An East Bay School district is trying to decide whether or not to approve of books that are meant to stop bullying, but parents are becoming concerned by some of the material that is presented in the books. The books are set to be approved Tuesday for use in the Alameda Unified School Disctrict's elementary schools. The books add lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people to the "don't bully" list. One example that concerns parents is that the book promotes a family with two mothers. Some parents said that they would rather see a book promote all types of families, which include single parents and a family with a mother and a father." The LGBT community is part of our community, and all groups need to be respected," School Board President Ron Mooney said. He also says, "I don't think that anyone would complain that we teach about Martin Luther King making demands about civil rights." On the other hand, Karen Cook (a parent) says, "It's telling people to ome out, and 'you need to be proud and you identify with this lifestyle,' that's not something the schools should be telling children." This program has been in the works for more than a year now. The original list of book was decreased from 100 to 20 per classroom.
I think it's sad that it seems like people are still living in the dark. Parents should realize that if children learn that it's wrong to bully people based on their sexual preferences, they'll be less likely to bully people when they're older. I think it's a great program that the school district is trying to introduce. Honestly, there should be more programs like this. It's parents like Karen Cook that are still holding the country back. I can somewhat understand where she's coming from, but I don't agree with her.
Tuesday Late Night Open Thread
6 hours ago
3 comments:
I agree. This should be stopped. Parents need to realize that bulling IS bullying and it is a issue that needs to be stressed among young children. No matter if it is gay or not bullying is the issue and that is all that parents should take in to account. They should let these books come into the school and ignore parental opinions.
Unfortunately, regardless of whatever progress the most recent generations have made regarding gay rights, there are still rather conservative families that believe in the "old-school" ideas that go against gay rights and liberalism in general. I agree with Sabina in that I think in this specific case, the families are against this book because they're focusing on the more liberal ideas that "rub them the wrong way", going against their conservative views. If they could just focus on the real problem of bullying, they'd see the bigger picture and more pressing matter.
-Annie Yand
On the other hand, Karen Cook (a parent) says, "It's telling people to ome out, and 'you need to be proud and you identify with this lifestyle,' that's not something the schools should be telling children."
Why isn't this something that schools should be telling children? Schools tell you to be proud of things like your religion, ethnicity, etc--and to celebrate differences. I think that her statement and the "inappropriate" argument is a lame cover up for homophobia. School should be a place where positive behavior and accepting one another is taught. I agree, Alexandra.
-Katie Jensen
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