The sex education system is ruled by a heteronormative ideal that only men and women are accepted in this system. Questions about sexuality like stated are often met with ill replies and ridicule. There is a complete lack of same sex education in this system with little to no reference to same sex and if there is a mention it is often in poor statements. As example when Linda asked about any “books of teenage lesbians” (Garcia, 2012) the teacher yelled out demanding to know who asked the question and how inappropriate it was, even though she wanted to learn about her…
Poteat are Christian preachers in Haw River, North Carolina and Mrs. Poteat states “as a minister, im gonna tell them what the word of God says..”. In the bible Leviticus 20:13, says “If a man has sexual relations with a man as one does with a woman, both of them have done what is detestable. They are to be put to death; their blood will be on their own heads”. So their attitudes or mindsets are to completely reject the actions their daughter’s sexual preference. Tonia and Brenda’s mother and daughter relationship was very close and resembled a strong bond of best friends but in efforts to strengthen their bond Tonia coming out realized it was “remarkably unsuccessful”. This means when Tonia came out to her mother, she wasn’t fully accepted with open arms. Brenda’s stereotyped feelings toward gay men and lesbians are that they feel as if they are playing heterosexual roles. The stereotype often thinks that men want to be the women in the relationship, but they just want to be themselves. She says a talk show that made her realize that all she thought about was how her daughter was having sex and didn’t think of her as a person. Also the In Living Color, small skit allows individuals to think that when you hear the term homosexual, you think of the girly man or the butch…
But at three local high schools here this fall, dozens of gay students and their supporters finally convened the first Gay-Straight Alliances in the history of this conservative, largely Mormon city. It was a turning point here and for the state, where administrators, teachers and even the Legislature have tried for years to block support groups for gay youths, calling them everything from inappropriate to immoral.…
“We believe that visibility leads to awareness, awareness leads to education and then education leads to normalcy,” Duncan said. “The more we can have the dialogue, the more we can have this discussion about what it means to be LGBTQ in the…
As a unit, the human race is notorious for only looking at the clean, reflective side of a coin, and ignoring the rust to be found on the other side. Society's avoidance of difficult or unpleasant topics is made painfully obvious by entertainment and news media, and the lack of brutally honest information. With the rise of the millennial generation, the LGBTQIA (Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, intersex, and asexual) rights movements begun in the sixties and seventies are pushed on with fervor, but only behind closed doors and through text on a screen. Though the LGBTQIA community has recently achieved marriage…
This policy also takes into account of the psychological well-being of the LGBTTQ+ students, it covers confidentiality and individuality. Overall, it is a good starting point for a policy and incorporates good ideals. It encourages teachers to be open-minded, to be respectful of students’ differences, and raises awareness. Other positives are the inclusive nature of this policy, ranging from families, to counseling, to even pronouns and how to include a sense of safe space for students that are part of the intersex or transgendered community. There is also a glossary that is included in the bottom of the policy, which serves to inform teachers of definitions which can further educate them and aid them in teaching. This aspect works well with part C of the policy, which dictates that teachers are to be supported and trained to include aspects of LGBTTQ+ into the school environment and in curriculum, to support students, and to address behaviour that is seen as discriminatory. This works across the board and includes working to bring in parents/families/guardians and even communities so that they may all be informed and can work together to create safer…
In the article, the author describes the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) campaign “Teach Kids, Not Stereotypes” and its goal to “discredit and terminate gender-specific programs in American schools.” The American Civil Liberties Union thinks organizing schools by gender is equivalent to organizing schools by race. Their goal is to terminate all single-sex programs in America, by threatening the schools with expensive lawsuits and investigations. The author spends much of the article discrediting the claims made by the ACLU, saying “race and sex are different, as the Supreme Court has emphasized and as most everyone recognizes” (Sommers, 1). Although I do not agree with the extremity of the arguments made by the ACLU, I believe there are strengths in their reasoning. There are two major critiques made by the ACLU regarding single-sex education. The first argument is that “there is good evidence that sex segregation increases gender stereotyping and legitimizes institutional sexism” (Kimmel, 1). They believe a single-sex educational environment inadvertently leads to the reinforcement of stereotypes. Assigning students of one gender to a class and using gender-based instructional techniques is evidence of the assumption that all students of the same sex are alike, and will respond in like fashion. Just because a boy is in the boys ' class, does not mean that he is interested in physical…
Schools need to provide better trans-inclusive education. According to a New York Times article, only 5% of students in 2013 reported being taught LGBT+ information in their health classes, and LGBT+ students are five times more likely to seek out the information that they are denied online. In eight states, there is explicit legal discrimination against LGBT+ students being educated about their needs in health classes: Alabama, Arizona, Louisiana, Mississippi, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Texas and Utah have laws against “positive portrayal” of LGBT+ relationships. Transgender children are also at higher risk than their peers to…
When our children and our youth comes to terms with their sexuality and identifies themselves as being a lesbian, or gay, bisexual or perhaps a transgender human being, they are facing this unrelenting teasing and bullying their peers in school or in public. This aggression can be sexual in nature or the effects can closely resemble those of sexual harassment and then can constitute sexual harassment. Middle and high school students are dealing with verbal and physical bullying in school to where these students are either dropping out or transferring schools or even becoming a home…
At schools youth are not as knowledgeable in lgbtq+ as liked. Youth still get bullied, harrassed, judged, and even go as far as experiencing physical violence in show of dislike towards sexual preference and/or gender identification. Love is not a feeling that youth experience in the halls at school because of the lack of acceptance. 15 year old Dylan is a prime example of youth lgbtq. He came out when he was 12 years old and was fully open and accepting and immediately made actions to widen the knowledge in the basis of LGBTQ+. However, while he was loving and accepting, his peers were not. In school, he reported being called “ Fag, Butt Pirate, Fairy, Aids whore, homo, queer, and sissy.” (Bochenek, Michael. "Hatred in the Hallways."). Almost immediately after the verbal violence had started, reportedly physical violence soon followed. “One day in the parking lot outside of his school, six students surrounded him and threw a lasso around his neck, saying ‘let’s tie the faggot to the back of the truck’” immediately after the incident he ran inside the school to find one of his vice-principles “‘I was still hysterical’ he explained ‘I was trying to explain, but I was stumbling over my words. She laughed.’” (Bochenek, Michael. "Hatred in the Hallways.") Dylan however is not the only one who is receiving the short end of love. In a national survey of over 6,000 lgbtq youth “ found that nearly 100% of LGBT…
Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual transgender, and queer identified (LGBTQ) runaway and homeless youth are of the most vulnerable groups in this country. Homelessness, particularly among lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender, queer youth is an enduring example of a social problem in our society. In the state of California, it is estimated that roughly 15 to 25 % of the homeless youth identify as being a member of the LGBTQ population (Milburn, 2006) Communities are not aware of the real issues that these youth face, their day to day struggles.…
During last century, our society has changed a lot in terms of accepting minorities LGBTQ, despite there are still people who do not accept them. One of these minorities who had suffered more are the transgender people. They had to change their genders, usually late in life and hiding from the rest of the society. They had to live the entire life being someone who do not fit with their minds and personality. For this reason, Transgender kids should be allowed to start cross-sex hormones before puberty, because it facilitates their lives and it does not carry any further complication later, and they will not have problems during the complex period of adolescence.…
In the society we live in today, many people believe that being raised by a homosexual or lesbian couple isn’t a good thing for the children. Based on the article “Is Gay Parenting Bad for the Kids?” it seems to me that Charles C.W.Cooke (the author) and Dr. Mark Regenerus also believe that gay parenting is a bad thing. In the article, Cooke says that gay parenting is a bad thing because, “the child(ren) will end up different” or “the children are going to be missing at least one of their biological parents and they might experience some instability. Even though this article is defending the fact that gay parenting is bad for children, there are a few key points that challenge this statement because I believe that homosexual and lesbian couples are just as good as heterosexual couples when it comes to raising children.…
When one school district had decided that their policy of teaching homosexuality in sex-ed classes was imposturous, because it generated the idea homosexuality was okay. The school created a new policy in which bashed students whom were gay and those whom were perceived as being gay. Their policy “No Homo Promo” created hostility among the student body. It allowed for all bullying to be overlooked, ignored, and also reinforced the idea teachers could not teach certain subjects. According to the article, “teachers were not allowed to mention gays in any context” (Erdely, 2012). Ultimately, this policy led to nine students committing suicide because, they could not take societal pressure any longer. This group of adolescents wanted society to accept them as being normal individuals. Eventually, the school allowed an organization (referred to as GSA) to be created which, allowed for students whom were homosexual to have a place to go to feel safe. As stated in the article, “I joined the GSA cause I wanted to be just like her. I wanted to be nice and – loved” (Erdely,…
According to the Merriam-Webster dictionary, transgender means of, or relating to, or being a person who identifies with or expresses a gender identity from the one which corresponds to the person’s sex at birth. Children have commonly developed their gender and identity roles by the age of three. At such a young and tender age, it is important that schools be prepared to handle situations these children may face as well as give them the support they may need.…