From the Editor: Conservative Pressure Causes Bush to Reach to the Right
After enduring a wicked backlash from the Religious Reich over his lame attempt to place crony Harriet Miers on the nation's highest court, President Bush capitulated to the extreme far right of the Republican Party and nominated Third U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals Judge Samuel Alito to succeed Sandra Day O'Connor on the Supreme Court. Alito has been nicknamed "Scalito" for apparently reminding conservatives of another Italian American on the high court, noted homophobe Antonin Scalia. Alito's most notable vote was his lone dissent in the Third Circuit's ruling in Planned Parenthood v. Casey which struck down a Pennsylvania law that required married women to inform their husbands in advance of obtaining an abortion. Liberal groups have also pointed to his conservative rulings and dissents in discrimination, workers rights, and privacy cases as proof of his being out of step with most Americans.
Interestingly, Alito has had the opportunity to rule in at least two cases involving LGBT students and safe schools. In a 2000 case, Saxe vs. State College Area School District, Alito wrote the opinion that struck down a gay-inclusive "anti-harassment" policy adopted by a school district in State College, Pa., home to Penn State University. The policy had been challenged by a Christian conservative who said his children were compelled by their religion to criticize homosexuality as a sin. Alito ruled that the policy as written was overly broad.
In 2004, Alito issued an opinion in Shore Regional High School vs. P.S., ruling in favor of a New Jersey student whose parents wanted to move him to a high school outside of his neighborhood so that he could escape severe harassment he had received as a middle school student. Alito wrote strongly in favor of the student and criticized the testimony of a school district's officer who did not, in Alito's opinion, deal satisfactorily with the campaign of harassment against the student.
With right-wing groups like Focus on the Family, the Alliance Defense Fund, and Concerned Women for America lining up behind Alito, it's clear that they believe that Roe v. Wade's days are numbered. We hope that Democrats in the Senate insist on full and complete answers to pointed questions regarding Alito's views.
Ever since the rejection of Robert Bork for the court, conservatives have made a mockery of the nomination process. They have repeatedly rejected the "advise" part of the "advise and consent" provision of the Constitution's nomination provision by refusing to confer with Senators. It is doubtful that this president can or will nominate anyone who will defend individual privacy rights and the constitutional guarantees of due process and equal protection.
At least O'Connor will remain on the court until a successor is confirmed. Her votes will count as long as she is a member of the court when a ruling is handed down. On December 6 the court is scheduled to take up the case over whether colleges can bar military recruiters from their campuses because of the Pentagon's "Don't ask, don't tell" policy on gay and lesbian personnel. Last November a three-judge panel of the 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals (Alito was not on that panel) struck down the Solomon Amendment, a 1994 federal law requiring law schools to give the military full access or else lose their funding. Each of the colleges have nondiscrimination policies barring any recruiter - government or private - from campus if the organization unfairly bases hiring on race, gender or sexual orientation.
The Bush administration appealed the ruling to the Supreme Court.Our next meeting: Wed. November 9
Our next meeting will be Wednesday, November 9 at 6:30 pm. Our regular meeting time and place is the second Wednesday of the month at 6:30 pm at the Lambda Community Center, 1927 L Street in midtown Sacramento. We hope to see you there! Youth Inspire! nominations due
Youth Inspire! Nomination Period - October 17 through December 9, 2005
Sacramento County youth make positive contributions to our community every day! This is your opportunity to nominate the special young people you know for the Youth Inspired Award. This award honors Sacramento County youth who are making a difference. Visit www.scoe.net/inspire to download or submit nomination forms or phone (916) 228-2449 for additional information.
All nominees are recognized!
Thanks to Shireen Miles of the Sac City Unified School District for passing this along. Grants / Funding opportunities for youth
Youth-Led Projects Grant – Local youth are encouraged to apply for funds through the Grants Advisory Board for Youth (GABY), a youth-to-youth grant making program that gives young people in the Sacramento region a hands-on role in philanthropy and community leadership. Youth between 10 and 19-years old may apply for up to $2,500 to carry out projects that address issues impacting young people in their communities. Grant application deadline is 5:00 pm on Wednesday, November 30, 2005. Application materials and information about funding guidelines are available through the Sacramento Region Community Foundation's website at www.sacregcf.org. Please contact Suzanne Mayes, Program Officer at (916) 492-6510 or suzanne@sacregcf.org for more information. Sac City LGBT Task Force news
At the last Task Force meeting, members and attendees discussed mechanisms for making sure that school sites are providing the first one-hour training (Part One) that the district has MANDATED to ensure all school staff are informed as to sexual harassment laws and LGBT issues. The Task Force requested and Associate Superintendent Polster agreed that the Task Force should be given the information explaining exactly which schools trained and the dates trainings were accomplished. District expectations are that ALL sites will have trained by end of November on Part One. Part Two will be rolled out to administrators in a January meeting and will address scenarios to gauge how well administrators can apply Part One knowledge, as well as provide available resources for students and staff. Then they will carry that training (one hour again) back to staff. Part Three will be developed to integrate students and GSAs and highlight positive youth development that the district supports around LGBT issues. The exact content of Part Three will be influenced by how Parts One and Two are received and integrated. An evaluation tool is also being developed to assess the efficacy of these trainings.
There was a strong GSA youth and advisor representation at the task force meeting and time was spent discussing activities currently outlined by GSAs for this school year.
Kennedy High School counseling intern Ellie Campbell is offering district employees professional development training on Safe Zones on Nov. 17 from 4-6 pm and SCUSD staff wanting to register can sign up on SCUSD website through the staff development for high schools. Note well, however: All trainings and task force efforts are geared for K-12.
Next meeting - now permanently on the FOURTH WEDNESDAY each month - is at New Tech High again on November 30. Then we will rotate to other schools per our commitment to improving student and staff access to the task force. GSA Network News
Register NOW for the YES (Youth Empowerment Summit) Conference on Dec 3rd
YES is a FREE conference for LGBTQQI youth activists and their allies who are dedicated to defeating homophobia and transphobia and creating safe and supportive schools for everyone. The target audience is high school & middle school students, and teachers & GSA advisors are welcome.
Where? Horace Mann Middle School, 3351 23rd Street, San Francisco
When? Saturday, December 3, 9:00 am -5:00 pm
How much? Everything, including food, is FREE!
Pre-register for the GSA Network's YES conference at www.gsanetwork.org/yes.
For more information: yes@gsanetwork.org or 415-552-4229 News from our neighbors at GLSEN SF-EB
Transgender Day of Remembrance, Organize and Educate for Student Safety! (Hayward)
This year on November 20, 2005, thousands of people across the globe will observe the 7th annual Transgender Day of Remembrance in order to raise awareness about anti-transgender and gender related hate crimes.
On November 16, 2005, Gwendolyn Ann Smith, founder of Transgender Day of Remembrance will be a featured speaker at a GLSEN San Francisco-East Bay event in Hayward. This event will provide youth and their allies with cutting-edge resources for organizing and educating around student safety in Bay Area schools.
The event will be held from 4 pm to 5:30 pm at the Lighthouse Community Center located at 1217 A Street in Hayward, California, within blocks of Hayward BART station on B Street. For more information, contact Ravi, (925) 685-5480 or email ravi@glsen-sfeb.org. | | | | | | | | | | State to investigate gay bias claims at CA school
Oct 27, TRACY (365Gay.com) The California Department of Education has announced plans to investigate allegations that the Tracy Unified School District has failed to protect LGBT students from harassment and bullying.
The Gay-Straight Alliance at West High School went to the state after it said the district had done little to address concerns about harassment.
The education department's probe will be conducted by its office of equal opportunity. The director of the office, Sharon Felix-Rochon, said the GSA complaints and the results of the district's own investigation will be reviewed.
Felix-Rochon said that if the review shows there is substance to the claims the office could intervene. She said it will take about 60 days to go over the documentation.
The Tracy School District investigation showed the school was doing all it could to prevent LGBT students from being harassed.
GSA president Justin Daley said that although the situation at the school is somewhat better this year there is more that needs to be done. Among the changes at the school this year is a new diversity advisory committee.
West High Principal Herman Calad declined to comment on the state intervention.
| | | | | CA school settles dispute over gay student stories
Nov. 4, BAKERSFIELD CA (365gay.com) East Bakersfield High School students will publish a series of articles about sexual orientation in the November edition of the award-winning school newspaper, The Kernal, editors announced today.
The articles will be published November 4 as a result of an ongoing lawsuit against the Kern High School District.
"I knew this day would come," said Maria Krauter, who wrote one of the articles and planned and edited the other four in the series, "even if it's a little late."
Students originally sought to publish the articles in the second to last edition of the paper last school year, but could not after the principal demanded the students pull the articles citing vague threats to gay students. The student journalists and their sources went to court this spring, with the help of the ACLU, seeking an order allowing them to publish the articles in the final edition of the paper.
The court denied the request, stating that more information about the district's reasons for censoring the articles was needed.
Over the summer and fall, school officials failed to produce evidence of their claims that lesbian and gay students would be harmed as a result of the publication of the articles.
The lawsuit also revealed the school took no steps to inform those students' parents or the police officer assigned to the school of the alleged threats.
The school now has relented and informed The Kernal editorial board members that the articles can be printed.
ACLU of Southern California staff attorney Christine P. Sun said that publishing the articles, which included both the views of people supportive of gay and lesbian rights and the views of those who have religious objections to homosexuality, is long overdue.
"The principal was wrong to censor these well-researched, balanced articles about a topic that affects teenagers today," Sun said.
FL principal pulls pro-gay article from student paper
Nov. 4, ORANGE PARK FL (AP) A high school principal has withheld published copies of a student newspaper to eliminate an opinion column written by a student about homosexuality.
Katie Thompson, a 17-year-old senior, wrote the column "Homosexuality is not a Choice," for the Oct. 10 edition of the student newspaper at Ridgeview High School.
Thompson, who is bisexual, said her teacher approved the 300-word essay, but Principal Toni McCabe objected and claimed the subject was "too mature for a high school audience."
According to an e-mail sent by school spokeswoman Darlene Mahla to School Board members, the school principal was able to intercept the newspaper, Panther Prints, before it went to students.
"A member of the school's newspaper staff wrote an article that was placed in the opinion section of the newspaper about her sexuality as a lesbian and her Christian views," said the e-mail obtained by The Florida Times-Union.
The newspaper also obtained a copy of Thompson's column, which reads in part:
"Homosexuals do not choose to be the way they are. It is a biological stimulation of the brain. ... Some individuals think that they, with their extreme religious beliefs, can turn homosexuals to a heterosexual status. Those people, along with other homophobes in our country, set up counseling groups for homosexuals to try to change them."
Thompson said she was called to McCabe's office and told the newspaper would not be circulated because of her article.
Mark Goodman, executive director of the Student Press Law Center in Arlington, Va., said a 1988 Supreme Court ruling gives school officials the power to censor content if there is a reasonable educational justification.
"But to silence student expression because you disagree with their view, that is virtually never permissible," Goodman said Friday.
"This is clearly an issue there is a lot of disagreement about. What school officials have to accept is these issues are a part of life, part of the American debate," Goodman said. | | |
