Is your 5 year old gay? How would you know? How would your child? Let’s be real, no five year old is educated enough on the world and the way it works, let alone sex and their bodies, to identify as gay or lesbian. So why are some parents preparing to enroll children as young as age 5 in Atlanta’s first K-12 LGBT school?
Is your 5 year old gay? How would you know? How would your child? Let’s be real, no five year old is educated enough on the world and the way it works, let alone sex and their bodies, to identify as gay or lesbian. So why are some parents preparing to enroll children as young as age 5 in Atlanta’s first K-12 LGBT school?
Pride School Atlanta website welcomes you with an open call to find a place where you can “be yourself”. I’m sure we all want everyone to be “themselves” and that is what makes the idea of this school so disturbing.
“Are you seeking a school community where you can be yourself personally, socially, and academically? You’ve found it! Need training for your school, organization or business? Looking to volunteer? Now accepting inquiries for ages 5-18 for Fall 2016 as well as providing support, mentors and tutoring upon request. Sliding scale tutors available in our community who will honor you and your family.” Reads their website.
When you’re talking about a child of kindergarten age ( age 5) it is impossible for me to conceive that enrolling them in a LGBT school is encouraging them to be “them.” At the young age of 5 a child has not experienced enough of their own life to differentiate between what they like sexually, nor should they be tasked to think about it.If you are enrolling your 5 year old into a school specifically for gay, lesbian,bisexual and trans-gendered youth then you are denying them a chance to figure out who they are . You are directly influencing who they will become by surrounding them with the ideals and beliefs you wish them to have.
I can understand why some same sex couples would WANT to do this, but not that they would actually do it. I know it is hard to see your child hurt, harder to see them hurting because of a decision you made. Growing up with same sex parents is not easy. It’s a lot easier than it used to be but that doesn’t mean that the change in attitude in society is happening fast enough. Children have been teased, bullied and even asked to leave a school ( private schools) when news of their two mommy’s or daddy’s became public knowledge.
I can understand the parent of a LGBT TEEN wanting their child in a school that was geared towards their safety while being educated. Who could be insensitive enough to not understand the plight of a child trying to figure out themselves AND which bathroom they can safely use. No one wants to hear about a LGBT student being assaulted while just trying to use the restroom and we know it HAS happened.
We live in a diverse society when there is black white and gray, people of all colors, nationalities, religions and sexual preferences. No one can avoid this. Everywhere we go we run the risk of encountering those who do not think and act like us. We have already tried separate but equal and realized that is not a world we want to live in. Unity as a country is what we seek, united people in these united states. If a politician had suggested, let alone demanded that there be separate schools for blacks, whites or LGBT students the world would have come to a stand still. People would be picketing, petitions would be circulating. Why would you want to separate your children and teach them that is the way to deal with people who are different or who don’t act and think like them.
We must teach all of our children to get along. We must find a way to come together peacefully. If you put your child in a LGBT school what are you protecting them against? Will they have a separate school bus with only LGBT students? Who will their sports teams play against? Who will the debate team argue against? Other schools? If this is the only LGBT school of it’s type in the area then what? SO it’s okay for your kids to walk the streets, ride the bus, play sports with, play in the neighborhood with straight children but NOT attend school? It sounds ridiculous when I say it doesn’t it. It will look more ridiculous when it’s in practice.
We live in a society that throws the word “gay” around as if it is a noun ( person , place or thing) instead of an adjective ( word used to describe attributes). The concept of masculinity is so fragile. A man is accused of being gay based on his clothing, his hair style, his friends, his choice of music, hobbies and even recently the way they dance. We have become a society that alludes to the idea that masculinity comes in one form and looks the same from every angle. You could say the same about femininity.
Ideas like this school are dangerous. They give the illusion that kids can isolate into a LGBT infused world and encourages separatism in a world where the LGBT members of society are fighting for equality.
The idea for the Pride School Atlanta came about when Christian Zsilavetz, a trans-gendered teacher asked his then principal if he could come out as trans-gendered to his students. Basically he was told stop trying to change other people schools and start his own if he wanted that kind of transparency. Pride School Atlanta is a non profit organization that currently identifies as a “floating school” They are seeking donations to fully realize their dream of being a fully functioning brick and mortar school. Tuition for students will be around $13,000 and financial aid will be available according to Atlanta World Daily.
There doesn’t seem to be any major opposition coming out of Atlanta however. I haven’t even heard major buzz about the school building yet. Nor complaints that this is not a LGBT middle or high school where the children must be of an age where they have some real idea of their sexuality. Maybe the silence and complacency is a sign that there are more gay and lesbian 5 year olds than I realized.
For more information on the Pride School Atlanta
