THE STUDENT VOICE SINCE 1904
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
THURSDAY, OCTOBER 28, 2010
WWW.KANSAN.COM
VOLUME 123 ISSUE 49
AWARENESS
Vanessa Hays (left), a recent University of Kansas graduate from Topeka, discusses domestic abuse in the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and questioning community as Rachel Gadd-Nelson (right), a senior from Kansas City, Kan., and director of education outreach for Quevers And Allies, looks on. Gadd-Nelson and Hays spoke in conjunction with Domestic Violence Awareness Week.
Evan Palmer/KANSI
Evan Palmer/KANSAN
BY SAMANTHA COLLINS scollins@kansan.com
The threats started when Sarah, a woman from Kansas City, Mo., started dating her first girlfriend when she was 16 years old. The threats weren't coming from her community or friends — they were coming from her girlfriend.
The abuse started almost right away. Her girlfriend threatened Sarah by saying she would tell Sarah's parents and church community about their sexual relationship. She also threatened Sarah's safety. Sarah said it took a while for her to understand that she was in an abusive relationship because her girlfriend never physically hit her.
"It's not the classic violence," Sarah said. "I struggled with identifying that our relationship was not OK."
Jessica Farmer, outreach and education coordinator at the Kansas City Anti-Violence Project, said domestic violence in lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and questioning, or LGBTQ, relationships is just as common as domestic violence in heterosexual relationships. She said that in one out of four relationships of all sexual orientations, people will experience acts of domestic violence.
Sarah's experience is an example of tactics of abuse other than physical that are used in LGBTQ relationships. Rachel Gadd-Nelson, a senior from Kansas City, Kan., and director of educational outreach of Queers and Allies, said threats regarding sexuality, such as outing a person who has not shared his or her sexuality with friends and family, were common in abusive LGBTQ relationships.
When Sarah moved away to attend college in Atlanta, she said she promised herself she would never be in an abusive relationship again. That changed when she met a transgendered individual who was in the process of transitioning from female to male.
"Saying things like 'You're not queer enough' is incredibly damaging," Gadd-Nelson said.
Sarah's new relationship became abusive almost right from the start. She said he sped on the highway and forced her to take off her seat belt just to scare her. He threatened to hit her. He would hold her down and force her to perform sexual acts. And yet, Sarah didn't want to leave him.
"I thought I loved that person," Sarah said. "I thought if I did all of the right things, said the right things and tried
hard enough then it would get better. The thought of getting up and leaving broke my heart"
Sarah was a feminist, an activist and a victim of past violence, and taught students about domestic violence at her university. Because of this she was ashamed to talk to friends about her abusive relationship. She said she thought she should know better.
Gadd-Nelson said it was difficult for the LGBTQ community to admit that their relationships could be just as dysfunctional as heterosexual relationships.
"It's easier to talk about gay-bashing and the kind of violence that is happening against our community because it is something that can rally around," Gadd-Nelson said.
SEE AWARENESS ON PAGE 4A
Puppy love
Chloe Shen, a junior from Nanjing, China, plays with a dog from the Lawrence Humane Society Wednesday afternoon on Wescoe Beach. The event, which had five dogs from the shelter, was held for Wild Wescoe Wednesdays, a weekly event hosted by KZoo. October is also Adopt a Shelter Dog Month, which was another reason for hosting the event. "We want to try to do this type of event every week, especially in the spring as the weather begins to get nice again after winter," said Brian Doe, a junior member of KZoo.
Evan Palmer/KANSAN
RESEARCH
Grant given for chlamydia cure
BY MEG LOWRY
mlowry@kansan.com
"In reality, that one million is actually only 30 percent of the people that actually have chlamydia," said P. Scott Hefty, assistant professor of molecular biosciences.
One million new cases of chlamydia were reported in the United States last year. In Kansas, 15- to 24-year-olds accounted for 74 percent of reported cases this year, and more than half of the cases reported in the nation.
Hefty received a $1.8 million grant from the National Institute of Health this year to further research chlamydia and its causes and treatments. Despite the prevalence of chlamydia worldwide, Hefty said he can count the number of scientists researching the gene regulation of the disease on two hands.
"Because 70 percent of people with chlamydia have no outward symptoms, they don't know they have it, and those cases go undocumented."
"Chlamydia isn't just a problem in the U.S., it's a problem worldwide," said Hefty. "It is the most common STD spread by bacterial infection by far."
there is evidence from tests preformed on pigs that the bacteria that causes chlamydia may be building a resistance to the antibiotic. Hefty is working to develop a new antibiotic to treat chlamydia.
Chlamydia is treated with an antibiotic called doxycycline, but
Sarah Kieweg, assistant professor of mechanical engineering, is also working with Hefty. She is developing a gel that will help prevent women from contracting chlamydia to begin with.
The microbicide gel would be inserted into the vagina, preventing the transmission of chlamydia.
"The target market of the gel would be in countries where women don't have access to alternative methods like condoms, such as Africa. Even in the U.S. though, women don't always have that option," Kieweg said.
According to the Department of Health, the number of reported cases of chlamydia increased significantly last year by almost 14 percent. The Center for Disease Control now strongly advises that all sexually active women under 25 be screened yearly for chlamydia.
As part of a federally-funded initiative called the Kansas Infertility Prevention Project, clinics across the state are now
SEE RESEARCH ON PAGE 4A
JAYPLAY | INSIDE
Students should go nuts for nature
A bit of time spent in nature every day can help alleviate the stress of college students today's busy, fast-paced life.
VOLUNTEERING | 3A
Students volunteer to fight flames
The Wakaraus Township's Firefighter Program allows students to volunteer as firefighters, giving back to the community.
LOCAL|6A
Various bars are hosting costume contests during the weekend of Halloween. Students also celebrate at house parties.
Show off your sweet Halloween costume
INDEX
Classifieds...7B
Crossword...6A
Cryptoquips...6A
Opinion...7A
Sports...1B
Sudoku...6A
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