great story about kids standing up for bullied for being/acting gay

[Hamlette]

Two students at Central Kings Rural High School fought back against bullying recently, unleashing a sea of pink after a new student was harassed and threatened when he showed up wearing a pink shirt.

The Grade 9 student arrived for the first day of school last Wednesday and was set upon by a group of six to 10 older students who mocked him, called him a homosexual for wearing pink and threatened to beat him up.

The next day, Grade 12 students David Shepherd and Travis Price decided something had to be done about bullying.

snip

They used the Internet to encourage people to wear pink and bought 75 pink tank tops for male students to wear. They handed out the shirts in the lobby before class last Friday — even the bullied student had one.

They also brought a pink basketball to school as well as pink material for headbands and arm bands. David and Travis figure about half the school’s 830 students wore pink.

"Our intention was to stand up for this kid so he doesn’t get picked on."

http://www.thechronicleherald.ca/Front/858884.html

Subject line implies the kid was gay which he may not have been. Seems our heroes, David and Travis, didn't care.

As it should be.

[Richard Steele]

1. K&R

[hedgehog]

2. K&R and sent to my daughter!

[Fridays Child]

3. David and Travis are natural leaders.

High fives to both of them. :woohoo:

[Kajsa]

4. Damn good post, Hamlette!

Bullying is not a " part of childhood" as some sensitivity impaired
toadstools have suggested.

Speaking from personal experience, it's devastating and impairs a student's
ability to concentrate in class, therefore learn.

Bravo to these two guys who were willing to stand up to the bullies
and support the " little guy". :yourock:

Thanks for sharing this.

K&R.

:thumbsup: ;-)

[aikoaiko]

7. Bullying is a part of childhood...

...and adolescence, and young adulthood, middle-age, and even old-age...of every age.

Whats important is refusing to tolerate it and learning how to address as an individual or collectively (as with this story).

[Kajsa]

9. That's a good way of looking at it, Aikoaiko.

What I was getting at - better stated is,

bullying is not an acceptable part of anyone's life.

There are people who believe it is!
;(

[Ian David]

5. Anyone know anyhing about the "Real Men Wear Pink" T-shirts?

http://www.wackyplanet.com/remenwepit.html

And is it connected to this podcast?
http://jaytonline.com/rmwp/

[Fridays Child]

6. Here's the story at Yahoo. Click the link and rate it up!

http://news.yahoo.com/s/po/20070913/co_po/pinktsunamisendsbulliesamessage

[Kajsa]

10. Done!

Five stars.

;-)

[Hamlette]

13. done

[Sticky]

8. These kids are fantastic!

Another thread here:
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=221x57413

[alfredo]

11. All through school I had a neighbor that was very effeminate. He

couldn't help it, that was the way he was. He suffered greatly at the hands of the other kids in school. He knew that when he went to school he would be teased and or beaten, but each day he got up, got dressed and went to school.

His bravery is still an inspiration to me.

I did do something bad to him. It wasn't because he was gay, it was because I was seven years old and he was walking toward me with a hand full of dirty tempura paint brushes right in front of his face. I gave them a little push and his face became multicolored. Not really multicolored, it was mostly that grey you get when you give kids many colors of paint to mix together. It was mean, but what boy that age would pass up such an opportunity.

I ran across him about 20 years ago. He still remembers that first grade incident. He's very damaged but doing well financially. He was dating the priest that married my wife and I. He's very intelligent, very witty, and very talented, but that sadness and anger of a tortured young man was still there. At least he now knows what i did was a "crime of opportunity" not because he was a "sissy."

He also knows that I was inspired by his ability to pick himself up and carry on even though the rest of the world seemed against him.

[donco6]

12. Clever idea, and good for them.

Bravo.

[Hamlette]

14. great follow-up and suggestion to "reward" these kids from Dan

GLSEN should give ‘em a medal, says Towleroad.

UPDATE: Reading the Chronicle Herald story again, this detail jumped out at me…

When the bullied student put on his pink shirt Friday and saw all the other pink in the lobby, “he was all smiles. It was like a big weight had been lifted off is shoulder,” David said. No one at the school would reveal the student’s name.

Travis said that growing up, he was often picked on for wearing store-brand clothes instead of designer duds.

So these seniors empathized with a freshman being picked on by homophobic bullies—a kid that may not even be gay—because one of them was picked on because his family couldn’t afford designer clothes.

Hmmm…

Why should we wait for GLSEN to pin a medal on these two kids? A lot of grown-up gay men out there are going to be moved by this story—I know it moved me—and a lot of grown-up gay men can afford designer clothes. And gift certificates for designer clothes. I’m thinking maybe we should thank Travis and David by sending the boys some gift certificates. They deserve all the designer duds their hearts’ desire.

What do you say, guys?

http://slog.thestranger.com/2007/09/student_activists

[dsc]

15. Those kids were so classy

Everyone involved in making them the men they are deserves a huge hand. That grade nine boy will remember that day for the rest of his life. I know how bad it can get for a bullied kid. I could cure cancer, marry Brad Pitt, and get a Nobel Prize and part of me would still be the kid who got picked on back in the day as everyone just watched.

[earth mom]

16. Those kids ROCK!

:applause:

[BlooInBloo]

17. Wow. That's the LAST thing I would expect from kids. Good job, parents.