After a series of meetings yesterday with Penn State administrators, organizers of the Safer Sex Cabaret have decided to request an on-campus venue for the event.
On Tuesday, Terrell Jones, vice provost of educational equity, recommended Allies, a gay rights group, move the program off-campus to avoid problems with the university.
Although Allies wants the cabaret on-campus, the final decision lies with the university.
Cabaret organizers decided to stay on-campus because they said that more students would attend, and that the cabaret would not bring negative attention to the university.
Jennifer Dumin, the event's organizer, said the cabaret would give alternatives to risky sexual activity that could result in sexually transmitted diseases or unwanted pregnancy.
"The bottom line was that there just wasn't anything in the content of our event that would give us any reason to move it off campus," Dumin said.
Administrators worried about the event's title after state lawmakers led by Rep. John Lawless, R-Montgomery, criticized the university earlier this year for allowing the student-run events Cuntfest and Sex Faire, calling them inappropriate.
"We had heard rumors that the administration was not going to let us have it on campus," Dumin said. "Nobody really understood the content of the event."
Yesterday, Allies met with Jones, Jan Jacobs, vice president for administration, and Stan Latta, director of union and student activities, in a series of meetings. The students originally wanted to meet with Penn State President Graham Spanier.
Jones said the event might provide an opportunity for criticism of Penn State. "There are lots of people out there who are looking for any reason to cast us in a negative light," he said.
Latta, whose office approves room requests, worried about the content implied by the cabaret's title and contacted Allies.
"The program would not have been approved based on my original understanding," he said.
During the meetings, Allies explained the content of the event and assured administrators that no "lewd and lascivious" behavior would occur.
"We have a clear understanding of what is going on and what's at risk," Dumin said. "The university is in a tight spot."
Latta said that if Allies provides a written statement of what would happen at the event, he would reconsider their request for space.
According to Dumin, planned segments for the cabaret include a skit about fantasies, game show based on audience answers to surveys, and a song parody called "Safer Lovin.' " The performances will be made by Allies members. The AIDS Project has also been invited to present a segment on STDs and their prevention.
Latta said that if the on-campus room request is approved, Allies could limit the event to the university community by checking for Penn State IDs at the entrance. The university could also restrict the use of recording devices and cameras.
Sex Faire gained national exposure after Lawless videotaped the student-run event and presented the tape at a state appropriation hearing in Harrisburg.
