Jepson School of Leadership Studies Awards Victoria Cobb

The past three weeks at the University of Richmond have been littered with the controversy of an award given to Victoria Cobb, President of The Family Foundation. The Family Foundation lists among its victories "Banned counterfeit forms of marriage such as 'civil unions'" and "passed Constitutional Amendment Defining Marriage". The former "voids any civil union, partnership, contract or other arrangement between persons of the same sex purporting to bestow the privileges or obligations of marriage. Such an arrangement entered into in another state or jurisdiction is void in Virginia and any contractual rights created thereby unenforceable." The latter "protects the definition of marriage and prohibits the Commonwealth or its political subdivisions from recognizing civil unions." Both of these "victories" are oppressive to all who identify as LGBT and work to counter the fight for CIVIL RIGHTS that LGBT people have worked for. These are the same civil rights that various groups of people have worked to achieve, and in the United States have more or less been granted. Why are LGBT people so different that they deserve a separate set of rights from other American citizens.

The big controversy here, however, is not even that Victoria Cobb and the Family Foundation work directly to oppress the rights of the LGBT community. The issue at hand is that the Jepson School of Leadership Studies has decided to honor her, thereby endorsing her foundation and by extension her views. While many students, faculty and staff do not agree with Victoria Cobb's message, the issue here is not about Freedom of Speech: she should feel free to speak her mind about the foundation that she has dedicated her life to. The reason that there is so much controversy is that the University of Richmond, and by extension the Jepson School, have been throwing around this "Richmond Promise" that is supposed to demonstrate the the University is an inclusive community, accepting of all types of diversity, including sexual-orientation, yet Jepson felt it was appropriate to award a woman's "leadership" that goes directly against the Richmond Promise.

The University of Richmond needs to stop pretending it is an inclusive environment on the outside and demonstrate the inclusivity it wants in its actions. This means that is unacceptable for the Jepson, as a part of the larger University of Richmond, to give an award honoring someone's leadership in her community and organization if ALL of the work she has done has been with a Foundation that works ardently against same-sex marriage, same-sex partner benefits, and other rights, that most other people are granted in the United States.

Jessie