Hate Crime: Attack
on NCSU’s GLBT
Center
Christa Riley, Staff Writer
On October 17 at around 9pm,
an act of vandalism and hate crime
occurred at NC State’s Gay, Les
bian, Bi and Transgender Center.
Hateful and discriminatory mes
sages were written on the center’s
door and display casein purple
spray paint. Painted on the door
was the message “fags burn” and
on the glass case was the word
“die.” This ac- ££tat1
When
having Allies speak at the event.
The sidewalk was full of chalk
writings that said things such as
“State, Not Hate!”
Over the past few months, there
have been a few individual instanc
es of prejudice towards the GLBT
community at Meredith but noth
ing as shocking as this one. Eve
Smalling, president of Spectrum at
Meredith, says,
everyone
stands up and tells
people that hate
will not be accept
ed, then people
are less likely to
carry out acts thatp^^p^^.\]^^^ ^
^ j 1 hate will not be
are based on hate accepted,then
and prejudice/'
tion may have
been instigated
by the designa
tion of October
as GLBT His
tory Month.
Members of the
organization
are shocked,
and the NCSU
community is
outraged.
The GLBT
Center at
NCSU, which
officially
opened in 2008, welcomes stu
dents of all sexualities and gender
identities. The center provides a
safe environment for students and
tries to educate the larget commu
nity about their anti-hate message.
Since the vandalism occurred, stu
dent leaders at NCSU have made
evident that they do not condone
hate speech or any kind of deroga
tory actions towards any person
or any group of people. To counter
this defamation of property, the
GLBT Center scheduled an Ally
Rally on October 20, where they
showed support to their commu
nity by giving out wrist bands and
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American Jobs
Act Targets
Recent Grads
Matilyn Healy, Staff Writer
“The vandalism
was not only
an attack on
the LGBT com
munity, but on
their allies as
well. When ev
eryone stands
up and tells
people are less
likely to carry
out acts that
are based on
hate and prejudice.” What could
we, as a community, do to prevent
this kind of hate crime?
If you or anyone you know is be
ing slandered or harassed because
of sexual identity, please look
around campus for Safe Zone signs
on faculty members’ doors; these
faculty have been trained and will
be glad to listen and help you. You
can also call one of many support
lines, located on the NCSU GLBT
Center page at http://www.ncsu.
edu/stud_affairs/glbt/campus-
resource/index.php. Stand up for
yourself and your community.
image via CBS News
President Barack Obama has
visited in North Carolina often
lately. His recent trips to North
Carolina State University and
the' town of Apex have drawn
crowds eager to know how he
will help boost the economy and
lower the unemployment rate.
Obama’s new American Jobs Act
is designed to answer all of those
questions raised by North Caro
linians and all Americans alike.
The American Jobs Act was
created to encourage small busi
nesses to hire more employees
and hopeful entrepreneurs to
start their own businesses. The
bill will provide tax cuts for
small businesses, prevent lay
offs for state employees such as
teachers and firefighters, create
a national infrastructure bank,
rebuild foreclosed and vacant
houses to provide both hous
ing and jobs for Americans,
cut payroll taxes, and create
new pathways for Americans
on the job hunt. (http://www.
whitehouse.gov/the-press-
office/2011/09/08/fact-sheet-
american-jobs-act). The bill was
created for the unemployed,
laid off, and future workers of
America as well as small busi
nesses and entrepreneurs, but
what does it mean for the college
graduates of America?
This bill contains key ele
ments, especially in the push to
create new jobs, that could help
graduating college students find
jobs in this difficult economic
time. Crystal Sumner, a third-
year law student at Elon Uni
versity and a Meredith College
alumna, believes that the Ameri
can Jobs Act will help students
from Meredith, Elon, and other
schools across the nation. Sum
ner is “confident that the Ameri
can Jobs Act will make it easier
for graduating students to get
jobs.” Although this bill has not
yet passed, several Americans
share Sumner’s positive outlook.
Amy Losordo, Assistant Director
of Career Development at Mere
dith, believes that the act is “cre
ating opportunity” for students,
but employment “depends on the
student’s readiness to connect
with this opportunity.” Losordo
stressed the importance of stu
dents’ involvement in on-campus
career workshops, club activities
related to future careers, and
internships. While this bill would
create more job opportunities,
students should also be aware of
the importance of college re
sources and to use them to their
fullest advantage before heading
out into the job market.
The boost for small businesses
could also greatly benefit gradu
ating students in their job hunts.
Sumner believes that “college
graduates are essential to most
small businesses—whether run
ning them, creating them, or
lending their knowledge and
skills to making the business
work from day to day.” Students
could take advantage of this small
business boom because “working
for a small business is a great way
to start a career,” says Losordo.
Graduates could learn a lot about
what it takes to successfully run
a business, which they could take
advantage of later while working
for larger corporations or possi
bly when starting their own small
businesses.