In case you haven't heard, Anoka-Hennepin School District is finally considering changing their policy on their "Neutral" stance on gay students. Of course by "Neutral" they mean that they don't consider bullying gay kids to be bullying at all. I guess what they're saying is that they're neutral on the status of gay teens as students/people. It's hard not to feel a lot of hate towards a group that behaves so hatefully.
Anyway, the teachers' union has been against this policy. Their influence has forced the Anoka-Hennepin School District to revisit this policy. The new policy says that it is the responsibility of the teachers to affirm the dignity of each student regardless of race, religion, gender, and sexuality. So get out there and stay loud so this passes next Monday!
I also wanted to throw in two bits of my own personal experience. I went to a rural school in Minnesota. At my school there was a teacher who was out. This teacher was never outspoken about their sexuality but you could tell they weren't going to take any shit. About two years after I graduated from high school, a student said something crude and insulting about this teacher's sexuality to their face. The school took very prompt action in punishing the student and as a result the school became a much safer place for gay students. Many students came out after this, knowing they went to a school that would protect their dignity. I can't help but think part of why the school defended the teacher is that this teacher is one of the best, if not the best, teacher the school has to offer. Well over 75% of this teacher's AP class students pass the AP exam. That is one of many rather objective examples of this teacher's excellence. It terrifies me to think what could have happened at my alma mater if they had a policy like Anoka-Hennepin's.
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