Anti-gay reactionaries are rallying people to show up to the next board meeting of the Sacramento City Unified School District on April 6 to protest a proposed board resolution in support of the Day of Silence.

The Day of Silence is a student-led day of action where those who support making anti-LGBT bullying and harassment unacceptable in schools take part in activities to recognize and protest the discrimination and harassment -- in effect, the silencing -- experienced by LGBT students and their allies. Nationwide, about 500,000 students from approximately 4,000 schools will take part in this year's Day of Silence on April 26, 2006.

The Day of Silence is an entirely voluntary activity. No students or staff are required to participate. Despite what some overhyped conservatives might have you believe, the intent on the part of the school district is for the normal instructional program of the school to continue at all sites and in all classrooms. The protest is a SILENT one (duh--hence the name "Day of Silence"). The only distraction or disruption comes from those who offer no solutions to the problems of harassment and discrimination, those who want to be free to bully LGBT people at will. However, the district respects the rights of those who choose to participate and understands the need to provide a safe learning environment for all students.

As usual, the wing-nuts and the Religious Reich are out in force with a response that demonstrates quite nicely the very need for a national day of reflection on how LGBT youth are treated in our schools, our homes, our churches, and our society as a whole. Conservative groups like the Capitol Resource Institute and extremist radio blowhard Eric Hogue are encouraging people to show up and demonstrate against providing supportive environments for LGBT youth.

You can show your support for LGBT youth by showing up at the School Board meeting or contacting board members and letting them know that the community will not stand for the type of bullying behavior that some adults are modeling for their children. The Sacramento City Unified School District Board of Education meeting is April 6 at 6:30 pm at the Serna Center, 5735 47th Avenue. Board members may be contacted through the district website at www.scusd.edu.

Day of Silence March

From the student leaders of the Sacramento Regional Gay Straight Alliance (SRGSA):

Let Your Voices Be Heard

On Wednesday, April 26, 2006 (the National Day of Silence), we are asking the LGBT community and straight allies of Sacramento to come together and show the rest of Sacramento that we are united against homophobia and transphobia.

The Day of Silence was started in 1996 in response to the oppression and harassment that LGBT students experience at school and in their general community. In the past, participants in the Day of Silence take a vow of silence for the entire day, and in the evening hold an event called the Night of Noise. Last year, Sacramento had its first Day of Silence march, and we are hoping to continue the tradition for as long as it is necessary.

We will be marching from the Lambda Center to the Department of Education for all the closeted and out LGBT students (and the straight students who are thought to be LGBT) that have been harassed. We will then walk around the Capitol grounds and back to the Lambda Center for a pizza party to end our Night of Noise.

When: Wednesday April 26, 2006 at 5:00 pm to 6:30 pm (with an after party)
Where: Lambda Community Center (1927 L St. Sacramento 95814)


What: A march to the Department of Education building and a walk around the State Capitol
Sponsors of the Day of Silence march are: Respect Sacramento, Sacramento Regional Gay-Straight Alliance, GSA Network, Lambda Community Center
Who: For more information, contact the Sacramento Regional GSA at sacregionalgsa@hotmail.com.

Dance the night away...

Time to start planning for the 3rd Annual GSA Dance, the area's only truly welcoming prom for students of all orientations--straight, gay, bi, queer, questioning, or those who don't wish to be categorized. We've got a date set for Saturday, May 6 from 7 to 11 pm at Hiram Johnson High School, 65th Street and 14th Avenue.

Those who help with the planning or set-up get a discount on their ticket, and the GSA with the most guests receive a portion of the profits. Want to be a part of the planning? The next SRGSA meeting is set for Saturday April 8 at noon at the Lambda Center. Contact Lance or Yvonne at sacregionalgsa@hotmail.com.

Sac City Schools LGBT Task Force

Attendees of the last meeting of the task force report that the school district's lawyer talked about writing an Administrative Regulation governing the work/behavior of non-curricular club advisors. They are looking into dropping the title of "advisor," as the role will be mainly "administrative;" i.e., the advisor can't "tell" students what do to, thus "advisor" might not be the appropriate term. We need to have more input on this issue from a variety of schools and clubs, particularly seeing that all non-curricular clubs (not just GSAs) would be governed by this regulation. Is this acceptable to ALL?

There was much discussion on the possibility of introducing a Gay Studies course in the district, thereby making the GSA Club a "curricular" club. Certainly, there are pros and cons on this item. Would this be offered at all schools? What about those schools that didn't have a course? Didn't have a GSA? Who would teach it? How would the curriculum be written?

Comments? Email us at comments@respectsacramento.org.

The next meeting of the LGBT Task Force was moved from its usual spot on the calendar to accommodate those wishing to attend the Day of Silence March (see above). The next meeting will take place on Wednesday, May 3.

Sacramento PFLAG Scholarship

The Sacramento Chapter of PFLAG is pleased to be able to offer one $1,000 scholarship to a graduating senior in the Sacramento area. The scholarship is named in honor of The Rev. and Mrs. Merrill Follansbee, chapter founders and proud parents of a gay son.

YOUR APPLICATION MUST BE POSTMARKED BY MAY 1, 2006 TO BE ELIGIBLE.

To obtain an application and read the eligibility requirements, go to http://pflagsacramento.org/CMS/index.php or email pflagsac@earthlink.net.

2. Our next meeting: Wed. April 12

Our next meeting will be Wednesday, April 12 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.

On our agenda: evaluation of the GSA workshop on March 18, Day of Silence information, and plans for the GSA Dance in the Spring. Are you a student at a local secondary school who would like to help plan events?A teacher or parent with a concern? Come on by or drop us a line. Our events are developed by and with local GSA members for their peers in the community. We hope to see you there!

3. West Sacramento Mayor's Speech, March 29, 2006

From Mayor of the City of West Sacramento Christopher Cabaldon's State of the City speech, March 29, 2006:

Before I close I do want to address one final issue, and it's a personal one and it's about an issue that I haven't addressed in public. Nobody in this community has ever asked me not to, and nobody's ever demanded that I keep myself quiet. But it's time for that to end.

The pressure and the stigma and sometimes the all-too-casual bigotry in our town made it painfully clear to me when I first ran for office in this city that I could either serve the community or I could be a gay man, but I could not do both.

Attitudes are changing in our town and in our country, but the Field Poll last week showed that one out of every three Californians still thinks that homosexuality is wrong and it should be illegal and that employers should be able to discriminate on that basis.

Five years ago, a controversy erupted at River City High School, just down the street from where I live. A group of students at the high school, hoping to create a safe haven on campus for gay students who were suffering from harassment or were thinking about suicide, they decided to form a Gay Straight Alliance. Some of you may remember this issue because it blew up.

Gay teenagers are four times more likely to commit suicide than their straight peers, and it's precisely because of that kind of campus climate. And a lot of folks in this community got outraged at the thought of this club being created and a safe haven existing for these kids. And it resulted in a huge "letter to the editor war" as so many things do in our community between folks who were spewing hate and others in our community who were saying "not in our town."

And I stood by and didn't do anything. I stayed quiet during that whole effort as others were engaged in a campaign of intolerance and hate; they were stoking the flames of fear and ignorance and prejudice, and they were putting kids at risk. And I was afraid that being openly gay would mean that I couldn't make a difference anymore; that if I stood up, that that would be the end of my ability to help our town achieve all of its other dreams.

My personal life is personal, and it's going to stay that way. My agenda and my leadership in this town as mayor aren't going to change because tonight I am choosing to be fully honest with you, finally.

But I'm not going to sit on the sidelines again if those kids or anyone else in our community is attacked and victimized. And I hope that by coming out directly, openly, and publicly, with the citizens who have placed the public trust in me, for so long and through so many elections, that I can help inspire just a couple of today's gay and lesbian youth who might be thinking about serving their community, and help them understand they don't have to choose between being who they are—that they can help change or step forward to help serve their neighbors and their community, and help remind them… [Standing ovation]

I want to help remind those kids that bigotry isn't a West Sacramento value.

I know some folks will be worried about what happens now, but I just want to say that for a long time—in fact through my whole public career—I've also been one of the only mayors in this nation who is also Filipino American. I've been "out" as a Filipino American, really, for my whole life. You know, it's not been a secret, I don't think anyone's been gossiping about it, and you've probably never noticed that Raley Field is built without one stick of bamboo, the Pheasant Club and Emma's, they still don't serve any lumpia, and you can't buy adobo at the Nugget Market's hot food counter.

I'm really proud of my heritage, but I hope you can see that there hasn't been any nefarious Filipino agenda that scripts the city of West Sacramento. And in the same way, being gay doesn't change how I fulfill the public's trust as mayor, except maybe when I use things like this to make a point about smart growth [laughter, as an issue of Men's Health magazine is projected on a large screen beside the mayor].

So being gay and being Filipino, they both give me a window on the magnificent diversity of what West Sacramento is all about, what makes us so dynamic, the diversity that gives us our distinctive character and our energy. And since this community first elected me ten years ago, my values, my aspirations, my agenda have all been the values, the aspirations, and the agenda of all West Sacramento and that's not going to change.

Well maybe one thing will change. I'm hoping that if we can harness the network and the energy of all the people in this town who've been gossiping about me for the last ten years, if we could use that gossip network, if we could borrow it for our emergency preparedness and evacuation notification system, [laughter] we'd be golden. [Applause]

So tomorrow morning, whatever happens to be in the newspaper, I'm going to be back to work with the rest of the city council, with the men and the women who serve in city government, and all of you to strengthen our flood protection, to rebuild our main street, to implement those smart growth principles, to bring life to the waterfront, to upgrade our schools, to create safe secure neighborhoods, to make West Sacramento the healthiest city in the region.

That's what this is all about. I'm so proud that I've had the opportunity to serve this city that all of us love so much, a place where heritage, hope, and hubris all come together, where our spirit of innovation and entrepreneurship, our sense of place, our respect for tradition, and our respect for diversity have opened the limitless opportunities of what must surely be West Sacramento's Golden Age.

Thank you all very much. [Standing ovation]

Ed. - Send a note of appreciation to Mayor Cabaldon for his action; let him know that there are so many people that are helped by his being open about who he is. christopherc@cityofwestsacramento.org

4. Conference for Youth and Caregivers call on youth voices

Youth: Do you want your voices heard?

Come help plan the Conference for Youth and Caregivers being sponsored by the California Outreach and Education Collaborative(COEC).

This one day mental health conference will be in Sacramento June 3rd, 10am-6pm and is being sponsored by COEC. It is focused on learning what the needs are for transition age youth and having youth create a plan to help meet those needs. The exciting piece is that this conference is being planned by youth!

So far we have decided that there will be two tracks - one for caregivers and one for youth... so if you know any youth or parents/caregivers tell them we'd LOVE to hear from them about what they want to see included! The day of the conference, there will be breakfast and some opening business then we will break into the two tracks: one for youth and the other for caregivers to talk about what their most pressing needs and concerns are and what THEY think would make a difference in solving those needs. Agency providers and others will be invited to join us at lunchtime, when we'll have youth and caregivers share the plans that they created. The main goal for the day is for the providers to learn from the YOUTH and caregivers exactly what the youth and caregivers think and how they see solving the different issues. There will be a youth panel which will first share the youth plan and then have a Q&A during which the providers etc. (audience) can discuss their thoughts and ask questions. After the panel there will be time for the youth and caregivers to find out the different resources and NETWORK.

Join other youth for the next planning meeting! YOUR VOICE COUNTS!
Next planning meeting:
April 8 from 10-1pm; lunch will be provided!!!
At the California Network for Mental Health
1722 J. Street, Suite 324
Sacramento, CA 95814

Contact Alexxa at alexxamarie@yahoo.com or 916-557-1167 to sign up or for more information!

5. Three big events in the Bay Area May 20 for LGBT youth

Want to attend the Unchained Conference, Young Women's Health Fair, and Unchained Dance? Interested in leading a workshop, providing a resource table, or performing?

If so, then check out the event website at http://www.lyric.org/Unchained06/registration.html and sign-up today!

Saturday, May 20th: 1 day! 3 big events for LGBTQQ youth!

2nd annual Unchained Conference,
11th annual Young Women's Health Fair
The Unchained Dance

Join over 400 youth for a day of workshops, food, performances, and an opportunity to connect with community organizations from around the Bay Area!

The Unchained Conference and Young Women's Heath Fair, two of LYRIC's most popular events, are together at last! The conference is a chance for queer youth and their allies of all backgrounds to connect with their peers, learn from one another, and have some fun. The fair is an event for lesbian, bisexual, transgender, and queer women to attend workshops, get resources, etc.

WHO: LGBTQQ youth (24 & under) and their allies (including teachers/adult allies!)
WHAT: New workshops, new performers, and a chance to connect with other youth!
WHEN: Saturday, May 20th, 10a.m. – 6p.m.
WHERE: Everett Middle School, 450 Church St. (@ 17th St.), San Francisco, CA

The Unchained Dance …it's back! At a new location, at a new time, and with new DJs. Come to the conference and fair, but make sure you stay for the dance!

WHO: LGBTQQ youth (24 & under)
WHAT: A bangin' after-party with guest DJs and door prizes!
WHEN: Saturday, May 20th, 8p.m. – 12a.m . (midnight)
WHERE: EVRC, 100 Collingwood St. (@ 18th St.), San Francisco, CA (Castro District)

Wanna lead a workshop, provide a resource table, become an event volunteer, or perform? If so, go to http://www.lyric.org/Unchained06.html and submit your workshop, tabling, volunteer, or performance proposal online!

Questions? Contact Denny David at 415.703.6150 x28 or denny@lyric.org and find out how you can get involved with these upcoming events.

LYRIC is thrilled to bring you the 2nd annual Unchained Conference and the 11th annual Young Women's Health Fair , co-sponsored by GLSEN San Francisco-East Bay, Spectrum, and Billy DeFrank LGBT Community Center.

The Unchained Conference is a hot opportunity for queer youth and their allies of all backgrounds to connect with their peers in an inclusive and safe space, to build relationships with other youth, and to gain skills/tools to effect positive change in oneself and one's community. This conference seeks to prioritize youth of color by developing content that reflects the experiences of their communities.

The Young Women's Health Fair, now in its 11th year, is a progressive opportunity for LBTQQ young women to come together to talk and learn about topics that are not discussed in mainstream health education.

6. Announcements

From GSA Network:

The Liberty for All Tour

Representatives from some of the leading human and civil rights organizations are touring California from Sunday, March 26-Monday, April 3, 2006 seeking to introduce regional organizational volunteer leaders and to other regional organizational volunteer leaders with the goal of building more powerful and connected networks around the state. You don't have to fight for what is right alone - come get to know your fellow "few who do."

Liberty for All Tour Travelers include reps from (partial list): PFLAG, The Zuna Institute, Bienestar, the National Organization of Women, Equality California, Gay-Straight Alliance Network, and the ACLU.

The Sacramento event is Monday, April 3 - 5:30-7:00 p.m. @ Deep, 2030 H St, Sacramento, CA; More info/RSVP: intern1@canow.org. See GSA Network's website at http://www.gsanetwork.org for other locations throughout the state (look for the link GSA Network News).

Re-Register your GSA today - get new resources & keep informed!!

Before you plan any events for your GSA, remember to register or re-register your group with the GSA Network. Do it NOW to make sure you receive our student activism manuals, FREE posters, other resources, and notifications of future GSA Network or LGBT-related events. (Mailings will go out only to California GSAs in middle and high schools.)

Register online at http://www.gsanetwork.org/register/index.html

If you have any questions or concerns contact:
Tanya Mayo, Program Director
mailto:tanya@gsanetwork.org
415-552-4229

Liberation Ink Posters - Free For GSAs

Seven poster designs are available for GSAs, organizations, and individuals to make change by building a presence of youth voices for justice, peace, and youth empowerment and against hatred, harassment, and discrimination of all kinds. Every GSA in California can receive 30 FREE posters to use at your school. You can order more than 30 for $1 each. From community organizations and individuals we request a donation of $5 each for 1-10 posters, $4 each for 11-30 posters, and large quantity discounts are available.

You can view the designs and order posters on the Liberation Ink website: www.gsanetwork.org/freezone/liberation.

The Lavender Library

Ed. - I can't let this opportunity pass without a plug for the Lavender Library here in Sacramento. In researching some background information for his State of the City speech, West Sacramento Mayor Christopher Cabaldon told me that he used an archive of articles about the GSA controversy at River City High that I donated to the Lavender Library in 2001. I was really touched that this collection of articles, along with my chronology and analysis, might have played a part in his presentation to his city this past week. The Lavender Library exists not only as a traditional lending library of LGBT books and media, but also as a repository of important local history. All community members should be supporting this valuable resource. Check them out! They are located at 1414 21st Street in midtown Sacramento; they are open Thursday 7-9 pm, Friday 6-8 pm, Saturday and Sunday Noon-6 pm. Go to http://www.lavenderlibrary.org.