Schools work to
eliminate `gay'
as an offensive taunt
By Susie Pakoua Vang
and Christina Vance
From sunharold.com
from the Web, March 11, 2007
FRESNO, Calif. Mar.10 --
Saying "that's so gay" is a common way for kids to dismiss something as silly or
weird.
At one Fresno elementary school, it also could lead to punishment.
Gibson Elementary sent a letter home Feb. 26 asking parents to talk to their
children about using inappropriate language on school grounds.
Some Gibson students have been throwing the phrase "that's gay" around, and it
violates the school's teaching on respect, Principal Helen Cabe said.
Consequences could include detention or other discipline.
"We're trying to get it stopped," she said.
Although the letter appears to prohibit Gibson students from even using the word
"gay," Cabe said, the school is not trying to ban the word. "We're just
trying to stop the inappropriate use of it," she said.
Lena Fisher's son, a Gibson fourth-grader, was suspended for one day on Jan. 30
for saying "that's gay" during a soccer game on the playground.
When Fisher was asked to pick up her 9-year-old in the middle of a school day,
"I was kind of surprised, because my son never gets in trouble."
Fisher said she and her son accepted the punishment, although she thought a
suspension was a little excessive. But, she said, her son knew it was
wrong. She also doesn't condone using the word.
"I truly believe it's a disrespectful term," Fisher said. "That's probably
why I'm not running to the attorney's office to make a point."
Fisher said she wants Fresno Unified to have a policy that specifically
addresses what's considered appropriate for using the term "gay" and a uniform
set of consequences for its inappropriate use.
Three weeks after her son's suspension, Fisher found out that a Gibson student
who had called some students "gay" was only sent to the principal's office for
punishment.
Fisher said that when she pointed out the inconsistent punishments to the
principal, Cabe apologized and said she was going to rescind the record of
Fisher's son's suspension because officials have wide discretion in how to
punish students for using the word "gay."
"I felt like it was very unfair for her not to think through the whole process
for one, and two, it's very confusing to the kids," Fisher said. "Can you
say (gay), can you not say it? It's just not very consistent."
A letter was sent home to parents shortly after, she said.
Cabe said she could not discuss discipline of a specific student.
She said that the punishment for using the phrase will depend on the
circumstances in which it was used.
Although there isn't a policy that solely focuses on the word "gay," the
inappropriate use of the word does fall under state education code on
anti-harassment policies, according to California's Fresno, Clovis, Central and
Visalia unified school district leaders.
"Our policies try not to be very specific because we need to apply them very
broadly," said Kelly Avants, spokeswoman for Clovis Unified.
There also isn't a "one-size-fits-all" punishment for students who use
ill-intentioned words, said Pete Summers, executive director for Fresno
Unified's prevention and intervention.
District leaders have said consequences could include verbal warning, student
counseling, parent meetings, suspension or expulsion.
People have used phrases such as "that's so gay" for years, said Clovis Unified
School District spokeswoman Kelly Avants.
"The majority of times, it's not directed toward a person. It's a
thoughtless thing" that calls for correction by adults in Clovis schools, she
said.
Whether the phrase is meant hatefully or not, it can upset students, said Robin
McGehee, Central Valley Program Coordinator for the Gay-Straight Alliance
Network, a youth-led organization that connects school-based Gay-Straight
Alliances to each other and community resources.
"It's an insulting and demeaning comment, and it's become a catchphrase that
everyone uses," she said. But "it's still something that we socially
accept."
McGehee applauded Fresno Unified for providing training for high school students
for the past two years.
"I think it's profound that they're starting at an elementary level," she said.
"I wish that across the board, there's more of a unified effort to teach people
about discriminating statements."
She said teachers and administrators should address inappropriate use of the
word "gay" immediately and students should be reprimanded as determined by
policy.
But Alex Cleghorn, a staff attorney with American Civil Liberties Union for the
Northern California branch, said it's important for school officials to analyze
each case individually.
"Context really matters," he said. "While the school and state in general
have a responsibility to make sure every student has a harassment-free learning
environment, those need to be balanced against free speech concerns."
Fresno Bee staff writer Anne Dudley Ellis contributed to this
report.
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