HOMOS & FRIENDS, IT'S TIME TO TURN UP
OUR DEMAND:
We demand that the House of Representatives of South Carolina vote to amend the General Appropriations Bill of 2014 (the state budget) to correct the budget cuts to U.S.C. Upstate and the College of Charleston. Representatives Gilda Cobb-Hunter and B. R. Skelton have introduced an amendment to the bill that would restore the funds. We demand that all members of the House of Representatives vote to accept this amendment.
WHY?
1. These budget cuts are an attack on the LGBTQ community of South Carolina. LGBTQ students in our S.C. schools deserve to be represented in the educational material presented to them. LGBTQ staff and faculty should be able to do theirs job without fear that they will be unfairly scrutinized for representing the realities of their own lives or talking about LGBTQ issues in educational settings. Selective erasure of the history and existence of any group of people is undemocratic, outdated, and unacceptable.
2. This is an attack on academic freedom. Our legislators are not scholars, they are legislators. It is out of line for the S.C. legislature to be directing curriculum in S.C. public universities. These budget cuts amount to censorship.
3. Garry Smith’s introduction of these cuts to the state budget is a waste of taxpayers’ money. When our representatives should be spending valuable time addressing the many important issues SC residents are facing, such as poverty, unemployment, and our lacking education system, they are debating a budget cut that targets our S.C. public university students and the faculty and staff who work hard everyday to make our those universities sites of learning and educational integrity.
WHAT YOU CAN DO:
1. Email, call, and snail mail your legislator ASAP! Use the talking points above to let them know it is their civic duty to LGBTQ South Carolinians to prevent these budget cuts from going through. Tell your own story, and why this is important to you.
Find your legislator here.
Check this out for some guidance.
If you are out of state, you could drop our friend Garry Smith a line letting him know what you think about his bigotry & irresponsibility.
2. Continue to get the word out about this through social media. Rep. Garry Smith and the other legislators who support this amendment want to silence LGBTQ voices in our state--let’s continue to AMPLIFY the message that queer stories are human stories and that South Carolina is home to a thriving, fabulous, and creative LGBTQ community.
TUMBLR: http://gayfacesgayplaces.tumblr.com
TWITTER & INSTAGRAM: @homosweethomosc
3. Donate to SONG. Help to resource important organizing and visibility work in our South Carolina LGBTQ community and the rest of the South!
4. If you are in Charleston, we will be hosting an event on Friday night starting at 6:00 at the Avery Research Center. We will be screening the film Pariah and talking about SONG’s work on public education in South Carolina.
5. Get on twitter and tweet images from this tumblr at Garry Smith. His twitter handle is @GarryRSmith. You could also print out a few favorites and mail them to him at 210 Foxhound Rd. Simpsonville, 29680. You might also call him and tell him why you disapprove of his actions at (864) 963-0337. It's important to let politicians like Rep. Smith know that we will not be silenced by their bullying.
WHEN:
The budget bill will be voted on by the House of Representatives as early as Monday, March 10th. The sooner you let your representative know that you care about this issue the better.