A teaching assistant at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee has decided to make extra credit only available to his students that “identify as bisexual.”
Campus Reform obtained an email this week sent by TA Jonathan Dellinger to his public speaking class. In it, he promised three extra credit points to any of his students who were bisexual and willing to participate in a study.
“I’m just writing to inform you of another extra credit opportunity (3 points),” Dellinger wrote in the email. “To be eligible to participate in this study, you must identify as bisexual, so not everyone will be able to do this one.”
The study asked the bisexual students to recount a “hurtful” way someone close to them had responded when they came out.
Matt Sama, UWM’s Young Americans for Liberty president, told Campus Reform that he thought the assignment was “off-topic” for a communication class and that it was “clearly discriminatory.”
“In addition, the fact that the survey is clearly discriminatory in nature to favor students of one sexual orientation over another is frankly everything that the left tries to fight against, yet they so blatantly act in this manner,” Sama told the news site. “It’s disgusting. You can’t get more hypocritical than this.”
Devin Gatton, head of Wisconsin’s Log Cabin Republicans, a gay rights advocacy organization, also spoke out against the discriminatory practice in an interview with Campus Reform.
“The gay rights movement is not about special rights to privileges for the gay community but equal protection under the law,” Gatton said. “Offering extra credit to a student based off of their sexual orientation is against everything that should be taught in our universities today. This professor is bringing back to pre-1960s when separate but equal was an acceptable practice.”
Dr. Kathryn Olson, department chair of UWM’s communication department, told Campus Reform in an email that she would “investigate” the matter, but said no action has yet been taken.
“The practice is to offer an alternative equally weighted extra credit opportunity for students who do not meet the specific needs of a particular study’s target population if participation carries extra credit,” Olson said.
Your tax dollars at work.
