Is LGBT Using Day of Silence As a Recruiting Tool? Part Three

In part one of this series I noted that teens are self-absorbed weiners who will pick on one another for any number of reasons. In part two, I provided an example of adults in a position of authority encouraging teens to break the rules for the benefit of the adults.

Parents, have you heard about April 16, The Day of Silence? Well, educate yourselves. On April 16, teenagers in high schools throughout the Country are being encouraged to tape their mouths shut as a protest to bring attention to " . . . anti-LGBT (lesbian, gay, bi-sexual, transgender) name-calling, bullying and harassment . . ." The website, www.dayofsilence.org, cites the following:

On April 6, 2009, Carl Walker-Hoover took his life after enduring constant bullying, including anti-LGBT bullying. Though Carl did not identify as gay, his story is a tragic reminder that anti-LGBT bullying and harassment affects all students. Carl would have turned 12 on the 2009 Day of Silence.

So a website encouraging a protest against lesbian, gay, bi-sexual, and trans-gender bullying is citing as an example a student who did not identify himself as gay, as the below-the-fold story to support this action. He may have been taunted as "gay", teased, bullied, and all around treated like shit by other students -- but he did not identify himself as gay. Thus, this despicable act was bullying, plain and simple. In South Hadley, MA, 15-year-old Phoebe Prince was bullied until she committed suicide. As best can be determined, she gave in sexually to an older boy and was labeled as a "slut".

As the CDC states that only 2% of people within the U.S. identify themselves as "gay, lesbian, or bi-sexual, but we know females account for 51% of the co-ed high school student populace, perhaps we need to organize a protest for students to drape the trees and bushes in underwear to bring attention to SLUT (Students Liberated of Underwear and Thongs).

This may seem silly, but any more so than www.dayofsilence.org encouraging students to tape their mouths? Day of Silence is a registered trademark of www.glsen.org. What is GLSEN, you ask? The Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network was founded in 1990 as the Gay and Lesbian Independent School Teachers Network. This was not founded by students, for students, but as an organization of gay and lesbian school teachers.

"Why, Darren, are you so bothered by this protest?", you may ask. Because students should be in school for an education, not political indoctrination. Public schools are not the forum or the place for a political agenda regarding sexual preference. If students believe a protest is necessary to bring attention to bullying, then it should be for ALL whom are bullied. Equality is not represented by manufacturing a supposed minority then elevating a common cause to one in which they are the sole beneficiaries.

"Darren, why do you hate gay people so much? GLSEN is just trying to right a wrong."

I do not hate gay people. My first boss was gay, I have friends and family who are gay, when I worked for the Marriott Hotel I was one of a handful in my department who were not gay. I accept all people based upon their merits, not upon their skin color, religion, or sexual preference. Because, to get past the politics, that's all GLBT is, a statement of sexual preference.

How a person engages in sexual congress should not elevate them to special status.

So, if there is a problem in schools, deal with it. Parents get involved in your children's lives. As school is a large-group social activity (LGSA), it's not enough to ask, "What did you learn today?" If they're depressed, find out why. If they're angry, find out why. Do not be afraid of an honest conversation. If you believe they are having sex, be prepared to ask without anger. If they are having sex with someone of the same sex, you can parent without condoning. Keeping them safe is more than handing out condoms, it's providing an environment where they feel safe, can ask questions and express concerns.

Taping a mouth shut only briefly shines a light upon a single audience. Talking openly with your children will save a life.