April 16, 2001Hopefully he will listen...Mr. Paul Eichner
The Broward County School Board
600 NE 3rd Street
Fort Lauderdale, FL 33301Dear Mr. Eichner:
I have lived in Broward County for 37 years. My parents are both retired Broward County teachers and I am an alumnus of Florinada Elementary, Rickards Middle, and Northeast High School. I currently have two children attending North Andrews Gardens Elementary, one in Kindergarten and one in the Fourth Grade. It is for their benefit that I am writing this letter.
Please don’t label me as some sort of right wing nut case. I am a registered Democrat. I was an aide to Congressman Larry Smith. I have always had a “live and let live” attitude towards people whose lifestyles were different from mine. My tolerance and acceptance does have it limits however. When a group of people wishes to have access to my children through the schools, to indoctrinate them to a lifestyle that I do not believe is moral or healthy, and to do so with the blessing of the School Board of Broward County, I must take a stand.
The Gay, Lesbian, and Straight Education Network, also known as GLSEN, is attempting to have access to my children through the public schools. They are claiming to be an education-based group, promoting tolerance and understanding. If this is the case, why do they have to promise to not have direct contact with our children? If this is so innocent and so good for our kids, why are their own materials too graphic to be read at School Board meetings? I know of no other program, group, or curriculum presented to our children that could not be printed unedited in the local newspaper, but the Sun Sentinel has declined to print GLSEN material for that very reason.
If there is this much controversy, this much deception, and this much distrust on the part of all involved, I don’t see how this can be in any way good for my children.
I want you to know that I will actively politically oppose anyone who supports bringing this group into our public schools. I can only hope that you can get a feeling for the depth of anger and betrayal many patents feel regarding the School Board’s handling of this issue. It is upsetting to find that the very people we elect and trust to protect and educate our children then support exposing our children to this kind of immorality and political indoctrination in our schools.
Please consider the feelings of this parent, and many others who feel the same, when voting on the GLSEN issue.