In 1974 the National Education Association added 'sexual orientation' to its resolution on nondiscriminatory personnel policies. Diversity training, which includes acceptance of the gay and lesbian lifestyles, became the requirement for educational administrators, teachers and students.
CLAGS
In the 1980's gay and lesbian studies developed in universities across the country. The Center for Lesbian and Gay Studies (CLAGS), was established by the Graduate School of the City University of New York in 1991 with a grant from the Paul Rapoport Foundation, a major supporter of gay/lesbian concerns. CLAGS operated as a clearinghouse for scholarly research, conferences and public programs on gay related issues. It also prepared syllabi and curriculum supporting gay and lesbian studies for all grade levels.
GLSEN
Seventy gay and lesbian educators formed the Gay and Lesbian Independent School Network (GLSTN) in 1990 to form Gay-Straight Alliances (GSA's) with the policy of protecting lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) students. Chapters were established across the country. Kevin Jennings, one of the founders, was hired as it's first full time staff person. In 1997, GLSTN changed it's name to Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network (GLSEN). GLSEN has registered more than 4,000 GSA's on school campuses and grew to 40 full time staff. GLSEN sponsors the National Day of Silence at schools across the country to bring attention to the silence caused by anti-LGBT bullying.
The Rainbow Curriculum
The gay agenda sought to promote tolerance and understanding of the gay/lesbian lifestyles in the public schools and to normalize these lifestyles in the public perception. In the early 1990's, elementary curriculum entitled Children of the Rainbow encouraged diversity and inclusion of non-European, women and gay and lesbian history in every stage of education from kindergarten through high school. Books supporting gay and lesbian families and the gay lifestyles were included in school curriculum.
It's Elementary -
In 1999, a ninety-minute video, entitled It's Elementary: Talking About Gay and Lesbian Issues in School was shown on public broadcasting stations across the country. The video showed elementary grade-level classroom discussions about homosexuality. Young homosexuals informed the students of the five gender orientations: male, female, gay, lesbian, and bisexual.
BACKLASH
When the video, Elementary: Talking About Gay and Lesbian Issues in School aired across the country, groups opposing the use of the schools to promote homosexuality staged protests. In San Antonio, Texas, 200 protestors picketed Public Broadcasting station KLRN to protest the showing.
The normalization of homosexuality became 'politically correct' in academic and educational settings. Silence was no longer imposed upon those supporting gay rights, rather those seeking to challenge the gay lifestyle were violently attacked and intimidated.
Diversity training
Diversity training sometimes became sessions of intimidation. At the University of Delaware, student Countney Halligan was not opposed to attending the required training. She soon changed her mind. In one-on-one sessions students were encouraged to speak openly about their sexuality and gay students felt pressured to publicly out themselves. The program was suspended in response to student complaints and pressure from the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education , a Philadelphia based civil liberties advocacy group. The school's vice president for student life said, "The university had good intentions...but the way the program was run was unacceptable."
Educational Materials Promote Homosexuality
When same-sex marriage became legal in Massachusetts in 2003, pro-homosexual picture books were placed in the classrooms in the name of tolerance and diversity. Robin Wirthlin was puzzled when her 2nd grade son came home and reported to her about a story at school of a prince who didn't like the princesses his mother brought home. He fell in love with a prince and married him. Wirthlin was concerned that books like this were read to grade-schoolers. She questioned the teacher who said it was the school district's mandate to read pro-gay lifestyle books to her students. Another couple, David and Tonia Parker, were also concerned when their kindergarten son brought home a "Diversity Book Bag" which included a picture book called Who's in a Family? . The text began "Laura and Kyle live with their two moms,... Robin's family is made up of her dad,Clifford, her dad's partner...".
When the Wirthlins and the Parkers filed suit against the town of Lexinton asking to exempt their children from teaching about homosexuality, The U.S. District Chief Judge Mark Wolf ruled against parental rights stating, "The (state)Constitution does not ...permeit the Parkers and the Wirthlins to exempt their children from teaching about homosexuality or same-sex marriage." He wrote, "After all, if a few parents could do it, others would follow, maybe in vast numbers."
Intimidation
In 1993, David Woodward, a political science professor at Clemson University, was asked to serve as an expert witness for the state of Colorado to testify about the political power of homosexual groups in America. When he testified in support of traditional values he discovered that to publicly oppose gay rights was "the equivalent to being sent to the university Gulag". He was labeled 'ideologically incompatible' with the values of the university, the press attacked him viciously, and he often found the word 'Homophobe' scribbled on his office door. In his book, Why We Whisper:Restoring Our Right to Say it's Wrong, Woodward and coauthor, Jim DeMint, point out, "freedom of speech is crucial in any democracy...The demise of good government comes when this conversation is abbreviated."
Concerned Groups Speak Out
Concerned Christians and groups supporting traditional family values worked tirelessly to challenge and oppose the gay takeover of educational institutions.
The Tradional Values Coalition networks with 43,000 churches to provide materials for pro-family lobbying activities. The director, Rev. Louis P. Sheldon writes, "Children have long been targets of homosexual activists...GLSEN has established Gay Straight Alliance clubs in hundreds of junior and senior high schools. The goal of GLSEN is to convince sexually confused children that they were 'born gay'...The Day of Silence is supposed to give students a chance to protest alleged discrimination against homosexual, bi-sexual, and transgender students...In reality, the effort is designed to intimidate and silence any opposition to the homosexual agenda..."
Concerned Women for American (CWA) holds community and state events and informs the public of issues affecting the family. In 2007 a notice was sent to parents and grandparents of school-aged children stating. "The term 'Radical Homosexual Agenda' refers to a movement begun approximately 25 years ago to 'normalize' homosexuality and other deviant behaviors within our culture...Their rally cry is 'Whoever controls the schools controls the future.' High on their agenda is to expose children to sex at earlier and earlier ages in our schools..."
When President Barack Obama nominated Kevin Jennings, the founder of GLSEN, to be Assistant Deputy Secretary of Education, in charge of the Office of Safe and Drug Free Schools, CWA founder, Beverly LaHaye wrote, "Jennings and GLSEN have one goal: promote homosexuality and transexuality to children through schools - away from the protection of parents, churches, doctors and others who know homosexual acts are unsafe, immoral and damaging..."
Dr James Dobson, founder of Focus on the Family, also expressed deep concern about the appointment of Kevin Jennings as the head of the Office of Safe and Drug Free Schools. Dobson states, "What hypocrisy!...He has written five books advocating homosexual teaching in the schools and elsewhere, as well as the foreward to a widely publicized book titled Queering Elementary Education."
The battle over control of education will continue as groups supporting and opposing the normalization of gay and lesbian lifestyles seek to influence the teaching of the next generation.
REFERENCES
Buss, Dale. "Homosexual rights go to school." Christianity Today. Vol. 37, No. 6(May 17) 1993:70-72.
Colson, Charles. "The Whisper Zone:Why We're Losing Our Right to Speak Out." Breakpoint. Prison Fellowship Ministries. May 1, 2008.
Curtis, Barbara. "in the beginning." Citizen. Vol.22, No.3. March, 2008:24-27. Focus on the Family. Colorado Springs, CO.
Dobson, James. Dr Dobson's Newsletter. Focus on the Family, Colorado Springs, CO. Nov.2009:3.
Dorsett, Amy. "Protest in S.A. targets KLRM." San Antonio Express News. July 3, 1999:1B.
Elder, Gene. "Gay/lesbian studies:outof the closet, into college." San Antonio Express News/ Nov.3, 1991:4M
GLSEN. "Our Mission. Our History". http://www.glsen./org/chi-bin/iowa/all/about/history/index.html. 1/21/2010.
LaHaye, Beverly. Concerned Women for America newsletter. Fall, 2009.
Sheldon, Reverend Louis P. It's Not Really About Marriage: The Radical Homosexual Agenda to Undermine American Culture." Traditional Values Coalition. Washington DC. 2005:14-15.
The Gay Almanac. National Museum & Archive of Lesbian and Gay History. NY:Berkley Books. 1996:180-186.
Watson, Jamal. "When Diversity Training Goes Awry." http://diverseeducation.com/cache/print.php?articleId=10543. 1/22/2010.
Wednesday, February 3, 2010
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