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Loading ...Morales: An LGBT high school is not a ghetto
If you want help settling the debate over Chicago’s proposed LGBT high school, just look 90 miles north.
Milwaukee’s Alliance High School, now in its fourth year of operation, is a small, public high school dedicated to serving students who have been bullied or harassed in other school settings. The school doesn’t keep track of students’ sexual orientation, but the staff estimates that LGBT kids make up at least 70 percent of the student body.When Alliance was proposed, skeptics brought up the same concerns being aired on 365gay: You’re creating a gay ghetto. You’re insulating children from the real world. You’re not solving the bigger problem of bullying and harassment.
I was a member of the Milwaukee school board at the time the school was proposed (and still am), so I’ve heard all of these concerns and more. In my opinion, the immediate need to create a safe place for these students was so urgent that I had to support the Alliance proposal. Now, it’s going so well that we’re now looking to start an Alliance middle school.
In full disclosure, I have to admit that after working closely with Tina Owen, the founder of Alliance, I decided to marry her. But rather than unduly bias my opinion of how well the school is meeting its mission, the closeness gives me an opportunity to observe the school, its staff, and its students, in a way that might be helpful to the Chicago debate.
Like any organization, Alliance has developed its own culture and its own lingo. There’s one term that has evolved there that I think neatly encapsulates both the questions posed by the school’s existence and the answers to those questions: Alliance School Syndrome (or, as the teachers fondly abbreviate it, A.S.S.).
Alliance School Syndrome is a process that nearly every student new to the school goes through and generally takes one of two forms: Kid in a Candy Store or Bull in a China Shop.
Either the new student reacts by attempting to date everything that moves because for the first time in their lives they have choices, or they attempt to test boundaries and destroy everything because for the first time in their lives they are not being judged for who they are or what they look like, and they want to see if it’s true that they’ll be judged instead on their behavior.
In probably 9 5percent of the cases, A.S.S. runs its course after about two weeks. Its final symptom is a teary-eyed conference in the office in which the new student realizes the error of their ways and the reality of the new situation they’re in. They’re safe. They can be themselves. They don’t have to test the affection of everyone they meet. They don’t have to show how “bad” they are. They don’t have to prove or disprove their sexual orientation or gender.
They can just be and just learn.
A.S.S. and its nearly universal prevalence among new Alliance students tells the observer several truths:
These kids are running from something real. Homophobia, sexism, and transphobia weigh very heavily on their young shoulders. It’s only when they are relieved from it that they can really examine the ways discrimination and hate have warped their lives that they can start addressing that discrimination effectively.
A safe school isn’t a ghetto or a cloister. These kids bring the “real world” into school with them every day.
They have family problems. They have money worries. They have dreams and goals that they’re not sure how to reach. Those concerns don’t magically fade away when they walk in the door.
In an interview at the end of the school’s first year, one of Alliance’s first graduates eloquently makes the case that Alliance is part of the “real world” – in fact, the part of the real world where they feel the most real.
These kids are one answer to bullying and harassment. By spending time in a place where their orientation, gender, or appearance are no longer “issues,” the students learn how to become leaders against discrimination based on those very issues. Part of the school’s mission is to educate others about bullying and harassment. The Alliance students speak at middle schools, parent events, education conferences and more.
Their presentations are most compelling because they speak from real experience; they’ve seen that a safe environment gives them room to learn.
I think Chicago’s Social Justice High School – Pride Campus should be approved. One caution for the organizers, though: Alliance hasn’t just named itself a bully-free zone and merely enforced some basic “live and let live” principles. The staff has implemented many sound practices that reflect a deep understanding of the educational, psychological, and social needs of teenagers.
Setting up a successful school for LGBT students is no simple matter, but it can be done. Come to Milwaukee and see how.
Gee, lets see is there anything these kids could be afraid of…like getting killed? See this in ‘companion’ article on this page!
(Oxnard, California) Ventura County Deputy District Attorney Maeve Fox said that the discovery of white supremacist materials in the bedroom of the 14-year old boy accused of killing openly gay teen Larry King led to the murder charge being upgraded to include a hate crime charge and for the case to be tried in adult court.
“The discovery of these items in large part prompted the filing of the hate crime allegation in this case,” Fox wrote in a court filing this week.
“[These are] not the type of things that are typically associated with the study of World War II. Rather, these items depict racist skinhead philosophy of the variety espoused by Tom Metzger, David Lane and others. They included hand-drawn sketches of swastikas, references to the ‘14 Words’ and the number 88, which is commonly used by skinheads to represent the words Heil Hitler and Hitler’s SS,” the filing said.
….and then there is this from Canada.
A Northern Ontario candidate running for a seat in Canada’s parliament could find himself sitting in jail instead, after telling high school students that gays should be executed.
“A young man asked me what I think of homosexual marriages and I said I think homosexuals should be executed,” he told the paper. “My whole reason for running is the Bible, and the Bible couldn’t be more clear on that point,” he told the paper
Not sure if my comments on this issue will be removed as they were before from this website, as they were before. (Never did get a response as to why this would happen by email.) However, my opinion on this matter (and I was under the inpression that these blogs are meant to be a marketplace of ideas) is that child safety and providing our young people with more (as opposed to less) opportunities to shape their future is even more important than the politics of this issue. There is no single solution that will meet the needs of the young people from our community.
(By the way, I would appreciate a response to my email about why my previous comments, on the matter were removed. Up to this point I have enjoyed contributing to these online blogs. Other contributers may have similar concerns.)
I still say that a school for the abused doesn’t solve the real issue of bullying in schools. I’m very glad that these schools that already exist have helped/saved these kids in need. But all you’re doing is treating the symptoms, not the real disease.
Where are the zero-tolerance for bullying policies? That is what we truly need. and it helps far more children.
I went through pure hell in my high school. I didn’t tell anyone I was gay and I didn’t date but people just assumed that I was and they beat the crap out of me everyday. And the teachers and the principles blamed me for my “lifestyle choice”. We need a school that understands bullying and takes measures to make school a place where everyone can learn. Who knows it might even lower the gay youth suicide rate, I know there were many times I wanted to kill myself back then. Thank God for my parents caring enough about me to help me graduate early and get into college where people are more civilized and tolerant.
I grew up in a small religious town in central Kentucky. I was the first openly gay male at my High School at the age of 14 and faced death threats, egging of mine and my parents cars/home, being chased home from school by males with bats and 2×4’s, daily verbal and physical harassment within the school itself. I certainly did not feel safe and educating the school administration on how to deal with the issues, as they had never had to deal with them in the past, was well worth it.
As a teen, I considered suicide and attempted it on numerous occasions. I was scared for my life and the safety of my family but being placed into a school for teens just like me certainly wouldn’t have solved the problem. It simply masks it, it’s not addressing the real issue at all.
Coming out at a very early age destroyed my life, it caused my GPA to go from a 4.0, to a 2.6. It caused me to not prepare for my ACT/SAT and thus resulted in me never taking either test which later resulted in me not going to college for fear I would face the same problems I did in High School. But, the one thing which doesn’t make me feel worthless is the fact that I opened the door for all the out gay teens at my High School. There are now 15+ out gay males at my High School and if it weren’t for me and all my efforts, it would have never happened nor would I have made it a safer place for LGBT students. Had I ran away from the real issue and joined a school like this, I’m sure my life would be very different, but so would the lives of many other teens at my school.
I don’t support schools like this because they don’t address the issue in any manner and they cause LGBT students to be even more isolated.
I taught and ran the gay-straight alliance at a large urban high school for six years before starting The Alliance School. I worked so hard at making the school a safe place for all students, but there was still so much prejudice against gay students coming from the adults in the building that we were constantly being silenced as a community. The gay students were being harasses and beat up and no one was willing to do anything. I even had the ACLU intervening in a couple of situations, but these cases never went forward because parents were afraid of what would happen if people knew their children were gay. As time went on, and the bullying continued, I would see my students coming to school less and less and often dropping out. When someone came to our staff meeting and asked if anyone had thought of starting a small school, I kept thinking about Harvey Milk High School and how they had a 90% graduation rate. I wrote the proposal to start The Alliance School, because I cared about the kids. Now, the students at Alliance are surrounded by adults who support them and expect the best of them. The students are graduating, going on to college and becoming the best advocates that the LGBTQ community has ever seen. These students will be our leaders in the future, because they have been given confidence, knowledge, opportunity and a second chance. We, as a community,can sit back and talk about segregation all we want, but that’s not what these schools are about. They are about integrating students with an organization behind them. Our students deal with a hateful world every day. It’s nice for them to know that there is one place where they can come back to, recharge, and get the knowledge and skills they need to battle the prejudice of the world. I encourage everyone to support the Chicago Pride School. It’s existence alone makes our community more visible.
I do think that this skl is a great idea, only i wish that it would be big enough that gay people from all over the country could go, or spread it out. i know i would not be neer a skl but i would drive to a skl. i am poorly bullied everyday and i would love to fo to alliance.
Well i do like the idea for a skl, but i do agree that its not fixing bulling, i have been bullied, even before i came out, people just assumed, and even now its worse but i take it, i ignore it like its not happening, but a school for gay people would be a opportunity to a great future. I know that mayb this isnt what Alliance is, but when my friend applied for coleges there are places for gay people and you can get money for it to go to colege, imagine a school for gay people, and how it could look on a colege app. plus even thought some jobs are descriminate against gay people, some would hire if they knew you attended a gay shcool. Because even the slow gay people are smart, i havnt met a gay guy or girl yet that wasnt smarter then some of the “bullies” and one girl is smarter then anyone in the school, i believe to have a place you can be yourself and not worry everyday about some1 judging you or picking on you would be an open space for more learning and a better future. The only thing i see wrong with a gay school is the SEX! in the bathroom but other then that i cant think of anything.
My partner and I were discussing this not long ago.
We’re both torn on the thought of an LGBT only school.
On the one hand, kids who have been traumatized in their schools need a place where they can feel safe because that’s the only way their going to learn what they need to succeed.
On the other hand, they need to learn about life. Life isn’t always fair and people aren’t always going to agree with you.
In the end, we came to the conclusion that this may be a good situation for some kids to be in but its not a solution for the long term.
Despite whatever criticism that people may have against the Alliance School, I think it’s a wonderful idea.
People talk about targeting the real problem: zero tolerance. I agree with them but instead of saying that to a school created for victims of bullying, go say that to the schools who are not dealing with the real bullies!
As an androgynous & queer teen, simple things for others like deciding which restroom to use when there’s only “men” & “women” available, is a daily struggle for me. I am open in the sense that if someone asks me about my orientation, I will answer. Although I’m a loner, I have had peers calling me names llike, “ugly man-looking dyke” and the like. For me, I find it difficult to be in an environment where everyone assumes that everyone in the world is male or female and straight. In all honesty, I wish there was an school like Alliance in northeastern New Jersey.
Some people may criticise these kids for “running for cover”. Maybe some people have had the luck of graduating from school with no scars, but the reality is that it’s still hard for most queer youth to attend a school where not only do your peers antagonise you but the faculty and staff may do so as well. I had to learn the hard way that an Anti-Discrimination Policy posted on a wall doesn’t necessarily mean anything; the faculty, staff, & student body will choose to freely act the way they wish to, even if it means being prejudiced towards a specific group of people.
I applaud the Alliance School for giving these kids a safe haven to learn & grow. As adolescents, we need more support than ever. As queer youth, we need support from people who won’t question why we look a certain way or love a certain gender. From public schools, the support queer youth need is hardly available at all.
Yes, the real problem is addressing the problems in public schools. But think about it from this point of view: How can we queer youth change things for the better in a public school if the principal or even the Board of Education might be anti-gay? Like I said before, an Anti-Discrimination Policy on a wall means nothing. If a principal is anti-gay, it’ll show in indirect ways, like not allowing a Gay Straight Alliance group to be formed. Then what do we do?
I think more positive change can occur if we help those kids going through whatever misery & take care of them so they can go on and make a change in the world rather than letting them think they’re worthless & committing suicide because of some stupid ignorant person’s comments or actions towards them. I’m not saying to take every queer kid and put them in a seperate school. I’m saying for those who are being antagonised to have the choice to seek a safer place than to continue suffering. At the same time, Board of Educations should take the initiative to educate schools, their faculty & staff on problems that are affecting queer youth. It hurts when you’re walking down the hall to your locker & you hear a teacher making jokes about us queers to students. What does that say about how schools are functioning? It’s going to be harder to change the way a school approaches this situation when you have teachers making jokes about queers.
I’m Gay and fresh out of HS by 2 years. You thought drama was bad at a regular HS put all the gay kids together and then see the mess. Makes me cringe thinking about having to go to school with some of the Gays I met while in HS.