Let’s make a deal

Posted on February 8, 2007 by David

From the Department of Special Rights:

Following the offer (more than generous, in my view) of a mutual moratorium on public “face-sucking” and other bad behavior, Jim from Box Turtle Bulletin continues the negotiations:

And I also don’t want to see you holding hands, or calling your sweetheart by any pet names in public, not even “sweetheart.” No dancing together in public, no flagrant hand-holding, no in-your-face wedding announcements. As far as I’m concerned, you can just keep your flamboyant antics to yourself.

And I don’t want to hear anything about dates the morning after, or marriages or spouses or anything, you know, “yucky.” I don’t want to hear about where you went for your honeymoon or anniversary or St. Valentine’s day. And that picture you keep on your desk at work, the one where he has his arms around you. I can’t even begin to tell you how inappropriate that is.

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Listening to youth?

Posted on February 5, 2007 by David

Loudoun County is “listening to youth” – except when “somebody” might object to what they have to say.

It turns out that the Loudoun Youth Initiative, created, endorsed and administered by county government to address the problems identified by youth, is now being barred from communicating with youth through the school system.

The groundbreaking project Normal (“A new show on bullying that every teen and adult must see”) cannot be advertised through flyers posted on school property or sent home with students, said school administrators.

Why? According to the Leesburg Today, because of the policy governing school plays adopted last year in response to the temper tantrums of anti-gay activists. It seems that the LCPS administration is nervous about not having previewed the play, and afraid of another public uproar.

Normal, according to the county Web site, is an original theater production focused on teens and bullying. Two dozen teens in Loudoun County developed the play with aims to expose the life of teens as they work through issues surrounding bullying, self-esteem, decision-making and being authentic.

The Loudoun Youth Initiative took root in 2004 after a county board action and is in collaboration with the county government, county public school system, business leaders and community and faith-based organizations. According to the county Web site, the goal of Loudoun Youth Initiative is to “coordinate and implement … substantial resources to address challenges identified by Loudoun’s youth.”

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Marshall/Newman, phone home

Posted on February 4, 2007 by David

This is your bill.
(Full text)

Since the proponents of so-called “marriage amendments” insist that marriage exists solely for the purpose of procreation, and the Washington Supreme Court has cited a “legitimate state interest” in defining marriage exclusively for the purpose of procreation and child-rearing, a group of concerned Washington citizens has endeavored to give this definition the full force of law:

…The first initiative will make procreation a requirement for legal marriage. The second would prohibit divorce or separation when a married couple has children together…

Since Delegate Marshall has already introduced a version of the second measure in Virginia, we eagerly await the Virginia counterpart of this:

If passed by Washington voters, the “Defense of Marriage Initiative” would:

  • add the phrase, “who are capable of having children with one another” to the legal definition of marriage;
  • require that couples married in Washington file proof of procreation within three years of the date of marriage or have their marriage automatically annulled;
  • require that couples married out of state file proof of procreation within three years of the date of marriage or have their marriage classed as “unrecognized;”
  • establish a process for filing proof of procreation; and
  • make it a criminal act for people in an unrecognized marriage to receive marriage benefits.

The best part is that Marshall and Newman will probably agree that this is a good idea.

Hat tips to Waldo and Vivian.

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Kicking the vulnerable

Posted on February 2, 2007 by David

The Roanoke Times gets it, perfectly.

This extraordinarily dishonest bill, initially killed in committee on a tie vote, has been reconsidered with substitute language that would require either express written permission or an opportunity for parents to opt their children out of individual clubs.

Claims that this bill is not intended to target Gay/Straight Alliances are laughable. See this statement by the bill’s patron, Matt Lohr, and this one, from the Some Families Foundation. Same garbage, different year.

This is still a bad bill, for the same reasons it was a bad bill before: It intentionally denies support and information to the youth who need it the most – the ones who are afraid to talk to their parents about their sexuality. It would do precisely the opposite of its stated intention of “involving parents,” since, as pointed out in the editorial below, students seek advice from GSAs about how to involve their parents.

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The Laramie Project in Jefferson County

Posted on February 1, 2007 by David

The award-winning theater department of Jefferson High School (located just across the border in West Virginia) will be presenting The Laramie Project next week. Shows are February 7th through the 11th (click on the graphic for times and ticket information).

Jefferson High School
4141 Flowing Springs Road
Shenandoah Junction, WV 25442
Directions and map

Kudos to these students and the drama department at Jefferson for having the courage to do this. They also seem to be getting some significant support from the community – the production is funded in part by the Arts and Humanities Allaince of Jefferson County, the West Virginia Division of Culture and History, and the West Virginia Commission of the Arts.

Fortunately, they don’t have to worry about the sociopathic Phelps clan showing up to “protest,” as Westboro Baptist Church has a previous engagement to bother the good people of York, Pennsylvania that weekend.

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Words That Hurt — and Heal

Posted on January 26, 2007 by David

Good work, Tully!

Play Gives Voice to Teens’ Experiences With Bullying, Friends, Fitting In

Washington Post
January 25, 2007
By Arianne Aryanpur

Tully Satre, 17, says he knows what it’s like to be bullied. He knows how it feels to be called names and ostracized.

“I’m gay and I go to a Catholic school. You get the picture there,” said the senior at Notre Dame Academy in Middleburg.

Lest any of our elected officials begin to hyperventilate at the thought that this is a “gay play”: No. This is a play about what everyone has in common – the capacity to bully and to be bullied.

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Normal

Posted on January 23, 2007 by David

– A guest blog by Tully Satre –

Normal.

Many generations have fought to figure out how to conform to this very adjective.

Few have returned; none have succeeded.

Why? The concept is rather simple; normal is virtually nonexistent.

Last summer, the Loudoun Youth Initiative commissioned the Creative Youth Theater Foundation (“CY”) to create an original show about bullying. After two auditions, CY cast 26 teenagers, representing nine Loudoun schools and a number of surrounding counties, to write and compose a show.

I am one of those teenagers. For the past two years, I fought bullying in Richmond as the founder and director of Equality Fauquier/Culpeper. Now, along with the CY cast, I fight bullying among my peers.

Working with my friends, as they have each become, has truly been a gift. From the first day we all met, we became family. We were all there with at least two things in common: we have bllied and have been bullied. For the past four months we have continued a dialogue reflecting upon our own encounters with bullying. The product: Normal, a show that exposes bullying as it stands in our own community.

As we have discovered, “normal” is a completely subjective conception. Each culture, clique, community and person sets standards for what they define as normal. There is no one definition or classification of what normal is or can be, and that is exactly the point we have already made in creating this show.

Normal is a show that addresses the issue of bullying rather than ignoring it. Bullying is yet another attempt to tarnish diversity. Through this show, a mirror will be placed before the audience that will reflect a piece of our lives that many of us have chosen to ignore. We have all been bullies. We have all been bullied. With this show, we will create a dialogue in our educational community as well as the world around us. Normal is the seed to a budding solution.

—Tully Satre was honored as a Capital Pride Hero in 2006. He became an advocate for GLBT youth after being outed in his middle school, going on to found Equality Fauquier/Culpeper at the age of 16. He currently serves as executive director of EF/C. Tully also founded Commonwealth Education Equality Virginia (CEEVA/StandEqual) an organization that supports the establishment of gay-straight alliances in schools. He has been interviewed by The Washington Blade, The New York Times and The Advocate, whose website now features his blog. While contributing his considerable talent to this project of the Loudoun Youth Initiative, Tully is also finishing his senior year of high school in Loudoun County.

Normal will tour with five performances (admission is free to all shows):

  • February 9th at 7:30pm at Potomac Falls High School (Sterling)
  • February 10th at 8:00pm at The Hill School (Middleburg)
  • February 11th at 3:00pm at Heritage High School (Leesburg)
  • February 17th at 7:30pm at Franklin Park Performing and
    Visual Arts Center (Purcellville)
  • February 18th at 3:00pm at Stonebridge High School (Ashburn)

From the Step Up Loudoun website:

“Normal” An original theater production about teens and bullying

This February, the Creative Youth Theater Foundation in collaboration with the Loudoun Youth Initiative will present this fresh, timely and poignant piece of theater. The production is entirely created and developed by 26 teenagers from all over Loudoun County. The cast ranges in age from 12-19 years old.

“Normal” dives into the inner and outer life of teenagers as they work through all the issues surrounding bullying: self esteem, making choices, being authentic, and being the person you want to be. Directed by Tom Sweitzer, Kim Tapper, and Rick Conway of the Creative Youth Theater Foundation, the show is geared towards teenagers ranging in age from 12-18, their parents and community members.

There will be a half hour question and answer session with the cast members following each production.

After the censorship and bullying travesties of the past few years, this is awesome. We encourage everyone to go see this production. Go! Go!

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