LGBA asks Hackney to oust ROTC

Members of the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual Alliance added their support last week to a University Council Resolution calling for the removal of ROTC by 1993, if the units do not comply with the campus nondiscrimination policy. The LGBA, in a letter to President Sheldon Hackney last week, reiterated many of the fundamental issues in the debate about the Reserve Officer Training Corps and their exclusion of homosexuals. Part of the letter focuses on the provisions in the Council resolution which allow University students to continue to participate in ROTC on nearby campuses, as Air Force ROTC students already do. College senior Sloan Wiesen, an LGBA member who signed the letter, said that this provision is important for the community to recognize. Hackney, at the council meeting, advocated trying to persuade the Department of Defense to change their policy through friendly methods instead of ultimatums. But the LGBA statement asks Hackney to take a bolder stance on the issue and stick to the universities nondiscrimination code. "Removing the ROTC, if it comes to that, is not about changing DOD policy; it's about preserving our own policy," the letter states. Accepting the resolution sooner rather than later will give Hackney leverage in getting the Defense Department policy changed, Wiesen said. "It make an unequivicable statement that this is a real concern," Wiesen said. "It's not just a bluff." College senior Kirk Marcolina, another LGBA member who signed the letter, said that the letter is intended to make a statement. "We wanted the Penn community and President Hackney to know why the resolution is fair and should be acted upon," Marcolina said. "[Accepting it] is essential if the nondiscirimination policy is to be meaningful." Marcolina said all avenues should be taken, but one of the best ways Hackney can act is taking heed of the University Council's resolution. "It matters that he takes a decisive action quickly because this is affecting a lot of people's lives," Marcolina said. Another part of the letter commends Hackney for taking the issue seriously, while asking for information on further action he has taken. Assistant to the President Nicholas Constan said that Hackney just received the letter and has not responded yet. "It is a letter to which I think the president will react with pleasure," Constan said. "It put forward in fairly succinct terms a good summary of one side of the issue." Hackney will likely act on the Council resolution before the June 1993 deadline it imposes, but the president wants to wait until it is clear that there is no longer a chance for meaningful change to be made through discussion, Constan said.

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