The Muse, vol. 58, no. 25 (22 May 2008)

              More than you ever
wanted to know about
herpes.
- Feature p. 5
Volume 58 Number 25
May 22, 2008
On May 16, Over 50 people gathered at the Battery Hotel to hear Gerry Rogers celebrate the strides of gay activists locally and abroad.
Community leaders celebrate National Day
Against Homophobia
Gerry Rogers hi        its gay activism, gives out bumper stickers
COURTNEY BARBOUR
BY KERRI BREEN
The National Day Against
Homophobia breakfast is not just
about recognizing inequality, says
keynote speaker and internationally-acclaimed filmmaker Gerry
Rogers. It's about celebrating the
accomplishments of gay communities worldwide.
"This year in Canada we've dealt
with some pretty awful issues," she
said. "We've dealt with the homophobic policy on organ donation.
We've seen church leaders and followers tearing their congregations
apart because of their homophobia...
But we have many, many gains and I
want us to celebrate those this morning."
At the third annual event of its
kind, Rogers presented an audience
of 50 with trivia and tidbits about
gay pioneers - and she distributed prizes for those who knew their
history, including bumper stickers
with slogans such as "honk if you're
a homo."
Rogers recognized the efforts
of Remzi Cej, Newfoundland and
Labrador's first openly gay Rhodes
Scholar, and her partner Peg
Norman, the first lesbian from the
province to run in a federal election,
among others on a long list of lesbi
an, bisexual, gay, and transgendered
(LBGT) individuals who have been
making waves in areas from entertainment to politics.
She also summoned members
of the audience, which represented a variety of advocacy organizations from Egale to the Provincial
Advisory Council on the Status of
women, to give updates on the initiatives they are working on.
The MUN Students' Union had
a strong presence at the event, with
board members from arts rep Becky
Windsor to Director of Student
Life Bradley Russell in attendance.
Director of External Affairs Cameron
Campbell says that it was important
for the Union to be there.
"University is a time when a lot
people end up coming out. And it's
important that we can help them
through that because for a lot of people it is a struggle."
Echoing Rogers, Campbell says
that the event was primarily about
recognition of gay strides in the
province and beyond.
" I learned some cool little facts...
but I don't think today is so much
about learning things, but just appreciating things. And having some
people there that spearheaded ...
same-sex marriage in the province,
it's kind of cool to see those people
and appreciate the work that they've
done."
Rogers praised the efforts of
Egale Canada, which is conducting
a National Survey of Homophobia
and Transphobia in Schools. The
organization is working with the
Department of Education and the
safe and caring schools commissioner to make sure that the results ofthe
survey are taken into consideration
by the province's schools.
But integrating LBGT-positive
curriculum is not expected to be an
easy battle. A representative of Egale
called the process of implementing
the recommendations ofthe survey
one ofthe most important fights the
organization will engage in.
MUN students head to Africa
Five MUNHOPE volunteers to teach health safety in Zanzibar
BY IAN MACDONALD
On June 2, five Memorial students will
be heading to Zanzibar, Tanzania to
teach community members in the region effective AIDS and HIV prevention techniques.
The volunteers, all members of
MUN Health, Outreach, Promotion,
and Education (MUNHOPE) have been
holding fundraising events to help pay
for the trip. So far the group has raised
four thousand dollars, putting a small
dent in the five thousand each volunteer
has to shell out for the trip.
The non-profit organization focuses
on promoting awareness about international health issues and educating individuals around the globe about health
safety. Kristian Green, a volunteer for
MUNHOPE, says that he and the other four volunteers in his group will be
educating communities on topics such
as HIV-AIDS prevention.
"I'm sure it will be similar things that
they did over there last year," said Green.
"Trying to make community members
peer-educators so that when we teach
them they'll teach others in their own
language and they'll want to learn more
about it."
The trip will be a whole new experience for Green, whose studies at
Memorial have kept him tied to the
province.
"I just graduated biochemistry this
semester," he said. "One ofthe things in
my degree I kind of didn't like so much
was the fact that we can't really travel."
Hoping to enter Memorial's medical
faculty in September, Green says that
his efforts in Africa will give him experience he can carry into his future
career.
In 2007, MUNHOPE sent 10 volunteers to Africa in a similar education
effort with great success. At the end of
the trip the volunteers got to see their
work pay off as the community members taught others vital health information, successfully passing on the knowledge MUNHOPE brought to them.
Green hopes that this year's group
will have the same kind of impact.
"When they saw them teaching the
rest ofthe community they really knew
they had helped a lot," he said. "I just
want to be able to help out in any way
I can."
Andrea Kirby, Stephanie Boland, Lacey Harding, and Kristian Green are
heading to Tanzania to raise awareness about health issues.
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