Posted on 02/08/2002 3:05:41 PM PST by anniegetyourgun
WASHINGTON (AP) - The nation's largest teachers union will ask school districts to protect homosexual students and staff by adopting policies that punish harassment and discrimination.
Under a plan adopted Friday by the National Education Association's board of directors, schools also will be encouraged to develop factual materials for classroom discussions on homosexuality. All staff and students will be encouraged to speak up when they see or experience discrimination based on sexual orientation.
"I think it's a pretty clear signal that the organization recognizes there are some pretty serious needs for gay and lesbian children in school - and employees," said Penny Kotterman, president of the Arizona Education Association. She chairs the NEA's Task Force on Sexual Orientation, which was created last fall to develop the plan.
Kotterman, a middle school special education teacher in the Kyrene School District in suburban Phoenix, said the plan will help schools with difficult issues of student sexuality.
"Staff do need help," she said. "They need professional development, they need good, factual data that helps them deal with these issues."
The union said it could provide "accurate, objective and up-to-date information" on the needs and problems of gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgendered students and staff.
A statement by the NEA said the information schools provide should be age-appropriate, nonjudgmental and relevant to subject matter being studied.
Studies indicate that homosexual students have higher dropout and suicide rates and sometimes are treated with hostility by fellow students. NEA President Bob Chase has said gay and lesbian teachers in some states face losing their jobs because of their sexual orientation.
"It is clear that, in too many places, students and education employees who are gay, lesbian, bisexual or transgendered face a hostile environment," Chase said Friday in the statement.
A study last year by the University of North Carolina estimated that 5 percent to 6 percent of students 17 or younger, or more than 2 million students, are gay, lesbian or bisexual.
The NEA represents 2.6 million teachers and other school employees.
No you can't! I don't have to respect anyone. I choose to, but I don't have to. And if the government forces me to, that would be very bad, indeed. I'm talking verbal, emotional, spiritual respect. Respecting physical body boundaries is a different story.
You are talking about violence, not respect. There are enough laws on the books to protect anyone from violence, or at least seek justice if violence occurs.
this is mearly an educational perogative to try to build tolerance and reduce violence.
Well, this just simply isn't the case I'm afraid. If violence against anyone is a problem, have a big school meeting and announce, "If you harass anyone, if you push anyone, if you trip anyone, if you hit anyone.....you're outta here". We don't need a long semesters worth of homosexual propaganda which is exactly what it is and you have not educated yourself enough about what they are teaching, if you believe otherwise. It would be undermining parental authority, not to mention, there is no place for sex in schools. The word shouldn’t even come up, except in Biology class. My children’s sexual training is my business, not the governments.
Have you ever heard of NAMBLA?
How about teaching abstinence for all students? Would that not be appropriate in our day of loose morality (sorry for using the M word, but it does relate to the topic at hand)? 100% effective (when practiced) from spreading disease and emotional discord. How about spending tons of money on teaching a kid that they are not animals and don't have to sleep with the prettiest thing (guy or gal, your choice) that walks by in tight fitting jeans? A barnyard dog "sleeps" with everything he sees. Are we no better than that?
And while I"m on a rant, name me one television show that EVER pokes fun at homosexuality. On the other hand, I could name a dozen that slam, mock and ridicule the faith I practice. With the possible exception of Touched by an Angel, it is the norm to mock my faith. Where is the justice? Please don't ever tell me that the Homo lobby doesn't have an agenda. That just doesn't work.
And I do not.
I was also harassed in school. I was basically tortured from the 5th grade on up. I didn't want to go into it, but my point is...we all were. The kids in my class didn't need tolerance training on "Tiny, white church of Christ girls need to be treated with respect and tolerance. Yes, I know you are all Baptist, but not everyone is Baptist and what your parents are teaching you at home is not right. You need to understand why this girl is tiny and a church of Christer. Now be nice".
DUH! They don't need all that crap. They need to be taught, "Be NICE and don't be a bully". Why complicate it with all the reasons certain groups of people need understanding. Just say, "Be nice". Leave the "understanding" part of it to the parents.
I agree with you there. Besides, additional laws and government interference will do absolutely nothing and indeed, cause more problems than they solve. Why? Because laws are helpless in the face of human nature.
The only thing that has been proven effective in changing human nature is a decision on the part of the individual to live a life of doing no harm to others, of living by the Golden Rule and the Ten Commandments--even if the person is not religious per se.
Irreligious people throw the baby out with the bathwater as moral tenets have an unmistakably religious origin. Nonetheless, the divine principles remain unchanged and appeal to man's higher self.
I’m sorry, but I don’t see where I said they are my property as my home is my property. They ARE MY CHILDREN. Besides their standard rights to live in a peaceful, loving, non-abusive home, I, AS THEIR GUARDIAN, SAY WHAT THE REST OF THEIR RIGHTS ARE!
Sex education DOES have a place in schools
In my opinion, it doesn’t. My children have a far superior knowledge of Godly sexuality and their own bodies. That’s my job, not the governments. My children are also taught to behave in a Christian manner (kindness) towards everyone, regardless of their race, religion, or sexual orientation. However, my children are taught not to tolerate certain things which are intolerable. You can be a good, kind person and treat people with respect and still not tolerate their behavior or condone it. I guess you don’t get that.
I brought up NAMBLA, because they DO have an agenda, and in fact, they advocate many of the same things you are advocating here. And don’t lie to yourself by believing a few (or many) of them aren’t teachers. Pedophiles hang out where the kids are. Wouldn’t teaching be a dream job if you were a pedophile?
Your argument here tonight is exactly our point. Someone like you would come into our children’s classrooms and tell them they are bigots and are behaving in a discriminating manner, when all they might have said was “we think homosexuality is wrong”. What’s so threatening about that? What they really want to do is "de-educate" our children of everything they have been taught at home.
Unfortunately, I have had the experience of being (falsely) accused of being a lesbian in high school. So while I can sympathize, at the same time I don't see how the NEA is going to make matters any better with their new policies. They will, I think, alienate a lot of parents--if the issue is narrowed to just gay harassment. The real issue is bullying, as straight kids are being harassed too.
Which brand of tolerance and englightenment will we use? God's or mans? Let's see......you are a libertarian and you want government out of your life, but you have no problem with them coming in between a parent child relationship. HUH?
The only thing that has been proven effective in changing human nature is a decision on the part of the individual to live a life of doing no harm to others, of living by the Golden Rule and the Ten Commandments--even if the person is not religious per se.
Excellent and BUMP!
The tone of your post speaks other volumes about you. It may have been better for you to answer privately, now the whole world knows what you're about.
You mistook my meaning. I was not accusing you of being irreligious, it has just been my experience with some people. Nonetheless, I have friends who do believe in the Ten Commandments and the Golden Rule and are great people to be around, even if they don't go to church or believe in the Biblical conception of God.
You missed my message entirely, but then perhaps you are just too blinded with anger to see.
Divine principles exist, whether you believe in them or not. Karma is one of them.
In school I often saw extremely violent and threatening behavior taken against students for all sorts of reasons, e.g., hairstyle, clothes, body odor, eyeglasses, food choices etc.
Violent threats against kids for alleged gayness was a tiny part of the overall harassment.
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