HarvardLurleen, the Harvard President is a woman, Catherine Drew Faust.
Dana

you’re right she’s a she, buther first name is listed as Drew.  i’ve corrected the pronoun – thanks!

I don’t agreeI’ve fought against compromise when compromise meant surrender. I have fought against incrementalism when “later” meant “never”.
That has been interpreted by many as being fanatical and unrealistic. I saw it as recognising reality, the reality that in some situations if trans people weren’t included from the start, they never would be. The reality that abandoning the moral high ground meant throwing away our best weaponry.
I do not see this as one of those situations, and I see much of the opposition to ROTC presence on the campus as being purely from pacifistic ideological reasons, with “diversity” being a convenient excuse. Much, but obviously not all.
The exclusion of Trans and Intersexed people is part of a greater fight, one involving the psychiatric and religious establishments, the insurance industry and much else. Unlike employment, which is an issue of pure discrimination based on prejudice, there are very real medical issues that muddy the waters.
History suggests that once the Homophobia is overcome in the military, the Transphobia is overcome within 10 years. Very few militaries implemented both at the same time – the UK didn’t. Australia didn’t. Canada did, I think.

not at all a convenient excusesince the passage of the solomon act, barring the rotc from campus has cost universities lots of federal funding.  so the situation is that they thought discrimination against lgb people was important enough to forgo federal $$ but apparently they don’t think that about anti-trans discrimination, even though both forms of discrimination are equally forbidden by university policy.

I don’t really follow you.Sure, there’s a much longer way to go on trans rights. But the military’s policy of discrimination is part of that struggle, and I see no reason that resistance at that point should be declined.
Even if we could take non-discrimination against trans individuals in the near future as a given, the fact still remains that Harvard has a rather young, unproven policy against discrimination on the basis of gender identity. To allow the ROTC now, while it continues to violate that policy, would send the message that that policy was little more than lip service (as little else has been done to meet trans students’ needs in the meantime).

Unclear that federal funding is at stakeThe Wikipedia article linked in Lurleen’s post, although it says that the Solomon Amendment applies to institutions that disallow the ROTC, also says that Harvard receives $400 million annually in federal funding. I seem to recall from Kagan’s nomination that Harvard Law School changed its policy in order to conform to the Solomon Amendment after a challenge failed before the Supreme Court. This would seem to imply that, for whatever reason, Harvard already has federal funding in spite of currently disallowing the ROTC.
Given that, it seems less likely that Harvard is acting to secure funding and more likely that it is simply continuing to neglect its policy of non-discrimination on the basis of gender identity. All the more odious, then, for the fact that Harvard is throwing trans rights under the bus for free.

Letter to Faust(I just sent this letter.)
Catherine Drew Gilpin Faust
President, Harvard University
Dear Ms. Faust,
I am writing to you on a very important issue.  I read that you are in the process of allowing ROTC classes to resume on the university campus because of the repeal of Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell.  I would like you to reconsider lifting that ban.
The university’s non discrimination policy not only has “sexual orientation,” but “gender identity” as well.  The repeal of DADT will now allow gay, lesbian and bisexual people to serve openly, but doesn’t include trans people.  The military will continue to discriminate against people based on their gender identity, and by allowing ROTC classes to resume on campus, you are still going against part of your non-discrimination policy.
I am the President of the Transgender American Veterans Association and our national organization is requesting that you keep the ban in place until the military welcomes ALL American, as Harvard has done for years.  Thank you for your time.
Monica Helms
President, TAVA

Response from HarvardHi all,
I emailed this in as well, but wanted to make sure folks who were interested in taking further action or wondering what the response “on the ground” is like could see.
Hi there,
I’m a recent Harvard graduate and trans activist, as well as a reader
of Pam’s House Blend when I have the time, and I was both glad you
commented on President Faust’s recent comments on the DADT repeal and
saddened that you urged direct action to Faust without finding out
what local work we’re doing in the community. There’s been lots of
debate on the university-wide Trans Task Force list about actions and,
without wishing to quash anyone’s inclination to take immediate
action, I would love to respectfully suggest that folks interested in
pressuring Faust to consider how the armed forces continue to violate
our non-discrimination policy with respect to gender identity get in
touch with our grassroots activism to be of support in a coordinated
effort. They can contact me (Eva Rosenberg, Chair Emerita, Trans Task
Force) via email at harvardttf@gmail.com and I will respond to each
inquiry. Please feel free to post this on the blog! And thanks for all
that you do.
Best,
Eva