Okay, I am severely hacked off now

[pirateninja]

BASTARDS. ASSHOLES. PRICKS.

Right now I can't think of a word bad enough to describe the AFA.

They say "You can join the fight for your children too!"

They want parents to complain to schools about the day of silence. A day meant to signify the silence of closeted homosexuals, and the recent death of Larry King.

Because of the action of concerned parents, hundreds of schools have removed their school as a listed participant in the pro-homosexual "Day of Silence." You can join the fight for your children too!

On, Friday, April 25, several thousand schools across the nation will be observing "Day of Silence (DOS)." DOS is a nationwide push to promote the homosexual lifestyle in public schools.

When AFA alerted parents of this public school classroom disruption by homosexual student activists, many took action immediately! If you haven't gotten involved, it's critical that you do so today!

What should parents do? Check with your local school principal to see if your child's school will be participating in DOS. If the school is participating, notify other parents about DOS and ask them to join in keeping their children out of school on that day.

Read the full webpage here: http://www.afa.net/emails/transform....er&y=2008&m=03

Right now, I'm just speechless with disgust.

[Trumpetplyer23]

Jeez, people have no tact or consideration for others. I mean, Larry King was brutally killed! If a straight kid was killed like he was, there would be a day of silence and no one would get their undies in a bunch.

People should just leave things like this alone. Its not right. This is similar to saying that we shouldn't hold a day of silence for 9/11 because there was a small chance that someone in the Trade Center that died could have been gay.

People like this make me sick *goes to puke in a corner*.

[Tim]

Omg, I want to punch them. It took so long to get the amount of supporters out high school had, and now they're threating to tear that apart... :/

[pirateninja]

The stupid thing is, they say "Day of Silence PROMOTES homosexuality". No it does not! They make it sound like DOS recruits the kids. It just basically says "If you are gay, this school supports you".

I'd hate to be a kid in a school that removed Day of Silence. Although, knowing our headmistress, she's not gonna allow it anyway. Not going to stop ME doing it though.

I cannot believe that people can be so inept. Honestly, how can someone say that giving a moment of respect for a student that has passed away can promote homosexuality just because the boy was homosexual. Apparently these people are so afraid of homosexuals that they find any excuse to prevent an event that concerns someone that is gay.

IDIOTS.

[Davo]

I am absolutely appalled by this, I cannot believe the hateful letter I just read.

Homosexual behavior is not an innate identity; it is a sinful, unnatural and destructive behavior. No school should advance a physically, emotionally, and spiritually destructive sexual lifestyle to students

They are opposing a day of silence for a murdered school kid, and the letter is shamefully leading the reader to make complaints. I really hope no one takes any notice of these bigoted heartless bastards

[pirateninja]

Originally Posted by Davo

I really hope no one takes any notice of these bigoted heartless bastards

Unfortunately... many have.

In the past week alone, over 200 schools have announced they are dropping plans to participate. Please, get involved for the sake or your children, and all children, today!

I can only hope the AFA were exaggerating or making it up just to get more people to succumb to it. Still, I can see many schools willing to drop it if enough parents complained.

>.< Richard Mad!! Richard smash!!!

[Fiorino]

I heard about this a while ago (like a month I think), and I was outraged.
In the end though, I decided that they weren't worth me being angry over,
they're stupid and backwards and they don't deserve my time of day.

RIP Larry

We must split Pirateninja in half. The Pirate side can command our LGBT navel fleet while the ninja half can leade our LGBT ninjas and we can destroy the AFA!!!

[Alexander]

which is why the AFA is on my list.....

[beckyg]

I wonder if the AFA knows how many gay and lesbian teachers are working with their children and doing a great job! Their crap is almost as disgusting as the Westboro Baptist Church. The good thing is most don't fall for it.

[Psychedelic Bookmarks]

That's sad. i really pity people like that and, more importantly, their children.

I feel like going on a Puncture Wound Massacre on the AFA.

Sinful?
Unnatural?
Destructive?
Lifestyle?



What The Fuck Are They Smoking???

edit: sorry about the double post.

[Lexington]

Why make it a "day of silence"? Remember "Silence = Death"? Why not a day of discussion, a day of expression? A method to specifically say we will NOT be silenced?

Lex

Whatever they're smoking, it may be more lethal than crack or heroin.

[pirateninja]

What really chafes my biscuits is this "sample letter" they are providing:

What follows is a sample letter for parents to send to your child's school, if you decide to announce in advance that you will be removing your child on the Day of Silence.
This is quite tactfully worded. You may choose to give the school an even stronger
message---that you think homosexuality should never have a voice in a responsible
school setting, and can only foment dissent and confusion in the learning environment.
American Family Association encourages you to be both firm and polite in your letter.

Dear (school official):

Due to the administration’s decision to allow the politicization of the learning
environment through the Day of Silence, which is sponsored by the highly partisan Gay,
Lesbian and Straight Education Network, we feel compelled to call our child/children out
of school on that day.
The administration errs when it allows the classroom to be disrupted and politicized by
granting students permission to remain silent throughout an entire day. The protesters
have a captive audience, many of whom disagree with and are made uncomfortable by
the politicization of their classroom. How many political protests will the school allow,
and who decides which political issue will be permitted to disrupt the educational
process?
Day of Silence participants have a First Amendment right to wear t-shirts, put up posters,
and set up tables on which they make available informative materials. The Day of Silence
participants go further, however, by exploiting the instructional time of every student in
every class for an entire day in the service of their philosophical beliefs and partisan
political purposes. Their silence, and in some cases, the silence of their teachers,
transform the activities of the day.
By allowing students to remain silent, administrations fail to protect the classroom from
intrusive, political exploitation. My child/children will not be part of this political
appropriation of the classroom.

Sincerely,

However, I myself am providing here my own sample letter, a sample letter for parents who are willing to withdraw their kids if they DON'T have a DOS. Please, if you agree with me, send it to anyone who's school is under threat from cancelling their day of silence:

--------------------------------------------------------------------

What follows is a sample letter for parents to send to your child's school, if you decide to
announce in advance that you will be removing your child on the Day of Silence that has unfortunately been cancelled due to bigotry and ignorance.
This is quite tactfully worded. You may choose to give the school an even stronger
message---that you think homophobia should never have an impact on events in a responsible school setting, and can only foment dissent and confusion in the learning environment.
Pirateninja and any other LGBT person and their supporters encourages you to be both firm and polite in your letter.

Dear (school official):

Due to the administration’s decision to allow the cancellation of the previously established Day of Silence, which has been forced by the so-called American Family Association, we feel compelled to call our child/children out of school on that day.

The administration errs when it allows discrimination of any kind to have a say on what happens in a learning environment. Those with such extreme veiws against free speech have an audience, many of whom disagree with and are made uncomfortable by being denied their right to show support to the often disadvantaged LGBT community. How many disrupted political protests will the school allow, and who decides that discrimination will be permitted to disrupt the hard work and effort that many people have put into organising these protests on the lack of equality that LGBT people have to face every single day?

Day of Silence participants have a First Amendment right to wear t-shirts, put up posters,
and set up tables on which they make available informative materials. The Day of Silence
participants go further, however, by exposing the silence that every LGBT person has had to go through for just one day of the year. Their silence, and in some cases, the silence of their teachers, show others in their class who may not be so well informed the issues that are faced by LGBT people every day.

By not allowing students to remain silent, the administration has failed to allow students to express their beliefs and opinions and so has not only denied the simple right to freedom of speech, but has also gives the impression that while homophobia is allowed to decide what happens in a school, the idea of even supporting homosexuality is cast down. I would like you to consider what psychological harm this may be doing to your LGBT students and students that support LGBT rights. My child/children will not be part of this blatant attack on Equality rights.

Sincerely, (name)

----------------------------------------

Stick that in your pipe and smoke it, Donald E. Wildmon.

[justjoshoh]

We, to paraphrase Dr. Martin Luther King, must overcome the oppression and violence of these fanatical groups and individuals without ourselves being oppressive and violent. We need to take a stand, be it a non-violent stand though. We need those that are moderate to denounce and reject these organizations. We need to empower our fellow brothers and sisters of the LGBT community, and rally our supporters. We can not resort to the same tactics used by those we condemn and expect to be accepted.

[Wander]

Originally Posted by pirateninja

I'd hate to be a kid in a school that removed Day of Silence. Although, knowing our headmistress, she's not gonna allow it anyway. Not going to stop ME doing it though.

I feel the same way. I doubt our administrators have even heard of the DoS, but whether they sponsor it or not, I'm participating. We have a minute-long Moment of Silence to disrupt our routine every day, and I don't speak much anyway. As if one day of not speaking will "recruit" people to something that isn't a cause, or an organization, or anything of the sort. Sexuality is not a secret club you can gather members for. It is not a belief system that you can convert young children towards, unlike certain other things. It's another one of the ways to be born, and regardless of how common or prevalent it is, it's no more destructive than anything else the human race partakes in.