Anti Gay Texas College Prohibits Gay Athletes From Dating or Supporting Same Sex Marriage...

May 20, 2015

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Consistent with our desire to celebrate and model a Scriptural approach to sexuality;, the University prohibits same-sex dating behaviors and public advocacy for the position that sex outside of a biblically-defined marriage is morally acceptable.

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LeTourneau Univ., an NCAA Division III school in Texas, has a new policy forbidding gay student-athletes from dating. Any support for same-sex marriage can result in an athlete's dismissal.

Here we see yet again the bigotry that blankets the religious right. Americans in general are moving away from religious fundamentalism with the younger generation leading the way to a more tolerant and less bigoted society. What is shown in the above quote is the dark side of religious fundamentalism. In one simple statement LeTourneau University, a Christ centered institution of higher learning, treats gay and lesbian individuals and couples as second class human beings and imposes discriminatory practices on gay and lesbian athletes.

LeTourneau University, an NCAA Division III school in Texas, has banned its gay student-athletes from dating and has banned all athletes from vocalizing support for same-sex marriage. The possible punishments listed for either "immoral" behavior includes dismissal from the athlete's team.

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The addition of the anti-gay language is new for the school. The student-athlete handbook from the 2011-12 academic year did not contain any reference to homosexuality. The movement by trustees and administrations to explicitly marginalize LGBT students on college campuses across the country is growing, even as students and faculty become increasingly accepting. Recent episodes at Erskine College, Hillsdale College and an unnamed Christian school in the South have been particularly troubling.

LeTourneau Univ. is an inter-denominational Christian school in Longview, Texas, an hour west of Shreveport, La. The school's enrollment is a couple thousand students.

Interestingly, the handbook also claims to stand for five principles: "Commitment, Excellence, Integrity, Respect, Community." A commitment to respect for the integrity of the LGBT community doesn't seem to be part of that equation.

The school's policy gagging student-athletes on a key public-policy issue of the day runs against the spirit of the First Amendment, something so many Texans and Christians claim to hold so dearly.{Read More}