Former Student Sues University for Discrimination

A former Chiropractic student Paul Lewis, 55 of Milford is suing the university for sexual discrimination. Lewis feels that the campus is discriminatory toward homosexuals and in a statement to the Connecticut Post claimed that this is related to the University’s ties to the Unification Church. According to his statement in the Connecticut Post Lewis believes that, “Rev. Moon still has a major influence on the University of Bridgeport and his understanding of human sexuality is extremely limited,” furthermore Lewis claims that, “there is discrimination against gay people throughout the campus.”
Lewis’s former classmates describe him as confrontational and odd, but found it hard to believe that any fellow students, faculty or staff would care about his sexual preference. Lewis was reportedly open about his sexuality while at the university.
In a statement issued on Thursday the 26th of January, John Daley, University Spokesman had this to say: “The University of Bridgeport was one of the first in the state and region to offer health insurance to domestic partners when it adopted that policy in 2004. That’s the action of a university that does not discriminate, and just one piece of evidence to support that. The allegations in a lawsuit claiming that the University of Bridgeport discriminates against homosexuals are absolutely false. Those allegations are wrong and vicious. The university believes that people’s private lives are their own business. If anything, tolerance, openness to ideas, respect for others and diversity are the hallmarks of this university. The University of Bridgeport is one of the most diverse colleges in the nation, with a minority enrollment of 35 percent and an international population of 25 percent. We pride ourselves on this and the respect for all others and their values and beliefs. This university does not discriminate period, whether it is race, color, creed, sex, physical challenges, sexual orientation, or anything else. The university is an independent, non-sectarian, state-chartered and accredited institution governed by a Board of Trustees that supports its role and mission in higher education. Our role is to provide an education that will equip students to launch their careers and make their lives satisfying and fuller. We are a university in every sense of the word, built and nurtured on the free flow of ideas and independent thinking.”
The university offers a course entitled “Unification Thought,” but the course content does not include a discussion of homosexuality. The psychology department offers a very popular course in “Human Sexuality” in which homosexuality is discussed. The Unificationist college student organization World CARP has a chapter here at UB and it known mostly for hosting the UB World Cup soccer tournament each fall semester. The university does not have any student organization specifically related to sexuality.