then, we have given out over 600 buttons and hundreds of bumperstickers and items to show support for GLBTQ issues on the WOU campus.

Contact Us

You can reach anyone on the committee by e-mailing us at safezone@wou.edu.

Timeline of Gay RIghts

1924

The Society for Human Rights in Chicago becomes the country's earliest known gay rights organization.

1948

Alfred Kinsey publishes the Sexual Behavior in the Human Male, revealing to the public that homosexuality is far more widespread than was commonly believed.

1951

The Mattachine Society, the first national gay rights organization, is formed by Harry Hay, considered by many to be the founder of the gay rights movement.

1956

The Daughters of Bilitis, a pioneering national lesbian organization, is founded.

1962

Illinois becomes the first state in the U.S. to decriminalize homosexual acts between consenting adults in private.

1969

The Stonewall riots transform the gay rights movement from one limited to a small number of activists into a widespread protest for equal rights and acceptance. Patrons of a gay bar in New York's Greenwich Village, the Stonewall Inn, fight back during a police raid on June 27, sparking three days of riots.

1973

The American Psychiatric Association removes homosexuality from its official list of mental disorders.

1982

Wisconsin becomes the first state to outlaw discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation.

1993

The “Don't Ask, Don't Tell” policy is instituted for the U.S. military, permitting gays to serve in the military but banning homosexual activity. President Clinton's original intention to revoke the prohibition against gays in the military was met with stiff opposition; this compromise, which has led to the discharge of thousands of men and women in the armed forces, was the result.

1996

In Romer vs. Evans, the Supreme Court strikes down Colorado's Amendment 2, which denied gays and lesbians protections against discrimination, calling them “special rights.” According to Justice Anthony Kennedy, “We find nothing special in the protections Amendment 2 withholds. These protections . . . constitute ordinary civil life in a free society.”

2000

Vermont becomes the first state in the country to legally recognize civil unions between gay or lesbian couples. The law states that these “couples would be entitled to the same benefits, privileges, and responsibilities as spouses.” It stops short of referring to same-sex unions as marriage, which the state defines as heterosexual.1

2003

The U.S. Supreme Court rules in Lawrence vs. Texas that sodomy laws in the U.S. are unconstitutional. Justice Anthony Kennedy wrote, “Liberty presumes an autonomy of self that includes freedom of thought, belief, expression, and certain intimate conduct.”

In November, the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court ruled that barring gays and lesbians from marrying violates the state constitution. The Massachusetts Chief Justice concluded that to “deny the protections, benefits, and obligations conferred by civil marriage” to gay couples was unconstitutional because it denied “the dignity and equality of all individuals” and made them “second-class citizens.” Strong opposition followed the ruling.

2004

On May 17, same-sex marriages become legal in Massachusetts.