What’s Wrong with the Harvey Milk High School? (Cathryn Crawford)

Washington Dispatch ^ | September 12, 2003 | Cathryn Crawford

[Scenic Sounds]

I grew up thinking that segregation was over, done with, a thing of the past, but apparently I was mistaken. It seems that we have a new form of segregation here in the United States. The Harvey Milk High School in New York City underwent 3.2 million dollars in renovations this summer and has opened now as the first ever taxpayer funded school for gays and lesbians. It’s been around for twenty years as an “alternative program”, but now it’s an official public school, and it’s expected to have 170 students by September 2004.

NYC Mayor Michael Bloomberg thinks it’s a wonderful idea, which is not surprising coming from someone who once said that he “…couldn’t understand why anyone would carry a gun; guns kill people…” His take on Harvey Milk: "It lets them (gays and lesbians) get an education without having to worry. It solves a discipline problem. And from a pedagogical point of view, this administration — and previous administrations — have thought it was a good idea and we'll continue with that."

It’s an interesting perspective. Here we have a school that is founded and based solely on the basis of the student’s sexual orientation. There is no pretense of academics playing a role in who is admitted – you simply have to be a gay, lesbian, transgender – in other words, you have to be something other than a homophobic (because you know, we all are) straight person.

The reasoning behind the school is that many gay and lesbians are made fun of and ridiculed for their lifestyle choices – and I’m sure that’s true. Just like I was made fun of because I wore different colored socks every day to school when I was in high school. That was a lifestyle choice, too, and I didn’t ask for a school where I would only be with other people who were colorblind. That seems ridiculous. Somehow, however, people don’t find this idea ridiculous – despite the fact that this is a public school which is allowing segregation based strictly on one aspect of the student’s life – an aspect that has nothing to do with education. It smells putridly of racial segregation – and members of both sides, blacks and whites, supported that segregation, just as gays and lesbians and straights support this segregation.

My question is –what is next? Will New York next create individual public schools based on things like religion or race in order to keep kids from being made fun of? Are we going to see all Christian or all Muslim or all Hispanic schools? It’s a distinct possibility, because our government has a nature that is ravenously hungry for power. When you give it an inch, as the saying goes, it takes a mile. If you set a precedent that says that it’s all right to segregate children for their sexual orientation, it is going to inevitably lead to other things, because that is the very nature of our government. That’s why there are limits and laws – that’s why we have a Constitution. If we allow this to happen in this one small school in New York City – if we allow the government to fund segregation yet again – we are taking the first step backwards on a long road that we were beginning to near the end of. Is it worth it?

Cathryn Crawford is a student at the University of Texas. She can be reached with comment at feedback@washingtondispatch.com.

[Scenic Sounds]

There already are private Christian schools. A public Christian school is an impossibility, when the government believes that the separation of church and state is a valid argument for removing prayer from the schools.

Well, I went to public schools and I prayed there a few times. ;-)

[Scenic Sounds]

I'll bet their football team sucks! OTOH, their girls basketball team can lick any other team in the city.

You're soooo bad. LOL. ;-)

[Alberta's Child]

There is absolutely nothing wrong with the Harvey Milk High School. If I were a parent living in New York City and I had no choice but to send my kids to a public high school, I would welcome the city's efforts to take emotionally disturbed students with severe personality disorders out of the school and send them to a school of their own.

[1L]

Here we have a school that is founded and based solely on the basis of the student’s sexual orientation.

Of students, most of whom anyway, are prohibited by law to one extent or the other from having sex no less.

[Pan_Yans Wife]

Good for you that the prayer Nazis never caught you. They may have instilled in you a desire to rebel, and pray even more! :)

[Rain-maker]

Reward deviant behavoir and violations of natural law, oh how nice.

Maybe the should hand out instruction manuals and condoms too.

[Scenic Sounds]

There is absolutely nothing wrong with the Harvey Milk High School. If I were a parent living in New York City and I had no choice but to send my kids to a public high school, I would welcome the city's efforts to take emotionally disturbed students with severe personality disorders out of the school and send them to a school of their own.

Well, that's an interesting perspective. You seem to support the idea in order to shelter the straight kids.

Historically, that's been the usual reason for segregating minorities from the majority. ;-)

[Scenic Sounds]

Of students, most of whom anyway, are prohibited by law to one extent or the other from having sex no less.

Well, that's a good point. It seems like this whole idea amounts to a surrender on the effort to simply remove all sexual issues from the lives of high school kids.

Why must high school kids even think about sex, anyway?

[Frankss]

This special "homosexual students only" school is nothing more than a "back door voucher" plan.

[Scenic Sounds]

Good for you that the prayer Nazis never caught you.

No, they never did, but I have no doubt that there were times that they had to know I was doing some praying. LOL.

They may have instilled in you a desire to rebel, and pray even more! :)

I never needed much encouragement to rebel, I'm kinda sorry to say. ;-)

[AD from SpringBay]

All that, and it's full of queers.

[Alberta's Child]

You seem to support the idea in order to shelter the straight kids.

Don't let that little secret out, though (LOL) -- if enough people started saying that in public, Harvey Milk High School would be closed in 24 hours.

[colorado tanker]

That is wicked funny.

[Alberta's Child]

Note to self: All prospective entry-level hires, including college and graduate school students, must now include a high school transcript as part of the application process.

[ffusco]

Twinkie Defense!

[Rain-maker]

That was highly innapropriate, but so true...lol

[ffusco]

LOL

[BSunday]

A high school just for gays. Governor Wallace would be proud.

[Blzbba]

I'll bet their football team sucks! OTOH, their girls basketball team can lick any other team in the city

Yeah, but would YOU want to compete against their wrestling team? I'm sure that the "Flaming Pillow Biters" will win all their matches by forfeit...

[GladesGuru]

" - that could be next."

Come to the Sheeples Republic of FloriDUH. It can and does happen here. But that's the good news.

Now for the bad news. According to this state's data, a child removed from a physically abusive home is more likely to physically when in state custody. Same for sexual abuse - a child is more likely to be sexually abused once the state takes over.

But, we all knew that nobody screws the citizen like a bureaucrat/agency - what we didn't know was that minors got "equal service" as well. Ah, gummint! The equal opportunity, "We service all." folks.