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B-GLAAD votes to undergo name change |
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Thursday, 22 February 2007 |
by ALLISON CASEY
Lifestyles Reporter
Bisexuals, Gays, Lesbians and Allies Associated for Diversity will undergo its fourth name change in its 17-year history at Appalachian State University.
Haley N. Price, B-GLAAD president and junior history secondary education major, said the group changed its name to Sexuality And Gender Alliance (SAGA) to be more inclusive of the transgendered population and more welcoming of all genders.
The club hopes to be officially known as SAGA by next semester after
the Lee H. McCaskey Center for Student Involvement and Leadership
approves the new constitution.
“We’ve always been a very inclusive club where everyone can feel comfortable,” B-GLAAD advisor Dr. Mary E. Ballard said.
One of the problems the club ran into was the issue of “alphabet soup,” adding letters to include everyone.
“There’s only so many letters you can add on,” Ballard said. “You can’t pronounce LGBTIQ.”
“SAGA covers a broader population,” Price said. “Anyone can fit in.
B-GLAAD didn’t include our trans population, our intersex population or
our questioning population or any gender issues.”
Kathy L. Staley, university librarian, researched the history of B-GLAAD.
The club formed in 1990 as SAGA, which then stood for Sexual Awareness Group of Appalachian, she said.
In 1992, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill’s Gay and
Lesbian Association changed to B-GLAD to include bisexuals. Ethan
Smith, then the president of Appalachian’s SAGA, heard about their name
change and adopted it.
In February 1998, the club added the extra “A” to include allies, Staley said.
The club took suggestions for names all year and recently voted on SAGA with a two-thirds vote.
Other ideas included Spectrum, Continuum and Pride, Ballard said.
“We listed the pros and cons of each idea and discussed them,” Price
said. “After the preliminary vote, we had another meeting where we had
a five-minute debate on each side.”
SAGA was decided on because it had a history at Appalachian and it was easy to say, Ballard said.
The name change did have some negative responses, Price said.
“Our membership felt like we’d lose our reputation on campus for being B-GLAAD that does X, Y and Z,” Price said.
Another issue was that some members felt “SAGA” sounded like “something
long and drawn out and dramatic,” Ballard said. “Some people felt it
sounded very stereotypical.”
Ballard said the club hopes to combat the issues with good marketing.
“When people come to campus, they don’t know what B-GLAAD is,” she said. “As the freshman come
to club expo they will see SAGA and as the current classes matriculate through, eventually SAGA will have the same reputation.”
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