2008 Woodie Awards
Students rally against on-campus recruitment
Sara Giampolo
Issue date: 11/17/05 Section: News
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Last Friday, students and lawyers from across the country gathered at Boston College Law School to discuss a law that they consider threatening to anti-discrimination policies in universities nationwide.
The conference is part of a larger movement on college campuses around the country, including a protest at Harvard Law School in late October.
The Solomon Amendment states that government funding will not be provided to schools that bar military recruiters from their campuses. The case was developed and brought to trial by more than 12 law schools, but the amendment currently applies to all institutions of higher education that receive government funding.
Representatives from universities involved with the lawsuit said they intend to keep recruiters off campus because of their anti-discrimination policies. The military has a statute that excludes openly gay and lesbian applicants.
Kate McDonough, co-president of the Emerson Alliance for Gays, Lesbians and Everyone (EAGLE), said she thinks it is vital for college students to voice their disapproval of the amendment.
"I think it's important for institutions to stand behind the gay community, especially prestigious schools like Harvard who have a big name," said McDonough, a junior organizational and political communication and film double major. "Hopefully they can work toward abolishing the 'don't ask, don't tell' policy. I understand where the institutions are coming from-the government gives them a lot of money-but they also get a lot of money from alumni funding, so I think they could spare some to help the cause of social justice."
The Solomon Amendment, passed by Congress in 1995, originally applied to law schools, as the military came in to recruit military lawyers for the Judge Advocate General (JAG) Corps, a division of the U.S. Navy.
The amendment, however, has since been expanded to cut off funding to entire universities if any one of their "sub-elements" refuses to comply with the requests of the recruiters. This means that, if a law school, as a division of a larger university, decides not to let recruiters on campus, the government has the right to revoke funding for the entire school, according to a revised version of the amendment passed in 1996.
The conference is part of a larger movement on college campuses around the country, including a protest at Harvard Law School in late October.
The Solomon Amendment states that government funding will not be provided to schools that bar military recruiters from their campuses. The case was developed and brought to trial by more than 12 law schools, but the amendment currently applies to all institutions of higher education that receive government funding.
Representatives from universities involved with the lawsuit said they intend to keep recruiters off campus because of their anti-discrimination policies. The military has a statute that excludes openly gay and lesbian applicants.
Kate McDonough, co-president of the Emerson Alliance for Gays, Lesbians and Everyone (EAGLE), said she thinks it is vital for college students to voice their disapproval of the amendment.
"I think it's important for institutions to stand behind the gay community, especially prestigious schools like Harvard who have a big name," said McDonough, a junior organizational and political communication and film double major. "Hopefully they can work toward abolishing the 'don't ask, don't tell' policy. I understand where the institutions are coming from-the government gives them a lot of money-but they also get a lot of money from alumni funding, so I think they could spare some to help the cause of social justice."
The Solomon Amendment, passed by Congress in 1995, originally applied to law schools, as the military came in to recruit military lawyers for the Judge Advocate General (JAG) Corps, a division of the U.S. Navy.
The amendment, however, has since been expanded to cut off funding to entire universities if any one of their "sub-elements" refuses to comply with the requests of the recruiters. This means that, if a law school, as a division of a larger university, decides not to let recruiters on campus, the government has the right to revoke funding for the entire school, according to a revised version of the amendment passed in 1996.
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