Comments on: >U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan Releases Statement on Recent LGBT Youth Tragedies

By: Jimmy

Jimmy — Wed, 06 Oct 2010 13:50:25 +0000

>Maybe if gay marriage was made legal in this country, people would see that it's nothing to bully about. These young, young people lost their lives. How sad. And what is the school doing? NOTHING. What are any schools doing to prevent bullying? NOTHING. It's not only the countries and people who are bullying, but also the schools. This country is a hypocrite. We say all men are created equal, and we have our unalienable rights, but NO. They are not. When religion steps into this conflict, we're with the christans, but when it comes to a god in school, NO. We don't want our kids to say "one nation under god," or be able to pray. It's complete and total hypocrisy. I am very, very sad to say that I am NOT proud to be an American.

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Tue, 05 Oct 2010 23:36:28 +0000

>I'm a teacher at the high school level, and at the beginning of the year (and throughout as necessary), I address the issue that no profanity, including ANY slurs (whether the "f" word ends in a "k" or a "g") are unacceptable. Neither is bullying.

The school climate, however, can be another story. As a lowly teacher who's part of this education machine, I need not only administrative support with this particular issue, but also sensitivity training for the rest of the staff: a school climate change has to start with EVERYONE on board.

If the resources for professional development are out there, I haven't been able to easily access or find them. Help?

Thanks, GLSEN. I'm so glad you exist.

(Sorry for the cliches; I'm off-duty.)

By: Mike Airhart

Mike Airhart — Sat, 02 Oct 2010 16:19:38 +0000

>Duncan apparently said nothing that couldn't have been said by former President Bush, Focus on the Family, or other opponents of the Safe Schools Improvement Act.

I'm grateful for GLSEN's work. But as GLSEN knows, we need action, not words.

By: MarilynMuller

MarilynMuller — Sat, 02 Oct 2010 11:24:27 +0000

>We all need to open our hearts and minds to the diversity of our
citizens. We need to educate out children from an early age. Bullying of any kind must not be allowed anywhere, and it does take many forms, including constant verbal teasing and harassment. Please no more.

Gay or straight we are all equal!

By: Thomas Leavitt

Thomas Leavitt — Fri, 01 Oct 2010 22:48:28 +0000

>That boy could easily, easily, easily have been me. I appreciate GLSEN's efforts, and the Secretary's statement, which I'm sure is sincere… but a mere press release is NOT ENOUGH. We have CHILDREN, DYING… the Obama Administration has the ability to drive the media cycle. A statement from the President, personally delivered, acknowledging these tragedies, and the pain and suffering the attitudes underlying it inflict on young (and old) queer people every day, has the ability to vault this to the forefront of the national discussion. Has the ability to penetrate the consciousness of the average American, even the average American teenager, to let the good hearted ones know it is o.k. to speak up for their friends, and the clueless ones know this is not o.k., and the mean ones know there will be consequences. I AM NOT SATISFIED. I WILL NOT BE PUT OFF BY A PRESS RELEASE. Please keep the pressure up on the White House.

By: DevoPro

DevoPro — Fri, 01 Oct 2010 22:16:09 +0000

>GLSEN's steadfast leadership on this issue is fantastic. It's heartbreaking that we need to push Duncan so hard, but I'm hopeful knowing GLSEN is working so hard to get the Safe School bill passed while changing hearts and minds in schools across the country.

By: MattyMatt

MattyMatt — Fri, 01 Oct 2010 21:44:11 +0000

>It's just absolutely heartbreaking that this is happening.

We're trying to gather up a comprehensive list of the vigils, memorials, and rallies to remember these lives and mark Coming Out Week. Here's the site where we're doing that: http://makeitbetterproject.com/

If you know of any events, please feel free to add them to the calendar.