Milligan group aims to push university to change LGBTQ+ policies – Johnson City Press (subscription)
Following the resignation of a professor at Milligan University last year, said to have been forced out of their position because they were gay, hundreds of people connected to the university formed a nonprofit group calling on Milligan to “welcome and affirm persons of all gender identities and sexual orientations.”
The more than 600 alumni, students, faculty, staff, family and community members that are part of MilliganforAll are asking the university to revise its statement on human sexuality to reflect that all gender identities, expressions and sexual orientations are “good and wonderful gifts from God” and “reflections of the divine image in which we have been created,” said the Rev. Wes Jamison, one of the group’s board members. Jamison also said the group wants to see gender identity and expression and sexual orientation added to its non-discrimination policy.
“We want to ensure that all people are protected and feel safe and affirmed in their position in the community either as a student or as a faculty member or a staff member,” Jamison said. “And certainly there are larger, ongoing concerns about the homogenous nature of Milligan — they’ve made some significant strides against racism in the last several years — but all of this is part of a larger struggle for a more just, equitable and sustainable and loving community.
“And we really want to come alongside the university’s leadership and help to support them and press them to move forward in ways that respect the inherent worth and dignity of every human being as a child of God.”
The group also calls for the creation of a “diverse committee to guide the institution in becoming more welcoming and inclusive.”
“The changes in policy and practice that we’re urging are in keeping with the core principles upon which Milligan was founded,” MilliganforAll President Jessica Carter said in a press release. “The university taught us to respect the inherent worth and dignity of every person and to use our resources to work for a more just, equitable and loving world.”
In a statement to the Press, Milligan University President Bill Greer said the institution was “aware of recent and ongoing questions raised regarding Milligan University’s stance on human sexuality.”
“Milligan strives to be a community that welcomes and exhibits Christ’s love and grace to all students, including our LGBTQ+ students, because it is central to our Christian mission,” Greer said. “While Milligan’s position supporting the traditional biblical understanding about human sexuality may run counter to trends in culture and society, we are committed to our interpretation of scripture and the protection of religious freedom that is provided by the First Amendment of the Constitution.”
Greer said administrators were working to find ways to “demonstrate love and establish trust with our LGBTQ+ students,” and said the university was planning improvements to achieve those goals.
“We recognize that not all members of the Milligan community will agree with every aspect of our understanding of human sexuality,” he said. “We welcome respectful dialogue and careful discernment as we work together to nurture a Milligan community that values both the authority of scripture and the needs of persons.”
Supporters created a Facebook group last year in response to the professor’s resignation, then the group quickly expanded it into a base for activism. Members of the group’s leadership plan to engage university leadership in pushing for change in its policies and practices, and provide support for Milligan’s LBGTQ+ community members.
“I would have given almost anything to not feel so alone and scared when I was struggling to come to terms with being gay while a student at Milligan and Emmanuel (Christian Seminary, which is part of Milligan University),” Jamison said in the press release. “It was so hard to know who I could trust, and I lived in fear of being kicked out if leadership knew I was gay. It doesn’t have to be that way. No student, faculty, or staff member at Milligan University needs to feel alone or live in fear of being who God made them to be.”
In a phone interview Tuesday, Jamison said “we all love Milligan with our whole hearts, but we also know it’s a very difficult place when you’re struggling with your sexuality or your gender identity.”
“We have been concerned about a number of stories we’ve heard from folks who have continued to experience significant discrimination, significant fear and just a sense of not feeling completely at home or belonging there,” Jamison said. “There’s a lot of fear and anxiety among students and faculty and staff that, if they were outed, that they would not be fully welcomed there. Students live in fear of being kicked out, faculty live in fear of losing their jobs.”