Six faculty members talked about the pressures of being gay, lesbian and bisexual in the workplace in a panel discussion last night.
About 20 people, mostly professors, attended the discussion, titled "Being Gay, Lesbian and Bisexual in the Work Place: Multiple Perspectives," in the Rockefeller Center for the Social Sciences.
History Professor Annelise Orleck said she is troubled by the fact that only seven states and about 90 municipalities in the United States provide legal protection for homosexuals.
Even in cities where homosexual-rights laws are in place, they only were implemented after long battles, Orleck said. For example, she said New York City did not pass a homosexual-rights law until it was presented to the city council no fewer than 17 times.
New York City passed a homosexual-rights law in 1985.
While Orleck said she believes some states "will never pass a gay-rights bill," she acknowledged homosexual-rights laws have made great gains in recent years.
"There's more protection for gay rights now than ever before," she said.
Orleck also said Dartmouth seems more supportive of its homosexual faculty members than its gay students.
She said the addition of more gay and lesbian studies courses would increase student awareness of these issues and help gay students feel more comfortable in the Dartmouth community.
Assistant Director of Career Services Daryl Gehman talked about important factors that gays, lesbians and bisexuals should consider when looking for jobs and submitting resumes.
He stressed the importance of researching corporations to find out what kind of discrimination protection they offer.
Gehman said it is important for an individual to decide to disclose their homosexuality on a resume.
"If a company won't hire you because they know you're gay, you have to ask yourself, 'Is this the kind of environment I want to work in?'" he said.
Hood Museum Education Anne Marie Manning said she did a lot of research before accepting her position at Dartmouth two years ago.
"I faced a challenge whether or not I'd be able to find and create a community for myself," she said.
Music Professor James Westby, who came to Dartmouth from Los Angeles, said his adjustment was strange at first.
He said in his community in Los Angeles, he did not encounter many straight men.
"When I first got here, I had a lot of misreadings," Westby said. "I was so used to assuming that everyone I met, if they were in some kind of sphere around me, they had to be gay," he said.
Westby said he feels secure at Dartmouth, and appreciates the fact that "it's a safe place that as a gay I don't have to apologize to anyone."
Drama Professor Samuel Abel contrasted the comfort he feels as a member of the Dartmouth community with the homophobia he encountered in previous jobs at both Fargo, N.D., and at DePaul University in Indiana.
Religion Professor Susan Ackerman said she thinks it is important for Dartmouth to hire more gay and lesbian employees. "It can only help the diversity," she said.
