Don't teach, don't tell?
July 29, 2011 4:19 p.m. EDT
Fietek, an adviser for his school's Gay-Straight Alliance in Anoka, Minnesota, says he gets messages from students contemplating suicide or those with friends in crisis at least once a week.
Some of the distressed kids are gay, others are questioning their sexuality, he said. Fietek's off-duty interventions may blur the line between teacher and friend, but Fietek, who's openly gay, said some of these kids have no one else to turn to for support.
"I'm worried and concerned about the kids in my school district who are struggling to navigate in a toxic environment," explained Fietek, who said talking to CNN could cost him his job as a theater teacher at Anoka Middle School for the Arts in Anoka-Hennepin. The suburban Minneapolis school district, he said, has a climate where kids "feel they have to lie and cover up who they are."
The district's curriculum policy, adopted in 2009, bars teachers from taking a position on homosexuality in the classroom and says such matters are best addressed outside of school. It's become known as the neutrality policy. Anoka-Hennepin is the only Minnesota school district known to have such a policy.
FULL ARTICLE.
"The policy imposes a stigma on LGBT students as pariahs, not fit to be mentioned within the school community," ...[A message] which has grave repercussions for the psychological and emotional development of LGBT students."
ReplyDeleteExactly. There's an interesting parallel here to the reasoning expressed in the the Brown v. Board of Ed. decision.
Though this policy is breathtakingly cruel and stupid, I've worked in otherwise progressive, compassionate high school environments where even mentioning the existence of LGBT students in the school community was taboo. And I've seen teachers severely reprimanded for breaking that taboo in even the most mild and innocuous ways. Somehow, we're ok with chaperoning school dances where hetero kids are all but fucking each other on the dance floor, but we can't acknowledge the existence of teenagers who may be struggling with their identity or sexuality at perhaps the most fragile and fraught time of their lives. I'd like to discover a cure for the severe brain damage that seems to strike most "educators" as soon as they sign an administrative contract. Asshats.
Swirly needs a cosmo.
oops, I meant "Surly" needs a cosmo.
ReplyDeleteI like how this guy says "talking to CNN could cost him his job as a theater teacher" and then proceeds to allow CNN to use his full name and place of work in a highly Googleable article.
ReplyDelete@ Kenny Keener
ReplyDeleteI don't know why that is, but people seem to forget that people still actually watch TV and pay attention to the news....fifteen years ago and the guy would have the voice changer and be filmed in a dark room.
I think the "new media" is turning people's brains into putty, and that includes the producer of this piece.
@ Kenny and Strelnikov - or he could be well aware of what he's doing, and is willing to risk his jobs to bring awareness to the fact that the school's policy is *killing children.* Did you miss that part? Or is it simply easier to call Mr. Fietek stupid then have to acknowledge what the article is saying?
ReplyDeleteI was thinking along Barb's lines -- that he's decided to deliberately challenge the system by "telling" what he does in his off hours, and why.
ReplyDeleteAnd yes, "we don't talk about that" is anything but a neutral policy, especially for a group of people who still have to deal with the belief in some quarters (including one presidential hopeful's husband) that they don't really exist (or -- and this comes down to the same thing in the end -- that they can be "cured").
Bravo for Mr. Fietek.
@Surly: I simply assumed that "Swirly" had already had a cosmo (or three), and now felt the need for another.
"...or he could be well aware of what he's doing, and is willing to risk his jobs to bring awareness to the fact that the school's policy is *killing children.* Did you miss that part?"
ReplyDeleteWell, I don't know. He looked a little overweight. I don't think we can ascribe idealistic motives or courage to anyone who isn't of absolutely ideal appearance. I mean, he looked pretty normal and everything. But without the abs or the Brad Pitt smile I can't really take him seriously.
My partner teaches high school and I've been pressuring him to put a simple straight ally sticker on his door. It's a rainbow triangle. It tells anyone in the know that he can be trusted, without having to ask openly. And then if students talk to him, he can direct them to me, since I am part of a regional GSA youth group.
ReplyDeleteHe doesn't see why it's important because we live in a city. But then, he doesn't start teaching until August. I'm sure he'll change his mind.
@Strel & Barb, I think he's probably just being an attention whore. That's my gut reaction whenever somebody yells about how brave they're being to make it appear that they're putting themselves in harm's way.
ReplyDelete@Kenny - which would be a fine assumption, except people *have* actually lost their jobs for speaking out on this issue. Even if he doesn't get fired, by coming out publicly, he's now going to be the target of every homophobe with time on their hands. Again, did you miss the part of the article where they talk about bullying and suicide? Do you think that ends when people leave high school?
ReplyDelete(I'd like to place a bet: how many people think that Kenny is going to come back saying that Mr. Fietek "made the choice" to expose himself, so he deserves what he gets?)
I don't think anybody deserves to be fired for being gay, if that's what you're getting at. I do think Mr. Fietek's breathless pronouncements make him sound like a drama queen. But that's just me.
ReplyDeleteNo, Kenny, I'm saying that you think that if people just wouldn't be such "drama queens" about things like workplace discrimination and homophobic bullying, the problem would go away. You know, if Mr. Fietek hadn't "come out", then no one would have have the chance to fire him for being gay.
ReplyDeleteTell me, how does one avoid being a "drama queen", while still trying to raise awareness about a real social injustice?
(Also - "drama queen"? Seriously? In relation to an article about discrimination against homosexuals? What a great demonstration of how people never think about their words.)
"No, Kenny, I'm saying that you think that if people just wouldn't be such "drama queens" about things like workplace discrimination and homophobic bullying, the problem would go away. You know, if Mr. Fietek hadn't "come out", then no one would have have the chance to fire him for being gay."
ReplyDeleteI don't think that at all, and if that's the conclusion you draw from my posts then I think you're just reading too much into what I said. My reaction was to Mr. Fietek's pronouncement, which, I think, if it were true, he would not have actually made. I have no idea if it's true or not. I just tend to be skeptical of such statements.
It's unfortunate that one can rarely criticize, or express skepticism of someone's words or actions without somebody else who lacks reading comprehension skills immediately accusing the former of bigotry or ignorance.
This is a discussion about an article about a guy. I posted a gut reaction about what the guy said. If you disagree, that's fine, but I would ask that you state your reason for disagreeing rather than being angry at me for having an opinion.
I admit my use of the phrase "drama queen" was probably in poor taste. It's not because I hate gay guys, though. Seriously, my favorite thing in the world is having another fag suck my dick.
Why I disagree with you: because being fired for speaking out on the issue of homophobia in schools gets people fired. Mr. Fietek isn't being a "drama queen," he's stating the truth. You seem to either be ignorance of this fact, or to not want to acknowledge it. Which isn't something unique to you; scroll through the comments on the story and you'll find plenty of people agreeing with you - usually the same people who are making claims that homosexuality is a moral perversion.
ReplyDeleteI've answered your question, you answer mine: how does one speak out without sounding like a "drama queen"?
Rather than comparing homosexual credentials with you, Kenny, I'm just going to say "internalized homophobia" and be done with it.
@Barb from Batavia
ReplyDeleteSweet Soviet Christ are you angry! I was just riffing on their production choices....you make it sound like I go into the Castro with a Colt .45 hunting for gay teenagers as a weekend diversion. For the record I think that US high schools suck for everybody, even the popular people, and that they suck shit through a straw for the gay, transgendered, sexually ambivalent teenagers. So please don't pull your Helen Lovejoy "think of the children!!" crap; I know the facts, thank you very much.