Nashville Stands up Against "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" Policy on Campus

Think “Don’t ask, don’t tell” policies ended with the military? Hmm, maybe not.

Baptist Belmont University in Nashville, Tenn., allegedly has let a soccer coach go for breaking such policy by telling students that she and her same-sex partner would soon be having a child.

Lisa Howe, former soccer coach at Belmont, says she explained to her students the details of her personal life, for fear that hiding her sexuality would wrongfully indicate to students she was ashamed or embarrassed by her sexual preference. A few days later, Howe was told by the university’s athletic director that she must resign or be fired.

Howe and the university claim the decision was a mutual agreement. Nonetheless, students, faculty and alumni are standing up for their former coach, who is subject to contractual limitations regarding speaking to the press. Students staged protests last December, stating that sexual orientation is not proper cause for termination. In addition, faculty members have passed a resolution stating their support for gay students and faculty at the university.

While Belmont is a private university, college and community members are outraged by the reports. University President Robert Fischer made an official statement declaring that sexual orientation is unrelated to any faculty hiring or dismissals. Yet, he was thereafter commended by the Baptist convention for upholding the university’s Christian mission and heritage.

Tennessee’s Human Rights Act does not protect its citizens on the basis of sexual orientation. In regards to employment and public accommodation, the act only covers discrimination based on color, race, gender, creed, religion, national origin, disability and age.

Even though Howe has stated she will not return to Belmont University, perhaps she will be seen as a martyr who ultimately paved the way for sexual orientation to be protected as a fundamental human right. In late January, the school board voted to amend its written policy on antidiscrimination based on sexual orientation. President Fischer and the board are still being pressured as to whether openly gay students and faculty would be welcomed into the Baptist school. The school maintains its stance that Belmont does not discriminate.

Be it a lesson for all: Students can stand up against sexual discrimination and fight for equality on college campuses -- and they do have the ability to change school policy.