by Sara Russo

A gay student at The College of New Jersey, Edward Drago, was arrested on August 20^th after admitting to campus police that he was responsible for a string of anti-gay messages and death threats delivered to himself and to a gay student group during the previous year, and that he had falsified reports of these crimes to authorities.

The threats had spawned a semester-long focus on "hate crimes" at the state-funded school and resulted in the expenditure of taxpayer dollars and student activity fees for additional security provisions and to fund events meant to instill greater tolerance in the student body.

"I feel deeply offended and I am very much concerned about my own safety here on the campus," Drago told the campus newspaper last February after he claimed to have found the first in a series of personally directed threats. "This event has added additional pressure to my daily life."

The message was written on a flyer for The Haven, a support group for homosexuals that Drago co-founded in the fall of 2000. One side of the flyer read "Die Faggot" while the other side contained a drawing of a swastika and stated "Beware."

Over the next few months, during the winter and spring of 2001, Drago reported receiving several other threatening messages, all of which made reference to his homosexuality. A second message stated "Hey [Drago] get rid of security you f-ing faggot! Stay away" and pictured an inverted triangle, a common symbol of the pro-gay movement.

Yet another message featured both an inverted triangle and a swastika and read "[Drago] The bomb was for starters. Die," referring to a small explosive device that had been found on campus and was later determined to be unrelated to the Drago case.

"I am afraid to walk in certain places and be by myself at times," Drago stated after the message referring to the bomb was found under the door of the Gay Union at Trenton State at The College of New Jersey (GUTS) office, an organization that Drago served as treasurer. "I have no idea who in the world this individual or individuals are," the apparent victim added. "Because of these incidents, my personal life and privacy has been invaded and I do feel threatened." Campus police and outside agencies opened investigations into the threats and doubled their security patrols around Drago's dorm.

Reports of the threats provoked a spirited response from college administrators and students who threw themselves behind various measures intended to increase tolerance for homosexuality on the campus and ensure the safety of all students and especially Drago.

The gay union announced a sidewalk chalking session and set up tables in the student center to pass out pink felt triangles for students to wear "in support and solidarity." Other events prompted by the threats included two "Safe Zone Socials," a candlelight vigil, a "day of silence to combat homophobia" and a teach-in about discrimination. Classes were cancelled on the afternoon of the teach-in so that all students would be able to attend. Signs placed around campus in dorms and academic buildings read, "SAFE ZONE- This space respects all people regardless of sexual orientation, ethnic background, age, ability, and gender." The signs were colored pink and pictured an inverted triangle with a circle around it, a symbol of the gay community.

Individuals on campus did not hesitate to provide support. One professor even offered to let Drago stay in her home, fearing that his safety was threatened in the dorms. When Drago stood up at an anti-hate rally and declared to the world and his unknown nemesis, "I'm not scared of you. Come and get me," many openly admired his courage.

The rash of threats also resulted in many additional expenditures at the public college including $4,297 provided by the Student Finance Board to GUTS for pro-gay t-shirts, buttons, catering, and extra security requested for Drago's dorm. One campus news article noted at the time that, "GUTS received all of the $698 it requested to make the signs for its safe zone socials from the Student Finance Board….the request was unanimously approved and even allowed for catering by Wood Food Services, despite SFB's usual reluctance to pay for the food organizations require while at conferences."

The Student Finance Board (SFB) is an organization composed of 15 undergraduates whose responsibility it is to allocate the college's student activity funds "in such a way as to result in the greatest possible number of educational opportunities and quality programs for the students." After voting on the GUTS appropriation, student Sara Daurio, then-president of the board, noted "that's the best thing we've funded all year." The TCNJ student paper, The Signal, notes, "SFB did not question GUTS and asked for some safe zone signs during the proposal, which Drago, then the treasurer of GUTS, passed out to the board."

Drago's role as instigator of the threats made against himself was only discovered in late August when, according to Drago, he was "called in by the police for routine questioning and confessed because I felt it was the right thing to do."

Attributing his actions to instability and mixed emotions about his homosexuality, Drago claims that his conscience ultimately led him to confess that he was the sole perpetrator of the attacks on himself and GUTS. "I'm basically not well," Drago said. "I'm not using that as an excuse, but I think anyone can see that my actions were not ones that would be undertaken by someone who is mentally stable."

Drago has been charged with a felony for filing false police reports, and has also been charged with harassment because he sent threatening letters not only to himself but also to the gay student organization, GUTS. He has been suspended from the college until both campus and local judicial proceedings are terminated, and he does not expect to re-enroll at TCNJ.

Despite the large expenditures for additional security and gay tolerance merchandise that Drago's campaign of threats provoked, campus administrators maintain that college funds were well spent. "Given what we knew about the case at the time, I absolutely believe that we acted appropriately," campus spokesperson Susan Long told Campus Report. She also noted that there has been no negative reaction against the university for the extra expenses incurred in supporting GUTS and Drago. "We did expend a great deal of energy and effort into something that as it turned out was not what we thought, but certainly there's been no backlash," Long said.

Ann Marie Nicolosi, a professor of women's and gender studies and history and a faculty advisor to GUTS notes the effect that Drago's false accusations ultimately had on the campus. "I think the student and administrative response was so positive and we gained so much," Nicolosi said. "It was a wonderfully teachable time to talk about what we face, and I hope the student body's attitude is a bit more enlightened than it was before."