UPDATE: AAVMC LGBT Student Climate Survey

For those of you that aren't familiar with the AAVMC outside of your veterinary college applications, the AAVMC has been working hard the past few years to understand the campus climate with regards to diversity at the veterinary colleges.

How did we get to the LGBT Student Climate Survey?
In the Spring of 2011 the AAVMC launched the AAVMC-AVMA DiVersity Matters Climate Survey.  With an overall response rate of 48.1%, the survey was able to get a clearer picture of the LGBT community within the nation's veterinary colleges.  These initial findings allowed the AAVMC to narrow in on the LGBT student experience with a focused LGBT Student Experience Survey in the Fall of 2012.  The LGBT Student Experience Survey was an open answer survey, which is still being analyzed.

Impressions of the LGBT Student Climate Survey based on the webinar:



We are so thankful that the AAVMC has undertaken this task and is pushing to improve the student experience for future veterinarians across the country.

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http://www.aavmc.org/Diversity/AAVMC002DAVMA-DiVersity-Matters-Climate-Survey.aspx

http://www.aavmc.org/Diversity/DVM-LGBT-Student-Experience-Study.aspx

BSVSA in The Vet Gazette

On November 9th, The Vet Gazette published Sonia Fang's response to Dr. Larry Fisher's letter in DVMNewsMagazine.  We are including it here.  See our previous post for other student reactions, and be sure to go to the link to add your comments!



Support for Discrimination and Marginalization? Not Surprising
Friday, November 9, 2012 at 06:00AM

Op Ed
Sonia Fang, Western University


On March 14, dvm360.com posted an article entitled “Minority students report strong support from veterinary schools, but racism and sexism remain, study says”.  The article provided preliminary results from the [American] Association of Veterinary Medical Colleges (AAVMC) climate study conducted by Lisa Greenhill (Associate Executive Director for Institutional Research and Diversity at the AAVMC).  Some of the results included that one in five female veterinary students reported hearing sexist language at their school, and LGBT students reported they did not have a faculty or staff member to confide in at higher rates than those students who did not identify as LGBT.  In response to the article, DVM NewsMagazine published a letter from Dr. Larry Fisher of Topeka, Kansas.

I was disappointed and disturbed by the letter printed in DVM NewsMagazine.  On a purely factual level, the statements leveled against LGBT students are not founded in current historical analysis, and the myth that homosexuality has lead to society’s decline has been debunked repeatedly.[1]  Not to mention, even if there were civilizations for which an increase in homosexual activity coincided with a society’s purported decline, there would still be the classic issue of confusing correlation with causation, a definite and basic no-no in evidence-based research.  There isn’t evidence for homosexuality correlating with the destruction of civilizations, much less any research performed demonstrating its causation.

Regardless of the factual inaccuracies, I was taken aback because the printing of this letter was, in itself, telling of the problems that we as LGBT veterinary students face on a systemic level.  LGBT students have to contend with knowing that established veterinarians, editors of professional magazines, professors, faculty, staff, and potential employers are capable of possessing the same opinions as those that were printed.  There is not just a difference of opinion here, but a difference in the level of power and the level of outreach a student has in comparison to established veterinarians and editors of professional magazines.  As LGBT people, we know very well that “different values will always elicit different reactions.”   For example, I can be of the opinion that gay people deserve to be treated as equal members of society.  Anyone else is free to hold the opinion that gay people do not deserve to be treated as equal members of society.  The problem is that while we are both free and able to hold differing opinions, LGBT people are the ones to suffer when power dynamics are at play, and when a differing opinion becomes coded as discrimination into our institutions and the law.  For example, as of 2011, only 8 veterinary schools in the US, Canada, and the Caribbean explicitly protected students from being discriminated on the basis of their sexual orientation, gender identity, and gender expression.[2]  In 29 states, veterinarians can be fired just for being LGBT.[3]  For example, in Kansas, an executive order bans employment discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity, but only in public employment.[4]  So for employees of private veterinary clinics in Kansas, one can be fired for being LGBT and have it be completely condoned by state law.

These things have weighed heavily on my mind throughout my education, but weigh heavily especially now in my final year of school.  I would love to live and work in a world where only my qualities as a capable, competent, and caring veterinarian play into my ability to be employed, but it is apparent that there are more forces at work.  I live, day in and day out, with the understanding that I can be fired just for being who I am.  I live, day in and day out, with the knowledge that there are veterinarians out there who would gladly attribute my existence to the fall of modern-day society.  I live, day in and day out, with the uncertainty of knowing when I’ll be treated as a full member of society.  Science has shown that living with these burdens of discrimination negatively impact LGBT people, and that an environment of anti-LGBT stigma, prejudice, and discrimination results in higher rates of stress, alienation, depression, and mental health problems.[5],[6],[7],[8],[9]  In addition, research has shown that those who are not “out” experience more adverse effects than those who are.[10],[11]  

These are the very reasons that groups like the LGVMA and Broad Spectrum Veterinary Student Association are important, and these are the very reasons that support for LGBT students is critical.  I am disappointed and disturbed that this inaccurate and discriminatory statement was found to be fit for publication in DVM NewsMagazine, in the very face of an article referencing lack of support for LGBT students.  I am glad, however, that the response was published because it gives LGBT students and allies an idea of how much more progress needs to be made.  I am grateful that student publications like The Vet Gazette provide a platform for advancing the dialogue.

Here are some more helpful articles for debunking gay myths:
http://www.examiner.com/article/the-top-five-most-common-antigay-arguments-debunked
http://www.splcenter.org/get-informed/intelligence-report/browse-all-issues/2010/winter/10-myths
http://www.residential-life.unh.edu/diversity/15questions.pdf
http://scholar.valpo.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=2224&context=vulr

[1] Lesbian Resource Center, YWCA of University of Washington, Seattle.  “Beyond Tolerance: Gays, Lesbians and Bisexuals on Campus.”  Accessed 12 July 2012.  < www.residential-life.unh.edu/diversity/15questions.pdf>
[2] Fang, Sonia.  “How LGBT-friendly is your veterinary school?”  Broad Spectrum Veterinary Student Association.  Accessed 9 Sept 2012.  < http://broadspectrumvsa.blogspot.com/2011/07/how-lgbt-friendly-is-your-veterinary.html> 2 July 2011.
[3] Hunt, Jerome.  2012.  “A State-by-State Examination of Nondiscrimination Laws and Policies.”  Center for American Progress Action Fund.
[4] Ibid.
[5] Hatzenbuehler ML, McLaughlin KA, Keyes KM, Hasin DS.  2010.  “The Impact of Institutional Discrimination on Psychiatric Disorders in Lesbian, Gay, and Bisexual Populations: A Prospective Study.”  American Journal of Public Health 100(3): 452-459.
[6] Meyer IH.  2003.  “Prejudice, Social Stress, and Mental Health in Lesbian, Gay, and Bisexual Populations: Conceptual Issues and Research Evidence.”  Psychological Bulletin 129(5):674-679.
[7] King M, Semlyen J, See Tai S, Killaspy H, Osborn D, Popelyuk D, Nazareth I.  2008.  “A systematic review of mental disorder, suicide, and deliberate self harm in lesbian, gay and bisexual people.”  BMC Psychiatry 8(70).  < http://www.biomedcentral.com/1471-244X/8/70>
[8] Hatzenbuehler ML, Nolen-Hoeksema S, Dovidio J.  2009.  “How Does Stigma ‘Get Under the Skin’?” Psychological Science 20(10):1282-1289.
[9] Bogart LM, Wagner GJ, Galvan FH, Landrine H, Klein DJ, Sticklor LA.  2011.  “Perceived Discrimination and Mental Health Symptoms among Black Men with HIV.”  Cultur Divers Ethnic Minor Psychol 17(3): 295-302.
[10] Hatzenbuehler et al, 2009.
[11] Bogart et al, 2011.

For more posts by Sonia Fang, go here.

BSVSA Responds

"Support for Discrimination and Marginalization? Not Surprising."

On March 14, dvm360.com posted an article entitled “Minority students report strong support from veterinary schools, but racism and sexism remain, study says.”.  The article provided preliminary results from the Association of Veterinary Medical Colleges (AAVMC) climate study conducted by Lisa Greenhill (Associate Executive Director for Institutional Research and Diversity at the AAVMC).  We had written about the preliminary responses here.  Some of the results included that one in five female veterinary students reported hearing sexist language at their school, and LGBT students reported they did not have a faculty or staff member to confide in at higher rates than those students who did not identify as LGBT.  In response to the article, DVM NewsMagazine published a letter from Dr. Larry Fisher of Topeka, Kansas.
 

In his letter, Dr. Fisher states:
Is support available for students surprising?

In the article “Minority students report strong support from veterinary schools, but racism and sexism remain, study says” from dvm360.com on March 14, it was mentioned that “while nearly 83 percent of veterinary students said there was a strong support system within their school, 35 percent said they did not have a faculty of [sic] staff member to confide in.  … The numbers are higher for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) students.”

Putting political correctness aside, it is an axiom that a house divided cannot stand.  Different values will always elicit different reactions.  Why are we surprised that those who have different values are looked upon differently?  The group cited has never flourished in a stable society but has always been visible in its decline.  Read history.  Now we wonder why we are declining as a culture?  Folks, fundamentals work.

--Larry Fisher, DVM
Topeka, Kan.

Students involved in Broad Spectrum Veterinary Student Association weighed in:
 

Amanda Fischer- Cornell University Class of 2014:
My initial reaction when I saw this editorial was extreme sadness.  Not because someone was expressing this viewpoint (it would be naive to think that people don’t have and express this view), but because it was published in a veterinary magazine.  I thought that this was highly inappropriate for publication in a professional magazine.  But hopefully some good can come from this in the form of an educated discussion among colleagues in our field. 

The title and the content of the editorial are an interesting contradiction.  Clearly Dr. Fisher is not surprised by a lack of mentorship and guidance for LGBT students in the veterinary community, seeing as he feels there should be none. I do agree with him on one point, that a house divided cannot stand.  Marginalizing colleagues and veterinary students is not going to further the development and future success of our profession.  I feel that his viewpoint implies  LGBT individuals in the profession are decreasing it’s value.  This is a poor attitude to take towards our profession, considering diverse and open work environments foster better collaboration and creativity.  If we are to move forward and continue to provide innovative ideas, then we all need to be more accepting of our colleagues.

I greatly appreciate the response from Dr. Gregory B Combs that was published by DVM NewsMagazine in response to Dr. Fisher’s editorial. As disheartening as that first editorial was, Dr. Combs response made me want to get up and cheer.  I hope that more members of our community agree with Dr. Combs views and welcome all veterinary students with open arms into this great profession.  I hope that students questioning the level of acceptance and inclusion in the veterinary profession can look at the LGVMA, Broad Spectrum, and responses like Dr. Combs and feel as hopeful as I do.

Nikki Wright - University of Pennsylvania Class of 2014
I am incredibly disappointed and saddened by Dr. Fisher’s letter. Although I originally questioned the magazine’s reasoning for publishing it, I have decided that I am thankful that they did, because it forces us as a professional community to confront this issue. If I could get to Kansas I would go and visit Dr. Fisher myself. Not in anger, but in a sincere effort to expose him and educate about the LGBTQ community. My heart goes out to anyone that Dr. Fisher has directly persecuted. There is no room in our society nor in our profession for such hatred. I hope that Dr. Fisher can one day discover the beauty in a life full of loving-kindness, acceptance, and personal growth through diversity.

Arturo Otamendi- Louisiana State University Class of 2014
    I agree with most of my colleagues in that I am not surprised that there are people in society, or even in the veterinary community, that think the way Dr. Fisher does. I have been raised in a part of the country where viewpoints like Dr. Fisher’s are commonplace. Originally, I was very upset that an article with this kind of bigotry would be published in a veterinary magazine that is read by very well educated people. But then I realized that if one person is saying this, then there are a multitude of others who have very similar thoughts. This is a great opportunity for organizations such as LGVMA and Broad Spectrum Veterinary Student Association to speak out and support LGBT rights and to teach the community what we have to offer to make this country a better place to live.
    Breaking down what Dr. Fisher stated, there are a few things I agree and disagree with. I agree with the fact that “a house divided cannot stand” However, this is the exact opposite of what members of the LGBT community are trying to do. We believe in “inclusion” of all people. This includes race, ethnicity, religion, sexual preference, gender identity, etc. We see ourselves as an integral part of society and we in no way ask to be treated differently or special in any way. We want the same rights and privileges that everyone else has. It is actually not surprising at all that different values elicit different responses. I know there are people out there who do not agree with the LGBT lifestyle, but a veterinary teaching school is no place for that type of thinking.
    As for the statement that the LGBT community has never flourished in a stable society, but has always been seen in its decline, I ask where can he show any evidence of truth behind that statement. Homosexuality has been present in all cultures and societies since before the Roman times, and nowhere is there any solid evidence that this was a cause for the decline in their culture. The LGBT community has proven to be a very important part of this country and plays a big impact on the economy. In the veterinary community, LGBT individuals see their pets as their children, and they want the best veterinary care they can receive for their family member. How can a veterinarian provide them all that they need, while at the same time feeling like they are not appreciated or even resented for who they are. Dr. Fisher is blind to the fact that society is changing, and if he does not change with it, he will be left behind.
    I am very thankful for people like Dr. Fisher, because it pushes me to be more proactive and vocal about LGBT issues and rights. I feel that if we as LGBT veterinarians and veterinary students reach out and educate the community, we will see a big change in the next couple years and the comfort levels of veterinary students and veterinarians will increase tremendously.

Here are some more helpful articles for debunking gay myths:
http://www.examiner.com/article/the-top-five-most-common-antigay-arguments-debunked
http://www.splcenter.org/get-informed/intelligence-report/browse-all-issues/2010/winter/10-myths
http://www.residential-life.unh.edu/diversity/15questions.pdf
http://scholar.valpo.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=2224&context=vulr