Activists made the request at the Board of Visitors Meeting last night at GMU. After placing folders with the official petition for removal a timeline of Rector Murray's alleged negligence at the Board members seats and passing copies out to the audience, members of the group Campaign for a Hate-Free Campus and the D.C. Lesbian Avengers stood with a banner and pink triangles that read "Stand Up Against Bigotry; Remove Rector Murray."

The group's petition asks the Board to remove Murray for failing to perform his duty to energetically seek ways to interact with and serve the needs of the student body (Preamble to the GMU Mission Statement, adopted by the BOV in 1991).

It questions his assertion that services for gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgendered (GLBT) students are not his charge, but are an issue for the legislature; his defunding of a GLBT Resource Center long before hearing from the GMU community; and his claim of not having access to information about the proposed services, although students went to great lengths to provide it to him.

After the activists caused a stir at the meeting by beginning their silent protest and unveiling their banner and signs, Student Affairs Committee Chair Joann DiGennaro addressed the banner-holders. "I'm embarrassed for you. I think it is very rude and inappropriate during a board meeting...it is quite appropriate to make your feelings known. It is inappropriate at this point and it does more harm to any cause than good." Protesters were then asked to move to the back of the room, where they remained standing with their signs for the rest of the meeting.

Protester Beth Armitage says of Digennaro's chastisement, "What is inappropriate is a Board that allows us no way to communicate our needs. We attempted to go through all the proper channels ...we have been doing that for a year and a half. They leave us no choice but to communicate with them in this public forum. Our message is quite appropriate. We hope to set a principled, moral example by standing up to bigotry. We are hoping the Board will join us."

The protest comes on the heels of a controversy that began when the Board questioned editors of the school's newspaper (The Broadside) about a critical editorial calling the Board a "Republican circus". Board member Alam Hammad said in the Washington Post yesterday that he was "disappointed at the Broadside" and claimed that the paper is obligated to represent the views of the campus and that its critical position on (then Republican Governor-elect) Gilmore does not do that. Members of Campaign for a Hate-Free Campus, already fearful about allegations of past BOV retaliation against students perceived to be opponents to the Board, say that this is just one more example of the intolerant climate at GMU that is encouraged by the Board.

A student who asked to remain anonymous said, "So many people, administrators even, are fearful about speaking up, speaking out, about the BOV. We hope that tonight we can remind people that what the Board is doing is not okay, and that we need to say that. We cannot let Mason turn that hateful and scary. We have to say that what is going on is wrong."

Copy of Letter

Members of the Board of Visitors
Presidents Office, MSN 3A1
D103 Mason Hall
George Mason University
Fairfax, VA 22030-4444

Dear Members of the Board of Visitors:

We urge you to dismiss Rector Marvin Murray immediately from the board, in accordance with Article I, Section 4, of the By-Laws of the George Mason University Board of Visitors:

If any Visitor fails to perform the duties of his/her office for one year, without sufficient cause shown to the Board, the Board of Visitors shall, at their next meeting after the end of such year, cause the fact of such failure to be recorded in the minutes of their proceedings, and certify the same to the Governor and the office of such Visitor shall be thereupon vacant.

For over a year, Rector Murray has failed to perform his duty to "energetically seek ways to interact with and serve the needs of the student body" (Preamble to the GMU Mission Statement).

Student services should be chief among Rector Murray's concerns; however, he has asserted that services for gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgendered (GLBT) students are not his charge but are "an issue for the legislature" (Fairfax Journal, July 17, 1997).

Even so, Rector Murray decided to defund a previously approved and funded GLBT Resource Center long before hearing strong affirmations of need and expressions of support from the administration, Faculty Senate, Student Senate, the On-Campus Assembly for Students Improving Services, President Merten, and the GMU community. After an overview of student services by Associate Vice President and Dean for Student Services, Kenneth Bumgarner, on September 18, 1996, Rector Murray immediately asked, "What do we do if we decide not to form it?" Even though Dean Bumgarner explained "the Provost approved it and now it is formal," Rector Murray concluded, "The university ought not to be spending resources supporting that sort of activity if it is illegal."

Had Rector Murray investigated further, he would have learned that the purposes of the center included organizing educational, cultural, and social programs for the entire university; tracking hate crimes and discrimination; gathering academic resources for use by all faculty and students; voicing GLBT concerns on campus; and supporting and guiding GLBT students; none of which are illegal.

While the GMU mission statement calls on the board to "energetically seek ways to interact with . . . the student body," Rector Murray has actively thwarted students efforts to educate him about their needs. Students mailed and faxed Rector Murray a fact sheet explaining the proposed purposes of the center on November 15, 1996. On December 5, 1996, students also offered to organize an informational panel for the Boards January 16, 1997, meeting. And yet, Rector Murray has claimed he had "no answers from anyone on what the center would be doing, who they would be serving" (Fairfax Journal, July 17, 1997).

Today we members of the George Mason University community and residents of the Commonwealth of Virginia set a principled, non-violent example by "standing up to bigotry" and pressing for Rector Marvin Murray's immediate dismissal. We invite the Board of Visitors to stand with us.

Sincerely,

Campaign for a Hate-Free Campus