Tue 23 Sep 2008 In: New Zealand Daily News View at Wayback View at NDHA
The Gay Auckland Business Association is offering a $2,000 scholarship to a talented LGBT student, in a move welcomed by young people's support service Rainbow Youth and labeled as "skirting discrimination" by the NZ Listener magazine. Applications are now open in the GABA's new scholarship programme, which the charitable trust hopes will become an annual award for LGBT students who are seen as good role models by peers and teachers and who have excelled in effort and achievement in their secondary education. GABA chair Philip Pridmore tells GayNZ.com that applications went out to secondary schools last week, and close on 31st October 2008 for the 2009 academic year. "We have only one $2,000 scholarship to start with, but we're hoping to build on that," says Pridmore, who believes openly-LGBT students need community support as they face challenges such as homophobic bullying and low self-esteem. Robert Marshall, youth coordinator for Auckland's Rainbow Youth LGBT support service, commends GABA on its "fantastic support of our young community. "The resource goes along way to increasing visability of our community, which helps reduce the isolation experienced by many young people during the coming out process," he says. Gay Labour MP and Minister of Education Chris Carter is the patron of GABA, so his name appears on the letterhead of the scholarship application form, leading the latest NZ Listener magazine to question his role in the scheme it says is "skirting discrimination" as it "bans applications from ‘straight' schoolchildren." Act Party leader Rodney Hide told the magazine that scholarships shouldn't be offered on the basis of sexuality. "Chris Carter would be mortified if there was a scholarship that only straight people could apply for," he opined. Carter responded that he had no part in planning GABA's scholarship, but he supports the move, just as he supports other organisations helping their young people succeed in education. "Carter was never involved in our decision to offer the scholarship," confirms Pridmore. "He's the patron of the organisation and as such, he doesn't get involved in the day-to-day running of things. "This is just a part of the community supporting its people – no different from things that other parts of the community do," he says of the controversy. The application form for GABA's 2008 Tertiary Scholarship is on the GABA website, linked below.
Credit: GayNZ.com Daily News Staff
First published: Tuesday, 23rd September 2008 - 3:42pm