[kmomteach]

This story caught me off guard. i never knew that schools would take an active role in issues such as gay rights. A girl who wanted to express her "straightness" belief was refused by the school. However the school held a day of silence in honor of gay students. Why would a school even participate in the issue?

[twinzplus3]

Yet another reason why I choose to homeschool. However, I'm a little divided on whether or not schools should participate or get involved in an issue like this. If we are indeed preparing kids for the future. . .that must include thought provoking citizenship and encouraging students to get involved in, and attempt to make a difference in their community. While I see your point, I also have to think about the incredible lesson that that student as well as his/her peers have learned about free speech, the justice system, and standing for one's own convictions. I tend to think that allowing high school students to get involved in something like this enhances, not detracts from their education. And as a side note. . .I'm glad for the student that justice was finally served. The school was wrong for suspending him/her for wearing that shirt.

[Samual]

Things must be quite different here, here racism, homophobia and discriminating against the physically and mentally disabled are all treated the same legally, so here there would highly likely be community service or a spell in juvie. By allowing her to wear it and to win it is showing people that discrimination is ok, which is horrific whatever the discrimination maybe. Just because you are against the way someone is made does not give you the right to publicly voice that but it doesn't mean you have to publicly agree with it either to shut people up, but it doesn't mean you have to give your opinion up either.
But why is the school deciding yay lets have a gay day, we don't need a straight day, or an asian day or a disability day etc, citizenship lessons in school are about equality not segregation yet the school seems to be doing exactly that. Why not just have a speach in assembly instead of losing a whole day of education, being silent wont make you 'understand' a gay person, it's not like straight people go around screaming "I'm straight!", stupid idea.
The UK has school uniforms so non-uniform days there are strict guidelines at each school, now no fcuk clothes with a visible label are not allowed either, I remember a few years ago we had two girls in isolation for the day as they were wearing t-shirts that said **** and one was wearing an anti-islam t-shirt and was expelled and spent three months in a juvenille detention centre for racially agrivated hate.
Here the government tried and thankfully failed to introduce story books for little kids about the prince and the prince and so on, bit wierd really.
Also, not skiving

[hennypenny]

I think the school did the right thing. In Australia, what that girl did would be considered discrimination, I know I certainly consider it to be such.

[lacih8607]

I agree with you, that schools should not allow either. But, if they are going to allow the day of silence for gays, they should allow the same things for straights. The girl should not have been punished for her beliefs, if other people in her school aren't being punished for theirs. She didn't harm anyone by what she was doing.

[twinzplus3]

Yeah see I'm not sure how what she did is discrimination to be honest. If what she did was discrimination then the day of silence for gays is discrimination against those who believe differently. Open discussion/communication has to go all ways.

Now if her shirt said something like, "I hate gays and they'll all burn in hades." Well, that's different. . .but simply stating your beliefs on homosexuality doesn't make you homophobic, discriminatory or anything else. If there is a day of silence for homosexual peers. . .then why not one for Christians, for Hindus for everyone else. And if there's not a day for all those things, and we don't want to abolish a day for that one thing, then one is perfectly within their rights to express their beliefs. It amazes me how we want to be "open" until someone opposes our views. Then we want them to shut up because it's discriminatory.

[J920]

Hmmmm

[mcmama]

Her day of silence is not the problem. Her "Be happy not gay" slogan is. And it insults families like mine. I think my own children and grandchildren have the right to go to school without being insulted for who they come from. My ex is gay and closeted. My son is marrying into a family with a gay parent as well - who is open. So for our grandchildren, that means two out of four grandparents are gay. two out of four grandparents are straight. Four out of four grandparents went through hell with the denial and living lies. Our families were not "happy". Those of us who have emerged from these closets of denial are much happier today than we used to be. The one still in the closet, well, I don't think at this point he knows what happiness is.

The shirt might as well tell black people to bleach their skin and straighten their hair to be beautiful, or Koreans to have cosmetic surgery on their eyes.

A GSA that is properly sponsored is not promoting homosexuality, not telling people to not be straight. It is making it possible for gay students to be accepted, and allowing straight students to share in the committment to this. It makes it possible, and acceptable, for straight teens to be friends with gay teens. If she wore a shirt with a racist slogan (and there are quite a few out there still) or a slogan that defamed women, we would all agree on the issue. If you think these don't exist or aren't popular, take a walk down Bourbon Street in New Orleans, or look in the windows of tourist shops on South Beach, FL.

Protesting the actions of a GSA is fine. Wearing a t shirt with a slogan that encourages a hateful attitude toward gay teens is not acceptable in a school environment. In addition to punishing her, the school should have opened up a dialogue about this with all students. This is where we often get off track. We all like to stage stunts, but not actually get down to it with real discussion.

My older son helped start a GSA at his high school, and it is still there. One of the important things he found was that at the high school level, you have some kids who have struggled with this their whole lives and decide they are "bi". Keeping up with these friends, he has seen a lot of what he calls "bi now gay later". Unfortunately for some of us (several million, anyway), some people do not fully accept their own homosexuality until they have been married and living a double life, most closeted, some actually very openly.

Once we get beyond acceptance, I'd like to see more of the GSAs actually tackle responsibility for relationships - being honest with self, with others, and the effect of actions on the other person in the relationship. Maybe then gay kids won't grow up to marry "breeders" like me, and will have a healthy regard and respect for everyone's sexuality so they don't marry straight people and involve them in the self deceit. We don't choose our sexuality, but we do choose how we act on it, and that goes for all of us. But I guess this has to be less of a priority than preventing people from being bullied and sometimes killed or driven to suicide.

[mrmnmom82]

I agree with Samuel, if the school really thought it was that big of deal to educate about gay rights, there should have been an assembly or something. Then maybe the girl could have just opted out of the assembly instead of feeling she had to make just as big a show.

[twinzplus3]

mcmama--I missed the "be happy not gay" part--sorry. I'm in favor of GSA's at schools too. . .despite my own beliefs on homosexuality. If I want the right to speak my mind and/or promote my own beliefs. . .the I must give others the same rights. But I still find that frequently we tout "tolerance" at the expense of those who disagree with our views. That's what bothers me. I can see how "Be Happy, Not Gay" is offensive. . .but I think it could've been handled differently. I think the schools' actions were probably polarizing.

Anyhow, the point of the thread was to discuss whether or not schools should even be involved with things like this. . .not to discuss whether or not the school was right in their actions or whether or not we accept gays. That's my fault, I steered us off track. . so I"ll say, 'yes' schools should be involved in these types of things and it enhances, not detracts from education. (Note: the kids were not to be silent in classes. . .and even if they were. . .I'm still not sure that would be horrible and detracting from their education.)