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Howard Students Grapple With Safety Questions After Assault

By Kerry-Ann Hamilton
Black College Wire

Melanie Nesbitt Howard student Darryl Payton, the student whose attack prompted a campus rally, speaks to the crowd.

"We want justice. What do we want? Zero tolerance. When do we want it? "Now."

These chants echoed through a bullhorn across the upper quadrangle at Howard University at rally led by the Bisexuals, Lesbians, and Gays Organization of Students at Howard. It was sparked by a recent attack on Darryl Payton, a sophomore theatre arts major, by members of the University�s Showtime marching band trumpet section.

Howard University spokesperson J.J. Pryor said the case might be dropped, as the U.S. attorney's office for Washington, D.C., declined to press for an arrest warrant. The D.C. Metropolitan Police said the prosecution's decision could end their investigation.

Pryor said the University's judicial board had begun determining what disciplinary action should be taken.

Incidents of alleged hate crimes targeted toward gay students are not unique to any campus. A recent survey of 14 campuses by the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force found that more than 10 percent of the 1,000 gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender college students questioned regularly feared for their physical safety. It found that 36 percent actually experienced harassment as a result of their sexual orientation.

At Howard, organizers said the focus of the Sept. 20 rally was on the problem of campus safety.

The Howard University Student Association was co-sponsor. Irene Schwoefferman, HUSA's Political Action Committee chair, helped the group to organize a planned response to the recent attacks.

"As Political Action Committee chair, I facilitate thought into momentum," Schwoefferman said. "I don't want students to just complain, but employ strategic planning for effective action."

The vice president of the Bisexuals, Lesbians, and Gays Organization of Students, Chris Bolden-Newsome, said the organization had received local and national support.

Some of the organizations included the Human Rights Coalition, the Gay and Lesbian Activist Alliance and the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force. "I cannot rate the rally as a success until our immediate and long-term goals are met, but it was a powerful start." Newsome said. "We had long planning sessions, where we talked to gay as well as straight students to get a sense of their safety concerns."

Walter Emanuel, also a freshman biology major, participated in the rally and said he feel secure with the support of other members of the Bisexuals, Lesbians, and Gays Organization of Students.

"I was shocked that an attack like the one against Darryl happened at the Mecca," Emanuel said, using a nickname for Howard University. "I was hesitant to join BLAGOSAH because of the label that would be attached to me, but they are my family. If it could happen to Darryl, it can happen to me."

Payton addressed the crowd on the steps of the campus�s Fine Arts Building. He echoed the sentiment for safety, pointing to the fact that the students who attacked him were still on campus unpunished.

Toni Sanders, a sophomore political science major, recited "If We Must Die" by the poet Claude McKay on the bullhorn during the rally.

"I thought we got our message across," Sanders said. "A lot of people were missing the larger issue; it is not just about gay students, it is safety for all."

Writing in the Hilltop, Howard�s campus newspaper, Shaunice Alston said that the same respect given to fraternities or ROTC should be given to the band,and that the incident had nothing to do with Payton's sexuality. Her opinion piece was called, "A member of the Band Speaks: Right is Right and Wrong is Wrong."

"In the Showtime Marching Band, whether someone has been gay, straight, bisexual, or transgender has never been an issue," Alston said. "In the band, no one's sexuality is on trial. Words such as 'faggot' or 'dyke' are not used."

According to Sanders, the argument as put forward by the band strengthens her view that the issue is bigger than one for gay students.

"If 22 people can jump a student, gay or straight, because they walk through a line, then this threatens the safety of all students," Sanders said.

Maya James, a sophomore English major, is a non-gay student who also participated in the BLAGOSAH's rally.

"I look at the situation from a humanistic perspective," James said. "I had no reservation about being a part of this rally because I am comfortable with who I am."

An onlooker at the rally, Samantha Lynch, a sophomore from Washington, D.C., said the rally was justified. "The band has no right to physically punish any students," Lynch said. "Who do they think they are?"

Lynval Gray, a senior political science major, dismisses any notions that the incident involving Payton was an isolated case. He said he has been harassed and agreed that the university did very little to address his concerns.

"I was coming from a study group one night as I entered the door of the Towers,� a dormitory for upperclassmen, and �some students started saying 'kill all homosexuals,' all homosexuals must die," Gray said.

Gray said the incident was recurring and that campus police gave him the runaround.

"They wanted me to ascertain the names of the students and their ID numbers, which was almost impossible," Gray said. "They wanted me to conduct the investigation and they seemed to have shoved the issue on the back burner."

Bolden-Newsome says that the action taken by BLAGOSAH was not merely a rally, but part of a series of multi-pronged approaches to bring justice to the forefront of the University's policy.

The executive director of the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force, Lorri L. Jean, described as unconscionable the recent physical and verbal anti-gay assaults against Payton and Luqman Selim, a Howard University staff member who is also gay.

In a news release dated Sept. 20, she urged Howard to foster a safe environment.

�We further hope that ultimately, the administration of Howard University will foster and promote a campus and community environment in which all members, regardless of sexual orientation, are able to enjoy the full guarantee of safety and freedom of harassment and persecution,� she said.

Kerry-Ann Hamilton, a student at Howard University, is campus editor of The Hilltop.