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[URGENT]School Board May Slash All Student Clubs To Blockade Gay-Straight Alliance

Discussion in 'Current Events, World News, & LGBT News' started by TheEdend, Feb 11, 2013.

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  1. TheEdend

    TheEdend Guest

    For all of us who have been helped by EC or any other support group, we know how crucial having a GSA can be for many of us. Right now, the School Board in Lake County, Fl would rather ban every single club than to have a GSA in middle schools.

    There are many fights that we lose and many others that we can't really participate on, but this is one where you can definitely make a difference. The School Board in Lake County doesn't like being in the spotlight, so the more national and global attention we give them, the more likely it is that they will re-think what they are doing.

    There are two main things that you can do to take action:

    1) E-mail the Board Members and tell them your story. Tell them how crucial GSAs were for you, tell them how crucial a GSA would have been for you, or just simply tell them why you stand with the students in Lake County. All contact info is found here

    2) Sign the ACLU petition found here.

    3) Share this story with your friends. This is one brave 8th grader who is taking a stand. Show her that she has a strong community behind her!

    Thanks to all of you who will make a difference!! I truly appreciate it! The first meeting about the issue, and the most important one, will take place this Monday the 18th!

     
    #1 TheEdend, Feb 11, 2013
    Last edited by a moderator: Feb 11, 2013
  2. Cassindra Starlight

    Cassindra Starlight Guest

    Re: [URGENT]School Board May Slash All Student Clubs To Blockade Gay-Straight Allianc

    This pissed me off:

    Push out? The GSA aren't the ones trying to ban all non-curriculum based clubs. YOU are. Don't put this on them. Put it on yourself.
     
    #2 Cassindra Starlight, Feb 11, 2013
  3. DeanIsHome

    DeanIsHome
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    Re: [URGENT]School Board May Slash All Student Clubs To Blockade Gay-Straight Allianc

    I swear i didn't know GSA's were at a lot of schools, my school doesn't have one :frowning2:
     
    #3 DeanIsHome, Feb 11, 2013
  4. Doku

    Doku
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    Re: [URGENT]School Board May Slash All Student Clubs To Blockade Gay-Straight Allianc

    I really hate living in this state...
     
    #4 Doku, Feb 11, 2013
  5. Pret Allez

    Pret Allez
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    Re: [URGENT]School Board May Slash All Student Clubs To Blockade Gay-Straight Allianc

    Recipients: [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected]

    Good evening:

    I have been made aware that this board is taking or considering action contrary to the safety of LGBT students in your jurisdiction. After a group of students were denied the opportunity to create a safe space for students belonging to gender and sexual minorities, Bayli Silberstein, one of your district's students, courageously took action to persist in forming that community. My understanding is that the American Civil Liberties Union has served the board with a threat of legal action. I assume that you are aware you have no defense to this action if you allow extracurricular clubs on school campuses but ban GSAs (gay-straight alliances or variously, gender and sexuality alliances, rainbow clubs, etc). Therefore your defense is to ban all clubs, and that is the action this board is now considering.

    I realize that in practical terms, you are politicians with an aim to maintaining your office, not administrators charged to protect and oversee the quality education of youth. Your customers, then are the parents who elected you, not the students who learn from your teachers. That could hardly be any less correct. Your true customers are the students. Schools without a safe environment for all students are not learning institutions. They are juvenile detention centers. Schools must be as free as possible from anti-LGBT emotional abuse, jokes, nasty rumors, teasing, ostracism and violence. Administrators who do not see their role in these terms are complicit in sexual harassment and discrimination. I would like you to see your role not as politicians seeking re-election by morally questionable people, but as what you actually are: administrators with a moral duty to protect all your schools' children.

    A decision by this board to avoid an ACLU suit by banning all clubs would do two things. First, it would provide even more fuel for a court case that would eventually require the recognition of all clubs, including GSAs. Banning all clubs because of the attempt to formulate the GSA proves that the board is motivated by animus against LGBT students. It would demonstrate that the board knows the law, knows it's required to give student clubs fair access to resources on school campuses, and because of that knowledge, the school board is trying to avoid what the spirit of the law requires them to do. It shows that the board has such extreme contempt for LGBT students that is willing to discontinue all enriching activities outside of class time, just so that the disfavored group will not have access to those same resources. The all-or-nothing defense will not last forever, and I don't think that you will want to be testing that in court.

    Second, this action, if taken, would hurt LGBT students. They would be blamed for the banning of all the other clubs, and more harassment and emotional violence would be visited upon them. In addition, the move would validate as acceptable the hatred of many students and parents in your community. LGBT people, particularly youth, are at more risk for suicide than straight youth. They deserve your extra empathy and protection, not rejection.

    I hope that you will be mindful of your professional ethics here.
     
    #5 Pret Allez, Feb 11, 2013
  6. redstormrising

    redstormrising
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    Re: [URGENT]School Board May Slash All Student Clubs To Blockade Gay-Straight Allianc

    Perhaps I am overly cynical, but my first thought was that they would probably consider doing further harm to LGBT students to be a bonus.
     
    #6 redstormrising, Feb 11, 2013
  7. Pret Allez

    Pret Allez
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    Re: [URGENT]School Board May Slash All Student Clubs To Blockade Gay-Straight Allianc

    I've already assumed that I'm writing to incarnations of evil.
     
    #7 Pret Allez, Feb 11, 2013
  8. Mykayla

    Mykayla
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    Re: [URGENT]School Board May Slash All Student Clubs To Blockade Gay-Straight Allianc

    Nice letter, Pret Allez. Though, I fear it might not be enough to convince these people of their wrongdoings. I signed the petition and will also send an email tomorrow. Truly an awful, awful group of individuals.
     
    #8 Mykayla, Feb 11, 2013
  9. TheEdend

    TheEdend Guest

    Re: [URGENT]School Board May Slash All Student Clubs To Blockade Gay-Straight Allianc

    <3 for you guys! Thanks for helping out! :slight_smile:

    This county is really weird. You have a mix of conservative people with libertarians, which just makes for weird politics. Not even a month ago, the same city where this happened, approved the Domestic Partnership Registry!

    Please, please consider writing an email and at least signing the petition! :slight_smile:
     
    #9 TheEdend, Feb 12, 2013
  10. Pret Allez

    Pret Allez
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    Re: [URGENT]School Board May Slash All Student Clubs To Blockade Gay-Straight Allianc

    Here is the following curt response from Tod:

    You have been misled and your assumptions are incorrect. The board discussion is not about GSAs or LGBT students. It is about the proper policy that best meets the needs of ALL students and letter of the law(Equal Access Act).
    Thanks
    Tod
     
    #10 Pret Allez, Feb 12, 2013
  11. Minx

    Minx
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    Re: [URGENT]School Board May Slash All Student Clubs To Blockade Gay-Straight Allianc

    Curt and vague. :dry:

    I hate it when they mask everything in vague mist.
     
    #11 Minx, Feb 12, 2013
  12. TheEdend

    TheEdend Guest

    Re: [URGENT]School Board May Slash All Student Clubs To Blockade Gay-Straight Allianc

    Yes, they are being ridcs about it all.

    They are trying to frame it as them looking out for the kids. One of them even said that GSAs shouldn't be in middle schools since its not "age appropriate" and that only "curriculum based clubs" should be allowed, which would make them an easy target for the ACLU if they go that route.
     
    #12 TheEdend, Feb 12, 2013
  13. SupremeEmperor

    SupremeEmperor Guest

    Re: [URGENT]School Board May Slash All Student Clubs To Blockade Gay-Straight Allianc

    God I hate Florida, it's full of old people, NASCAR, creationists, drunk people on spring break and more, let's move Disney World to California (we can put it next to Disney Land and call it "Double Disney") and nuke Florida.
     
    #13 SupremeEmperor, Feb 13, 2013
  14. Gallatin

    Gallatin
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    Re: [URGENT]School Board May Slash All Student Clubs To Blockade Gay-Straight Allianc

    For what it's worth, the NASCAR Hall of Fame is actually in your state.

    Also, let's not nuke Florida, please; I don't take too kindly to being blown up. :stuck_out_tongue_closed_eyes:
     
    #14 Gallatin, Feb 13, 2013
  15. Revan

    Revan
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    Re: [URGENT]School Board May Slash All Student Clubs To Blockade Gay-Straight Allianc

    The whole thing is ridiculous.
     
    #15 Revan, Feb 13, 2013
  16. Cthulhu

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    Re: [URGENT]School Board May Slash All Student Clubs To Blockade Gay-Straight Allianc

    From the Equal Access Act's Wikipedia page (first paragraph):

    Well, what do they know, anyway?

    Citation is from this. Interesting read.
     
    #16 Cthulhu, Feb 13, 2013
    Last edited: Feb 13, 2013
  17. Revan

    Revan
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    Re: [URGENT]School Board May Slash All Student Clubs To Blockade Gay-Straight Allianc

    Wow Tod is a moron.
     
    #17 Revan, Feb 13, 2013
  18. Pret Allez

    Pret Allez
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    Re: [URGENT]School Board May Slash All Student Clubs To Blockade Gay-Straight Allianc

    They've switched to a slightly different strategy, which is banning all extracurricular clubs not related to core subjects (so a hiking group would be banned, but not a MathCounts group or an ACM group). However, I believe the ACLU could still successfully argue this is still a discriminatory move, because this issue wasn't even raised until the formation of a GSA came up. In other words, the timing of this action makes it clear what the true motive was, and it demonstrates animus by the board.
     
    #18 Pret Allez, Feb 13, 2013
  19. Ticklish Fish

    Ticklish Fish
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    Re: [URGENT]School Board May Slash All Student Clubs To Blockade Gay-Straight Allianc

    probably to criminalize GSA clubs for even trying to exist, therefore cascade and lead to other clubs to extinct
     
    #19 Ticklish Fish, Feb 13, 2013
  20. silkfrog1292

    silkfrog1292
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    Re: [URGENT]School Board May Slash All Student Clubs To Blockade Gay-Straight Allianc

    Sadly I'm not from the US, so I shouldn't write them a letter. But I signed the petition
     
    #20 silkfrog1292, Feb 14, 2013
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