Tell Peace Corps gay rights are human rights; be more inclusive of LGBTQA Volunteers!

Allow Volunteers to be openly gay in their communities

Greetings,

I just signed the following petition addressed to: United States Peace Corps.

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The United States Peace Corps is a unique and admirable development agency of the American government. But the Peace Corps does not provide adequate support for its lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgendered (LGBT) volunteers. This petition demands that Peace Corps address the shortcomings between its commitment on paper to represent America’s diversity, on the one hand, and on the other hand, in practice, its lack of policy, guidance, and in-the-village support for volunteers who want to be openly gay in their communities.

The Obama Administration announced on December 6th, 2011 that the United States would use all the tools of American diplomacy—which we argue includes Peace Corps volunteers and their activities—to promote gay rights around the world. The administration vowed to actively combat efforts by other nations that criminalize homosexual conduct, abuse LGBTQ people or ignore abuse against them. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton asserted, “Some have suggested that gay rights and human rights are separate and distinct, but in fact they are one and the same.” She acknowledged the resistance some conservative countries would have to her proclamation but insisted that gay rights transcended national, political and even cultural boundaries, casting them as universal rights like those adopted by the 48 nations in the aftermath of World War II. We could not agree with her more.

As Peace Corps capitulates to Mr. Obama’s memorandum, we have several demands.

Firstly, during the process of assigning volunteers to countries, we insist that Peace Corps unambiguously offer to send LGBTQA (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender/transsexual, queer, and advocates thereof) applicants to countries where homophobic laws do not exist. The Peace Corps must begin changing the question for LGBTQ applicants from “Do you have any reservations as a LGBT volunteer serving in a country where homosexuality is illegal?” to “It is your choice to choose not to be sent to a country where homosexuality is illegal, would you like to only be considered for a program in a non-hostile country?” The placement process is set up so that a savvy applicant, knowing s/he needs to be flexible, views a “reservation” as a mark against him/her, which could slow or halt the process of receiving a placement abroad. LGBTQ applicants should be offered to opt-out of being sent to countries that punish homosexuality, such as Zambia, Malawi, Gambia, and Kenya where the maximum prison sentence is 14 years, as well as dozens of countries with lesser sentences.

Secondly, we demand that the United States Peace Corps bridge the gap between its non-discrimination policy towards gay, lesbian, bisexual and gay-advocate applicants in the selection and assignment processes, on the one hand, and, on the other, the unspoken but obvious “Don’t Ask—or even if a host country national does ask—Don’t Tell” policy that is encouraged by Peace Corps on the ground in the volunteer’s country of service. Peace Corps must answer the following question in a fashion that is inclusive of LGBTQA PCVs: Where does the point of equilibrium exist between, on the one hand, the acceptability of openness on the part of PCVs and admin about LGBTQ issues inside AND outside the PC in host countries, and, on the other hand, PC's willingness to defend its LGBTQ volunteers (i.e., not just evacuate them when they’re in the mire, and, stand up for them to host governments and communities) and PC’s willingness to implement Obama's memorandum from early December 2011 ordering all Federal agencies to "to promote gay rights around the world"?

In countries where no specific expectations are in place for the coming out of LGBTQA volunteers, Peace Corps Country Directors should not tell concerned volunteers that a policy proposing to allowing LGBTQA volunteers to serve openly is a proposal with no chance of being accepted—“a nonstarter”—as Benin’s Country Director, Robert (Bob) Friedman, told one volunteer. On the contrary, we demand that Peace Corps Country Directors allow volunteers, if they so choose, to serve openly as LGBTQAs to represent the diversity that exists in America and, equally importantly, we demand Peace Corps provide strong support for such volunteers. Or Peace Corps should clearly sate--for the scrutiny of the American public--that volunteers cannot serve as openly LGBTQA, that the Peace Corps does not support openly LGBTQA volunteers, and/or that LGBTQA volunteers who decide to be open about their orientation will be expelled from their country of service if their safety is in danger (or if they fail to accept the bigoted cultural standards, as the policy currently reads for PCVs in Benin). Peace Corps claims it reasonably accommodates volunteers’ religious practices as necessary in countries where certain religions are banned, as well as accommodating people with disabilities. We applaud their support of these two groups of diverse volunteers, but what about reasonable accommodations for LGBTQA volunteers in their countries of service? We ask Peace Corps to end its silence on support for LGBTQA volunteers who want to be open about their orientation at the community level!

The Peace Corps' Number Two Goal is to share American culture and values with host country nationals. A poll by Gallup found in May 2011 that 64 percent of Americans think homosexuality should be legal, 56 percent think it is morally acceptable, and 53 percent would allow gays and lesbians to marry. LGBTQs’ place in our society is a significant piece of our American culture that should not be dismissed.

An excuse for Peace Corps’ expelling volunteers for being caught up in homosexuality-related controversies abroad as well as for not telling volunteers they will be supported if they choose to be gay in their communities is Peace Corps’ concern for reprisal or legal action against volunteers. Peace Corps should rightfully care about volunteers’ safety and be concerned about reprisal against gay volunteers. However, why is Peace Corps forcing—or even allowing—LGBTQ volunteers to serve in countries with extremely homophobic beliefs and laws? Alternative to not allowing LGBTQ volunteers to serve in such countries, Peace Corps administrators could provide support and help spread awareness in volunteers’ communities about the existence-, acceptance-, and celebration- of people who are LGBTQ in America. Peace Corps could also train openly LGBTQA volunteers to be extra vigilant of their safety. Saying “I’m gay” is not illegal in most countries with homophobic laws. If a Peace Corps Country Director determines that a volunteer must accept a “Don’t Ask—or even if a host country national does ask—Don’t Tell” policy it should be clearly stated for all volunteers’ awareness and so that LGBTQA volunteers can make a more informed decision whether to join Peace Corps.

Thirdly, we demand that all Peace Corps headquarters worldwide become Safe Spaces —not just certain offices. American tax dollars pay for the salaries of all people at all headquarters and the US government does not allow discrimination--even if EDNA hasn't been enacted.

And finally, we petition Peace Corps to extensively clarify its policy towards LGBTQA volunteers in the Peace Corps volunteer Handbook and in each of the 68 Peace Corps country Welcome Books so that LGBTQA applicants can be properly informed before making the enormous commitment to spend two years abroad with the Peace Corps—that is to say, answer the following questions and others that arise:

- Can or cannot a volunteer serve openly LGBTQA? What are PC’s specific expectations of LGBTQA volunteers other than “abide by host country law,” which really—and shamefully—means “do not have gay sex for the 27 months you are abroad”? One volunteer was told by Benin’s PC Country Director, “I can only tell you where the boundary of acceptability lies after you’ve already crossed it,” regarding being openly gay or pursuing LGBTQ outreach; the Country Director, who makes more than $150,000 per year, should be able to give more foresight than this. And, before choosing to accept an assignment in Benin volunteers read in the Benin Welcome Book’s section on the challenges facing LGBT volunteers, that: “Benin’s sexual mores are conservative and you are expected to respect them….Some gay and lesbian volunteers in Benin report that they are not able to be open about their sexual orientation.” What exactly are Peace Corps’ expectations of volunteers here?

- What additional support systems should be put in place for Peace Corps Administrators in each country to support LGBTQA volunteers who are or who want to be open about their orientation in their communities? Who will offer in-the-village support to LGBTQA volunteers? Where exactly will Peace Corps draw the line on being able to offer support to an openly LGBTQA volunteer? We question whether medically and professional unqualified peers, such as Peer Support Networks or Peace Corps Volunteer Leaders, are adequate resources for LGBTQA volunteers.

- How can you improve host-country staff and Peace Corps Medical Officers’ sensitivity and preparedness to address concerns of LGBTQA volunteers?

- Just as Peace Corps defines “riding a bicycle without a helmet” as grounds for Administrative Separation (i.e., firing a volunteer), under what grounds exactly would the Peace Corps expel an openly LGBTQA volunteer for “safety and security” reasons or through Administrative Separation if the volunteer “crosses the line” regarding the no-political-expression restriction? What would be considered “crossing the line" with regards to gay advocacy given Mr. Obama’s recent memorandum?

- Why is it acceptable and encouraged for volunteers to promote the basic human rights of women and children through volunteers’ secondary projects, to the chagrin of chauvinist host country men, whereas supporting the basic human rights of gays and lesbians seems to be, in the eyes of Peace Corps, too political or controversial—despite Mr. Obama’s memorandum saying gay rights and human rights are one and the same? If gay rights and human rights continue to be distinguishable by Peace Corps, are LGBTQ people unsupportable by Peace Corps?

Answering these questions will provide much needed clarification for proud LGBTQA volunteers for whom being diverse is a huge part of who they are and their individual American culture, which all volunteers are meant to share with their hosts abroad. We demand that as Peace Corps answers these questions it favors greater support for and celebration- and accommodation- of its LGBTQA volunteers. In this way Peace Corps can bridge the gap between its non-discrimination policy on paper and its mixed record for LGBTQA support for currently serving volunteers. The purpose of this petition should be clearly distinguished from an effort to begin a gay rights movement by volunteers in their host countries; such an effort in 2011 could be futile because it would be perceived as foreign-driven, and ultimately its efforts unsustainable because of the dearth of grass roots cultural and political support. Indeed, some LGBTQA volunteers merely want to be known by their community for who they truly are, and, express that being LGBTQA is not an abomination—with the full backing of Peace Corps. Furthermore, who says “Hi new community! My name’s Joe. I’m gay!”? No one. Expressing one’s orientation happens one-on-one, with an opportunity to dispel misperceptions of LGBTQs.

In conclusion, please codify for volunteers and their supervisors where the boundaries lie so that there will be no guessing. Without clearly defined boundaries and support systems for LGBTQAs, volunteers are left unsupported, walking in the dark and shamed when they do attempt to “come out” or commence outreach; The Regional Director for Peace Corps Africa, Richard (Dick) Day, specifically claimed that the mild outreach activities of one gay volunteer—which were initially approved by a senior American Peace Corps administrator in Zambia, Nancy Yuill—did "not meet basic standards of professionalism or maturity." It is unfortunate that Mr. Day castigated and untenably name-called a volunteer despite the absence of clear policy regarding LGBTQ outreach. It is unacceptable that this gay volunteer was evacuated/fired from his country of service for low-level LGBTQ outreach after explicitly receiving permission from a superior at Peace Corps, and that Peace Corps did not immediately offer to transfer this volunteer to another country. The volunteer had to reapply for service and waited nine months to rejoin the Peace Corps. This is a form of discrimination or, at best, a demonstration of Peace Corps’ dearth of support and accommodation for this minority group and basic human rights in general. We demand: No more unclear, unjust policies!
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Sincerely,

[Your name]