Anti-LGBT School Harassment: Are DEM Politicians Helping?
Or just *pretending* to help. Should schools be proactive in dealing with this? Why aren't they?
Seems like a good time to reopen this dialogue as Obama/Duncan/Gates are transforming education in America.
Or *say* they are. ( No, I'm not so sure that'.s what they're really doing. "Transforming" from what to what? But I digress.)
Anyway... this piece from THE NATION is a good starting point:
>>>Ending anti-LGBTQ bullying and the damaging—even life-threatening—mental health issues it produces does not need to include increasing incarceration. Holding bullies accountable by requiring them to undergo LGBTQ educational programs and providing them with counseling does more to eliminate bullying and creating an LGBTQ-inclusive environment in schools than simply punishing perpetrators with suspensions or prison sentences. Transforming our schools has to be the aim of our efforts.
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Only a decade or two ago, one would be hard-pressed to find more then a handful of politicians willing to address anti-LGBTQ bullying. But now, elected officials are talking publicly about these issues. Even President Barack Obama made an “It Gets Better” video. This sea change in official discourse is undoubtedly due to years of grassroots activism by parents, students and educators.
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While many politicians are now quick to lend their support to issues such as gay marriage and anti-bullying campaigns, few are actually willing to seriously push for the necessary policy changes to address the range of problems affecting LGBTQ young people, in and outside of schools. Even the rare few who do, like Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick, fail to allocate the necessary resources and funding to adequately deal with the problem.
Too often, the same Democratic politicians who are willing to speak at LGBTQ events, solicit LGBTQ votes, take LGBTQ donations and advocate for LGBTQ equality are the same officials complicit in cutting funding for the very programs that LGBTQ youth depend on. The lives of LGBTQ young people are not playthings to be tossed around for political capital>>>>> the rest:http://www.thenation.com/blog/177291/how-do-we-stop-anti-lgbtq-bullying#