The American Civil Liberties Union of Florida has sued the Lake County School Board because of its refusal to allow middle school student Bayli Silberstein to form a gay-straight alliance. [Click here for a May 4th update; the update includes information on how to help out in Lake County.] From an ACLU press release: “I’m really frustrated that we’ve reached this point, but we can’t wait any longer,” stated Silberstein, an 8th-grader at Carver Middle School. “The bullying at my … [Read more...]
Lake County School Board Member Questions 14-Year-Old Student’s Sexual Orientation
Posted on April 29, 2013
A member of Florida's Lake County School Board questioned the sexual orientation of a fourteen-year-old student in his district in an email sent last Friday. A 2012 message from federal Secretary of Education Arne Duncan. The Lake County School Board should listen. The Board member's disturbing comment came in a written exchange with musician, blogger and LGBT-youth advocate Katy Bourne, who had sent an open letter to two members of the Lake County School Board criticizing their … [Read more...]
Can and Should Middle Schools Allow Gay-Straight Alliances?
Posted on April 25, 2013
Under the federal Equal Access Act, public high schools must allow students to form gay-straight alliances (GSAs) if the schools receive federal funds and allow any other extracurricular clubs on campus. The First Amendment provides similar protections. But as students in younger grades increasingly speak out for LGBT equality, a new issue arises: Do public middle school students have a legal right to form GSAs too? Courts haven't directly addressed the issue, making it difficult to give … [Read more...]
Joe Bell Set to Begin Epic Journey Across the U.S.
Posted on April 19, 2013
Joe Bell sets out tomorrow from La Grande, Oregon, on an ambitious journey: He will walk from Oregon to New York to raise awareness about bullying and to support anti-bullying programs. Joe will also share the story of his openly gay son Jadin, who died earlier this year. You can follow and support Joe's Walk for Change through the website of Faces for Change, an organization that supports anti-bullying efforts. Jadin Bell's family and friends formed the organization in Jadin's memory and … [Read more...]
Five Terrible Ways to Respond to Threats of a Day of Silence Walkout
Posted on April 11, 2013
The American Family Association (AFA) has urged parents to take action against the Day of Silence, including by keeping their children home from school on the day of the event (April 19) if the school doesn't meet certain demands. Click to learn more about the Day of Silence. Let's look at the demands, and how schools might respond. … [Read more...]
An Email Trail of Constitutional Violations in the Day of Silence Lawsuit
Posted on April 10, 2013
Earlier today, I reported on a partial court victory for Lambda Legal's client Amber Hatcher, an openly lesbian teenager whose school punished her last year for participating in the Day of Silence. As I explained, DeSoto County school officials had asked a court to dismiss Amber's claim that officials violated her First Amendment rights. The court refused. The First Amendment protects both the right to speak and the right not to speak, and it encompasses students' right to engage in … [Read more...]
Partial Victory for Student in Lambda Legal’s Day of Silence Lawsuit
Posted on April 10, 2013
Lambda Legal has won an important, partial victory for sixteen-year-old Amber Hatcher in a federal case involving the Day of Silence. The Day of Silence is an annual day-of-action when students across the country take a vow of silence for all or part of the school day to bring attention to the silencing effects of bullying faced by lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender youth. Related Link: The Day of Silence is Almost Here As her legal complaint explains, Amber, an openly lesbian … [Read more...]
Good News from Texas (and a Closer Look at an Anti-Gay Amendment)
Posted on April 5, 2013
I'm pleased to pass along some good news for LGBT youth from the Lone Star State. Bill Zedler, a Texas state representative, has dropped his push for an anti-gay amendment to a state appropriations bill (for now, anyway), and a transgender teen has won the right to wear a dress to her school prom. [UPDATE: More good news! The Texas A&M student body president has vetoed an anti-gay student bill. Details below.] This post will take a particularly close look at Zedler's amendment, in part … [Read more...]
Openly Gay Mountaineer Heading Up Mount Everest
Posted on April 3, 2013
Twenty-year-old Cason Crane is about to climb Mount Everest. The inspiring young mountaineer founded the Rainbow Summits Project to combine his passion for climbing with an important cause: He aims to “raise funds and awareness for The Trevor Project, the leading GLBTQ suicide and crisis prevention service, by climbing the highest peak on each continent—the 'Seven Summits.'” Cason has already reached five of the peaks. After he climbs Mount Everest, he heads to Alaska to climb the … [Read more...]
The Day of Silence is this April 19th!
Posted on April 3, 2013
The national Day of Silence is this month! On Friday, April 19, students across the country and world will take a vow of silence for all or part of the school day to recognize and bring attention to the silencing effects of anti-LGBT bullying and harassment in school. Since its founding in 1996, the annual day of action has grown to be one of the largest and most successful student-led events to support safe schools for all youth, regardless of sexual orientation, gender identity or gender … [Read more...]
Did North Carolina Appointee Vote to Defy the Law on LGBT School Issues?
Posted on April 2, 2013
Did Buddy Collins, recently appointed to the North Carolina Board of Education, vote as a local school board member in 2009 to defy state law simply because of his personal objections to lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender equality in schools? Several reports indicate that he did. Assuming Collins did in fact vote to defy state law based merely on personal hostility to LGBT students' rights, it suggests a troubling anti-equality radicalism that makes him even more unfit to serve on the … [Read more...]
LGBT Youth News: Boy Scouts Updates, Inclusive Schools, and More
Posted on March 25, 2013
Recent LGBT-youth-related stories from around the web: The Boy Scouts and the Gay Ban: • Mother Jones has published an article about a new controversy over how best to interpret the results of a survey that the Boy Scouts of America sent to members, parents and scout leaders last year. The survey was sent before the organization revealed that it was considering a change to its national policy of excluding gays. And while the survey did not ask specifically about the gay ban, it did … [Read more...]
Six Petitions Supporting LGBT Youth & Their Allies
Posted on March 24, 2013
Earlier posts have included links to some recent on-line petitions created to support LGBT youth and their allies; here, I've consolidated some of the petitions into a single post to make it easier for interested readers to take action. I've also added a couple new petitions. If you have suggestions for additional petitions, please leave a comment on this post or send a private note. … [Read more...]
SPLC: Mississippi Student Faced Severe Anti-LGBT Harassment at School
Posted on March 21, 2013
The Southern Poverty Law Center has sent a demand letter to the Moss Point School District in Mississippi on behalf of a young lesbian, Destin Holmes, who says she faced severe and pervasive harassment based on sexual orientation and gender expression while a student at the district's Magnolia Junior High School. Destin alleges harassment not only from her classmates, but from faculty and administrators as well. According to the SPLC's letter, the principal told Destin, "I don't want a dyke … [Read more...]
LGBT Youth News Roundup: March 21, 2013
Posted on March 21, 2013
Here's some of the latest LGBT news related to and affecting youth: • Two Alabama high school students are trying to get an anti-gay Alabama statute off the books. The statute requires teachers in sex education classes to teach that homosexual conduct is a crime and that homosexuality is “not a lifestyle acceptable to the general public.” The students' petition is here. • The California Department of Education has released a new list of recommended reading for K-12 students; … [Read more...]
American Academy of Pediatrics Endorses Marriage Equality
Posted on March 21, 2013
Great LGBT-related news this morning from the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP): The organization has released a statement strongly endorsing marriage equality, as well as adoption and foster care by gay couples. The statement reads in part: [T]he AAP supports: 1. Marriage equality for all capable and consenting couples, including those who are of the same gender, as a means xof guaranteeing all federal and state rights and benefits, and long-term security for their children. 2. … [Read more...]
Too Young to Be Straight?
As it becomes more common for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender youth and their allies to form gay-straight alliances (GSAs) in middle schools, some adults have reacted with confusion, consternation, or outrage, insisting that middle school students are too young to know their sexual orientation or at least too young to disclose it. As discussed in an April post, for example, a member of Florida's Lake County School Board recently questioned the sexual orientation of an openly bisexual … [Read more...]