Opinions and Editorials Section
By Jackson Hare, Education and Enrichment Coordinator
Last March, I was elected to serve on Xavier’s LGBTQ+ Alliance Executive Board. Less than two months later, I resigned, lacking confidence in Alliance’s ability to fulfill its mission to advocate for LGBTQ+ students.
Although I believe resigning was the right choice — feeling less engaged and less empowered in my leadership role and as a queer individual — I was devastated. I have been an active member of Alliance since my first year at Xavier, and after three years of forming a deep commitment to Alliance, I was eager to give back to the organization that played a critical role in keeping me at Xavier.
Jackson Hare started his first LGBTQ+ Alliance organization in high school, where he organized projects including the one pictured above.
My passion for LGBTQ+ advocacy has always been grounded in groups like Alliance, driven by an unapologetic resistance to fear and intimidation. I recognize this approach can be uncomfortable and attract negative attention, but I see these as necessary growing pains.
I was certain that this radical stance would challenge Alliance, especially after it gained University Affiliated Organization (UAO) status. Last spring, 16 students from The Ohio State University students were arrested while protesting the violence against Palestinians in Gaza.
I came to the Alliance board proposing that we put out a statement to express our solidarity, condemn Ohio State’s response and emphasize that we “support the preservation of college campuses as an environment conducive to free speech,” without taking a stance on the content of the protests. After much debate, Alliance eventually agreed to post this statement.
When two former Xavier students were arrested and charged with a felony after they began protesting in a non-designated protest location, I made a similar request for a statement condemning the Xavier administration’s response. However, they refused, outvoting me despite agreeing with the general message.
An adapted version of the Ohio State statement was posted after I tagged Alliance on an Instagram story publicizing the outcome of this vote.
I argued that when it comes time for queer students to advocate for themselves through protest, we would want the same show of solidarity and freedom from violence or unreasonable charges too.
Other board members claimed it was mission drift.
My persistent attempts to justify this course of action were thwarted by Alliance trying to avoid repercussions from the university, concerned their budget and UAO status would be at risk.
I wondered how this could be a concern at a university that enshrines civil protest in its Jesuit foundation and mission. The first principle listed on Xavier’s Free Speech and Expression page reads that the university rejects “attempts to prohibit speech or expression on the basis of content or viewpoint, even if the content of those views is disagreeable or offensive to some members of the University.” So why should the post be a concern?
I realize the Alliance board is not to blame. They are all formidable and brave leaders on campus and in the greater community, acting with an undying commitment to LGBTQ+ people, much like my own. Had the university’s commitment to free expression been genuine, their concerns would be nonexistent.
Instead, it is perhaps Xavier administration’s recent behavior that has left LGBTQ+ students and leaders feeling insecure and unsafe at Xavier.
They fear being punished by the Xavier administration in a way that would challenge or handicap their ability to fulfill their mission in providing a safe space for queer students at Xavier.
This is what suppression of student expression looks like.
Alliance’s newly gained UAO status should have made the organization feel more secure, but instead it has become a means of control. As long as the Alliance fears repercussions, it will never be able to exist authentically and meaningfully advance the experience of queer students at Xavier.
The administration may counterclaim that there is nothing stopping queer students from civilly protesting on campus. This may be true, but it must be done at a time, place and manner that the university considers appropriate.
Xavier polices what a queer student can and cannot do or be, forcing them to present an appropriated and passive version of queer identity that is palatable for the university to market.
This is why I resigned from Alliance’s board. Xavier has made it impossible to authentically advocate for queer students through Alliance without jeopardizing the safe space it provides. I want to be my authentic queer self, which, to me, embodies a sense of resistance. My commitment to Alliance and queer people has not ended, as I aspire to always be a troublemaking queer.
