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Loading ...Mayor opposes Chicago gay school
10.23.2008 4:29pm EDT
(Chicago, Illinois) Facing growing criticism over a proposed high school for LGBT students, Chicago Mayor Richard Daley on Thursday said he had serious misgivings about the proposal.
The mayor spoke out a day after the Chicago Board of Education put off voting on the Social Justice High School—Pride Campus.Wednesday night, board members gave the OK to 13 other new schools, but put off a vote on the Pride Campus until Nov. 19. The vote to delay it came after two parents spoke out at the meeting against the school.
“Schools need to get out of the bedroom and back to the 3 R’s,” parent Kathy Reese, told the board. “This is why Johnny still can’t read, because the children are being used as pawns to further a political agenda. We should be helping them out of that lifestyle, not helping them into it.”
Although the school had broad gay support at earlier meetings, when the proposal was opened to public presentations, some members of the LGBT community expressed different concerns – saying they feared the school would isolate children and ill prepare them for the real world.
That also concerned the mayor, a longtime ally of the gay community.
“You have to look at whether or not you isolate and segregate children. A holistic approach has always been to have children of all different backgrounds - in schools. When you start isolating children and you say, ‘Only 50 percent here, 40 percent here’ – same thing we went through with the disabled - then you want to do that when they’re adults,” the Chicago Sun Times reported Daley as saying Thursday.
“It’s controversial. Some people are for it. Some are against it - The Board of Education has to make the decision whether it’s good for isolating children. I don’t know - I’m just saying that’s one of the problems - You start identifying them.”
The mayor’s opposition is seen as likely killing the proposal.
If it had been accepted, it would have had about 600 students with a 50-50 split of LGBT-straight students.
Earlier this month, a national survey was released showing that nine in 10 LGBT teens have been verbally harassed in the past school year, and almost half have been physically harassed because of their sexual orientation.
The Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network’s National School Climate Survey involved 6,209 LGBT students between the ages of 13 and 21 from all 50 states and the District of Columbia.
Students in schools with a Gay-Straight Alliance reported hearing fewer homophobic remarks, experienced less harassment and assault because of their sexual orientation and gender expression, the study found. In addition, these students were more likely to report incidents of harassment and assault to school staff, were less likely to feel unsafe because of their sexual orientation or gender expression, were less likely to miss school because of safety concerns and reported a greater sense of belonging to their school community.
Nevertheless, the study found only about a third of students had a Gay-Straight Alliance at school. The same number of students could identify six or more supportive educators and only a fifth attended a school that had a comprehensive safe school policy.
The first all-gay high school in the US opened in New York City in 2003, named for slain San Francisco supervisor Harvey Milk.
What is Chicago doing to protect gay students? That is why this school was suggested because Chicago is neglecting gay students.
seems alittle one sided the private schools can teach bible thumping and make kids wear stupid little uniforms and girls wear skirts that make the old straight men drewl; but thats okay. They come up with a school to protect gay teens and that gets smashed; seems one sided to me.
The trouble with a LGBT affiliated high school is that it requires parental permission. The kids that are getting out of their situations are usually out kids with supportive parents. While yes, suicide rates are high amongst that population, they are even higher amongst (semi)closeted teens with unsupportive/hostile parents who may not want their kids going to that “queer school”. Whether they’re popular kids who are hiding it to stay at the top or kids that are being harassed but denying everything, this pressure to hold it all together is part of what sends them over the edge.
It’s the fact that some of the neediest students who don’t feel safe enough to ask their parents to be allowed to go to a place like Pride High who will suffer all the more in their segregated, hostile environments that will not be forced to change.
I agree, and I am gay. It’s stupid to have a gay school. Why not have an all white or all black school or just a school for asians. Everyone should be in the same school and taught how to embrase unequality or diversity. they should instead put that money into better use like finding a cure for aids or more books.
Weren’t gay nonparents at ONE point, students in a school?
Is their experience and memories of being gay, out or not, in school somehow become negated that their opinion is of no worth?
What utter nonsense.
As much as I’m in agreement with more education and combatting homophobia in schools, there still seems to be an awful lot of it.
And when there are those who are fighting against the formation of gay-straight alliances that could FOSTER an atmosphere of education and understanding, they’re accused of being sex clubs.
When the stats for suicide among gay youth, who I assume are/were IN good ol’ school, is higher than for straight youth, ALSO in school I would assume, that should give one pause for thought I would suspect.
Or, is it okay for these kids to die because their not quite “tough” enough, or “emotionally strong” enough to deal with whatever it is their up against… most of whom we gay adults have OBviously never had to deal with or could possibly understand being, you know, adults and NONparents.
Yeah, a safe environment in which they can focus on studies and learning, as opposed to how they’re going to get form point A to point B without getting tossed into a locker, or knocked down, or cussed out, or mocked and made fun of is just downright silly.
How can we expect a new generation of tough ol’ gay men and women if they’re being coddled and babysat?
Suicide winnows out the weak from the strong doesn’t it? The world doesn’t need weak, emotionally fragile people in it does it? Even if they have remarkable gifts and talents, possible insights and creativity? Who needs THAT sorta stuff?
How ’bout BOTH the school AND the education against homophobia, for if homophobia is tackled aggressively head on, a debate about a GLTB school or three won’t have to be held in the future.
For now though, shouldn’t these youth be given and allowed a SAFE environment? I know I learn better when not worrying about survival.
Dear Spank…least you have forgotten your gay history, it was the drag queens of New York who had the balls to rise to the occasion and lead the resistance to ever increasing harrassment from the vice squad/police force that led to the heroic event that became as the Stonewall riots, aka The Gay Independence Day. Don’t ever speak disrespectful of Drag Queens — they are our Sister Saints who know more about being gay and what it means to have gay pride than anyone else in the LGBT movement. You could have said that opinions are like Sarah Palin – the rest of your statement holds absolute true of her. Sounds like you’ve got a homophobic streak a mile wide that needs some serious therapy.
I would ask Will if he is a parent. I suggest that only parents voice their opinions in this matter. Those of us in the LGBT community who just like to bitch and moan, and offer their 2 cents worth need to stay out of it. I don’t think a single LBGT parent or student cares what we think.
Opinions are like drag queens.. they are always WAY TOO LOUD and most of the time, ignored and not taken seriously.
Until adults decide to do their job and establish and enforce no tolerance policies for ALL school against bullying, then these situations will continue. Until the adults realize that being bullied it NOT “just a part of growing up” we are going to have gay kids with bullying problems in our public school systems. If adults will do their job, then the problem could be solved. IMO, a separate high school is not the answer unless it is used to incarcerate students who are convicted of bullying other students. They are the ones that need to be housed in a separate school.
This is treading on dangerous ground. While I would like to see it, it opens up the whole “separate but equal” argument. To say nothing of thumbing its nose at the anti-segregation laws.
But gay kids need to feel safe at their school. Like I didn’t.
This will be interesting to see how it plays out.
I support the school idea.HOWEVER needs to be done good.Pu-lease.If some of you are soo blind to see that those in the schoold don’t have an outside life to of hate.It is everywhere else, or in those schools, your an idiot.But only children that would develop problems would be isolated liveing.I was teased, harrassed, bullyied, stoned even in school.Oh it got bad I had to move another school.Oh and this is N.Y. school for you.Oh and most of this abuse was due to me being special, aside I did get more abuse at 7th & up. Due to some thought I was gay or bisexual.Witch I’m not bisexual.Hey hell another kick of note.I was harassed by even other gay and bisexual students.
Parent Kathy Reese is clearly an ass. She references a “political agenda” but she clearly has an agenda of her own when she states that people should be “helped out of that lifestyle”. Her arrogance is exceeded only by her ignorance.
I would have misgivings along with the mayor. We should not cooperate with our segregation. Next thing we’ll know there will be gay and straight public toilets and drinking fountains.
Lee said he got beat up in high school; so was I. But I found I had made some allies after the incident.
Being a gay man and also a parent, I think I am qualified to offer an opinion. I agree with the mayor. I don’t think the answer is isolating LGBT students. At some point in their lives they are going to have to face the harsh reality that the world is filled with people who hate anyone who is not like them. If we start sheltering our children in separate schools, what next, separate work places, separate communities?
I don’t want my son to get beat up like Lee said (above), and I certainly don’t want him to be bullied, or threatened in any way, but again the reality is he most likely will, even if he goes to a LBGT school.
Why not spend the money to continue to educate the homophobes and increase the consequences for those who do inflict their intolerance on our kids.
Wowwww.
“Schools need to get out of the bedroom and back to the 3 R’s”
Talk about crazy. Being gay is NOT all about having sex, lady.
“This is why Johnny still can’t read, because the children are being used as pawns to further a political agenda.”
Johnny still can’t read because many parents are so focused on working and making ends meet, they have less time for their children. That and funding for schools is constantly being misused.
“We should be helping them out of that lifestyle, not helping them into it.”
…….. How about just helping them from getting the snot beaten out of them and accepting them for who they are so they don’t kill themselves, huh?
As to the rest of the article, good for Mayor Daley. I completely agree with him.
If I were 16 again, I would jump at the chance to go to an all gay high school. I got beat up at school, and Being beat up is not fun. Why not ask the kids?