US Gay Student President Sues!

MAY 2011

One year after a concerted anti-gay harassment campaign began against the president of the student government at the University of Michigan, the president has now filed a $25,000+ lawsuit against the perpetrator.

The conflict hit the mainstream media in September when local Michigan TV station Channel 7 broadcast the details on it's Action News programme. The station reported that licensed lawyer and former University of Michigan student Andrew Shirvell was maintaining a blog that was dedicated to condemning the current student president, sociology student Chris Armstrong.

According to the programme, the blog named Chris Armstrong Watch, described him as being a pervert, a racist, a liar and as "Satan's representative on the Student Assembly". The blog also accused the president of breaking the law by engaging in underage binge drinking, of hosting gay orgies in his dorm room and of having an anti-Christian agenda. Shirvell's blog included detailed discussion of Armstrong and of his friends and family. However the TV programme reported that the vote for the openly gay student for the position of president had been "overwhelming", and suggested that a number of the accusations on the blog were invalid.

The station reported that Armstrong said he did not want to dignify the blog posts by responding to them. But Armstrong did later agree to appear on CNN on the subject of gay bullying, where he told host Anderson Cooper last year "... It's obviously been like a really big strain on like myself and my friends and family." Armstrong added "... What's been really great is that like the University of Michigan and like a lot of my friends and family have been like really supportive the entire way through."

Action News recently reported on the law suit, quoting Armstrong's attorney Deborah Gordon describing the blog as nothing but lies and imagination. She is quoted as saying that the record needs to be set straight, and that if Shirvell would not do so willingly, it would be done through the courts. The case is likely to draw further media attention given the high profile of the university, ranked in some listings as amongst the top 20 in the world.

The We Support Chris Armstrong page on facebook currently has over 18,000 Likes.




http://www.michigandaily.com/content/armstrong-says-he-will-not-back-down-criticism
http://youtu.be/vczh_RMh4Mw

Update: Lawsuit successful - http://www.advocate.com/crime/2012/08/16/andrew-shirvell-ordered-pay-millions-damages-defaming-gay-student