This post was written by freshman Amanda Crowe, a Hatchet columnist.

Washington D.C. residents have it. Thirteen states have it. The White House wants to have it. What is it? A non-discrimination policy that includes gender identity. But why doesn’t GW have one?

It’s ridiculous that such a socially progressive school like ours doesn’t already have a policy banning discrimination against a student’s gender identity. We have a large LGBTQ population on campus and some of them are currently unprotected by GW’s current stance on discrimination.

If it were up to the Student Association, no student, male, female or transgender will be left unprotected.

Recently, the SA senate and the Joint Committee of Faculty ad Students unanimously voted to pass a bill that would amend the current non-discrimination policy at GW to include “gender or identity expression.” However, some fear that the Board of Trustees might shelve such a proposal.

If this bill were to be vetoed by the Board of Trustees, it would be a detriment to the student body. All students who chose to attend GW should be protected from all forms of discrimination. A policy that protects some and not others will only divide this university.

The Board should also take into account the unanimous vote that is bringing this bill to their attention. The SA has had a lot of controversy surrounding it all year. They’ve also been ineffective. However, the SA senate can put all their bickering behind them to vote, in unison, for a bill to protect all of their fellow students.

It isn’t fair that I, being a straight student, am protected from hatred, while some of my friends aren’t. The student body shouldn’t stand for the current policy. Change is needed, and hopefully the Board of Trustees can make that change possible.