A good solution to a big gay problem

In yet another victory for the gay community, California Gov. Jerry Brown signed a bill on July 14 to make his state the first to institute “gay history” in its social studies curriculum .

The information presented to students will be based around prominent members of the Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender community and some of their significant achievements.

The new course material is set to take effect as early as the 2013-14 school year.

The innovator of the bill is state Sen. Mark Leno, D-San Fransisco, who feels that students being introduced to these sorts of issues will improve tolerance and acceptance of nonconventional lifestyles.

The legislation was met with a variety of mixed emotions from every side of the issue. Opponents of the bill, which include many religious and conservative groups, such as The Traditional Values Coalition, fear that teaching children about gay issues will promote homosexuality.

Rev. Louis Sheldon, the founder of the Traditional Values Coalition, which represents 8,300 churches across California, said he had negative feelings on the issue. 

“It is an outrage that Governor Jerry Brown has opened the classroom doors for homosexual activists to indoctrinate the minds of California’s youth,” Sheldon told the Christian Post, a Christian news website.

I personally find it absurd that homosexuality could be indoctrinated into the minds of youths through legislation like this.

However, proponents of the bill believe raising awareness about gay issues will help to alleviate bullying of gay and lesbian students.

Over the past year, the media was soaked with cases of gay individuals, most prominently high school aged teens, doing horrible acts to harm and sometimes kill themselves just because they lacked acceptance by their tormenting peers.

This is exactly what legislation like this is trying to prevent. When this train of thought is used, it makes perfect sense to ensure that an environment of tolerance be taught in public school systems.

History seems to be repeating itself again. During the civil rights movement, many religious conservatives felt race mixing in public schools would lead to all sorts of abominations.

I think we can all agree those intense political allegations were unfounded, unreasonable, immoral and unethical. That being said, I see no reason why this situation is any different.

It is common knowledge that being a teenager in high school trying to find his or her own personal identity is difficult enough.

Add on top of that the torment and ridicule they receive from ignorant and intolerant peers, and the burden often becomes too great.

It is imperative that some sort of education be implemented to help throw out the stigma attached to being a GLBT youth.

The thought that gays would use the public school system to try to convert or influence children is nothing but a fear-based tactic to keep Christian fundamentalism alive and well.

­— ogwise@indiana.edu