Binghamton – The Executive Committee of the Student Assembly
of the State University of New York (SUNY SA) passed a resolution
requesting that the State University of New York adopt a policy of
increased gender inclusivity both in physical facilities and in
institutional language. The resolution was put forth to the Assembly’s
Executive Committee and passed during the Committee’s business meeting
on Saturday, October 31.
The resolution was
presented to the Executive Committee in order to support SUNY students
of the Marginalized Orientations, Gender Identities, and Intersex
(MOGII) community who often are not considered in general university
policy and practices. The resolution specifically calls upon SUNY to
take action in providing gender inclusive facilities, which would
include private bathrooms that can be used by any person regardless of
gender. It also asks SUNY to transition its policies and institutional
technologies to those which use students’ primary names and preferred
gender pronouns rather than their birth names and pronouns.
The
resolution aims to generally eradicate policies and practices that do
not support gender inclusivity and seeks to begin the process of
offering educational training to faculty, staff, and students on the
importance of gender inclusivity.
Chrisel
Martinez, Chair of the SUNY Student Assembly’s Equity and Inclusion
Committee and a senior at University at Albany, is thrilled by the
passing of this resolution, saying, “The approval of this resolution is a
proven step towards an equitable SUNY. As SUNY SA committee chairs, it
is our goal to voice the needs and concerns that all SUNY students
possess. The members of the Equity and Inclusion Committee and I are
content to see the passing of this resolution as we passionately
advocate for the inclusivity of all.”
Zachary Beaudoin, Chair of the Sustainability Committee for
the SUNY Student Assembly and a senior at SUNY Fredonia, commends the
Executive Committee for their swift action. He stated, "Relating back to
the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goal #5, Gender Inequality,
this resolution seeks to eliminate all barriers that members of the
Marginalized Orientations, Gender Identities, and Intersex community may
face. I'm proud and thankful that the Executive Committee has voted in
favor of taking a strong step to ensure that we are providing equality
and protective measures for all."
SUNY
Student Assembly President Thomas Mastro, a senior at Binghamton
University, views this resolution as true progress toward the goal of
safety and inclusivity for the SUNY community. “A population of the
students for whom we advocate are members of the MOGII community and
struggle daily with policies at their universities that do not support
them. They, along with a staggering number of our students who do not
identify as members of this community, view this as a major problem, and
I applaud the Executive Committee for working towards fixing this
problem. The passing of this resolution will assist in ensuring
equality and inclusivity for all members of the campus community, both
within and outside of SUNY.”
The Student Assembly of the State University of New York (SUNY SA)
is an organization comprised of student leaders elected by their peers
from across SUNY’s 64 campuses.
Source: The Student Assembly
of the State University of New York
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