Today kicks off No-Name Calling Week, “an annual week of educational activities aimed at ending name-calling of all kinds and providing schools with the tools and inspiration to launch an on-going dialogue about ways to eliminate bullying in their communities.” The event is organized by the Gay, Lesbian, and Straight Education Network (GLSEN), in partnership […]
First, congratulations to lesbian mom Annise Parker, who won election as mayor of Houston, Texas, the country’s fourth largest city. She is the first openly gay or lesbian mayor of any of the country’s 10 largest cities. Schools and Youth The Oklahoma City School District voted to amend the district’s bullying and harassment policy to
Safe Schools After reviewing the suicide of 11-year-old Jaheem Herrara, Thelma Wyatt Cummings Moore, a retired Superior Court judge in Fulton County, Georgia, said the boy was “emotionally ruined” by the recent murder of his uncle and the death of his grandmother, and his school was not responsible for his death. The boy’s mother, Masika
Let’s start with a funny: Wanda Sykes is experiencing the . . . plumbing issues . . . that many of us encounter with our male infants. (Via Queerty.) School issues: School officials in Ramona, California, told sixth-grader Natalie Jones that she couldn’t share her independent study project in class like the other students. The
Lest you think Prop 8 was the only controversial LGBT issue in California: First, the Alameda School District became the target of irate right-wing parents who learned that school officials were creating elementary school lesson plans that “talked about teasing and explained the different definitions of family.” The lessons included And Tango Makes Three, a
The recent suicides of two young boys after repeated bullying at school have made many of us, myself included, wonder what we could do. One of the ways the HRC Foundation Family Project has responded is to push up the May release of its “Introduction to Welcoming Schools” guide, “An Inclusive Approach to Addressing Family
Our stories told: Author, parent, and transgender woman Jennifer Finney Boylan recently told her story of transitioning in the New York Times’s column, “Modern Love.” Thanks to Family Equality for pointing out the piece. The 2009 Pride and Joy Families Weekend Conference in upstate New York was a big success, according to the Utica Observer-Dispatch.
On parental rights: A Michigan state House committee approved legislation for second-parent adoptions, splitting the vote along party lines. (Do I really need to specify which party voted in favor?) A Montana woman, Barbara Maniaci, is asking the state Supreme Court to overturn a lower court ruling that recognized her former partner as a co-parent
Another 11-year-old boy, Jaheem Herrera, has hanged himself after enduring repeated bullying. (The horrible news comes via Will at Pam’s.) There is some reporting that he was bullied with anti-LGBT taunts, among others. Just last week, after the suicide of Carl Joseph Walker-Hoover, I asked “How many more children must die before we as a
“It’s not just a gay issue,” said Sirdeaner Walker, mother of 11-year-old Carl Joseph Walker-Hoover, who died by suicide last week after months of anti-gay taunts. “It’s bigger.” The Advocate has a long interview with Walker. It’s an emotionally tough read, but worth it. I mentioned in my roundup yesterday that GLSEN’s upcoming National Day
