The LDS Exclusion Policy, One Year Later
One year ago today, a policy change from the LDS church handbook was leaked onto the internet. This policy is referred to as “the exclusion policy” by many. Before the policy change, I really believed the church was taking strides in including its LGBTQ+ brothers and sisters; I had seen progress before. I was a BYU student from 2005 to 2008. Pre-2007, the honor code read as follows: “Advocacy of a homosexual lifestyle (whether implied or explicit) or any behaviors that indicate homosexual conduct, including those not sexual in nature, are inappropriate and violate the Honor Code.” This meant that if you were a gay BYU student, you couldn't even admit it out loud without fear of being kicked out of school. There were multiple instances where friends of mine were looked at by the Honor Code Office, and friends of friends would be called in to find out whether or not the individual was gay. When called in, we would deny that our friend was gay to help save their academic standing.