English course draws fire from conservatives

By Jeremy W. Peters

Daily Staff Reporter

An English class offered for the fall semester has drawn considerable criticism from across the nation and prompted one Michigan interest group to lobby state legislators, the University Board of Regents and even Gov. John Engler to stop the class from being taught.

The source of this controversy is English Prof. David Halperin's English 317 class titled "How to be Gay: Male Homosexuality and Initiation."

American Family Association of Michigan President Gary Glenn contends a subject matter such as this has no place in a state-supported university.

"I think that it is outrageous that the University of Michigan would ask taxpayers to pay for a class that seeks to initiate teens into a high risk lifestyle," Glenn said.

Halperin said his class should be not be the subject of any dispute.

"There's not much of a reason for them to get worked up about it," Halperin said. "The aim of my class is to investigate the relationship between identities and culture and to look at gayness from the perspective of social practices and cultural identity, rather than from the perspective of sex and sexuality."

According to Halperin's course description, the class will cover topics including "diva-worship, drag, muscle culture, style, fashion and interior design." The course also has a $35 lab fee for mandatory weekly three-hour movie screenings.

In a letter to the regents and University President Lee Bollinger, Glenn said the course "openly admits its purpose is to recruit and 'initiate' teenagers into the homosexual lifestyle."

"We are urging state officials to do everything in their power to cancel this class," Glenn said yesterday.

Glenn also said he had been contacted by a regent, who told him he would make sure the class was cancelled, but would not disclose the regent's name.

Regent Dan Horning (R-Grand Haven) said he had been contacted by Glenn via e-mail, and had himself also attempted to contact Glenn. Horning would not say whether he was the regent to whom Glenn referred.

Horning did express concern about Halperin's class.

"I'm troubled that the University would offer this kind of course," Horning said.

"We don't teach classes on how to be Christian, or how to be Jewish or how to be Irish."

Horning said he is not considering any specific plan of action regarding the class.

Halperin's class has not only garnered criticism from around the state, but it has received its fair share of national media attention.

The conservative magazine The National Review published Halperin's course description verbatim in its March 17 issue.

Above the description the magazine printed "U. Michigan was ranked as the 25th best university in the United States in the most recent ratings by U.S. News and World Report."

In addition, a reference to Halperin's class was included in an editorial regarding homosexuality in the United States in yesterday's Washington Times.

Halperin said the discussion about his class does not concern him and he is not distressed that many are clamoring for its cancellation.

"I think it's perfectly within his rights to do that as a citizen of this country," he said of Glenn lobbying regents, legislators and the governor to cancel the class.

"We'll see what happens," he said, "but I don't believe the class will be cancelled."