No Support for School District’s New LGBT Issues Policy

In a Minnesota school district, a proposed new policy on discussion of "controversial topics" such as homosexuality is apparently satisfying no one.

The Anoka-Hennepin district, which encompasses several suburbs of the Twin Cities and is the largest in the state, has seen several student suicides in the past few years and is the subject of lawsuits that allege it offers a hostile environment to LGBT students. Current policy requires teachers to remain neutral in discussions of sexual orientation.

The proposed replacement still mandates that teachers avoid stating personal opinions on allegedly controversial subjects but acknowledges the importance of classroom discussion on such issues. About 80 people attended a school board meeting on the matter Monday night, and 30 testified, no one in favor, the Associated Press reports. Some saw the suggested changes as no improvement and wanted a different solution, while others wanted to maintain the status quo.

Teachers' union president Julie Blaha said she favors dropping the existing policy but thinks the new one will not solve problems. She expressed concern that, as written, it could define a student's very identity as controversial. "We need to clearly differentiate between what is an issue and what is somebody's identity," she said. "We agree that teachers should not promote a personal agenda in the classroom. Our role's not to tell students what to think but help them think more deeply."

The Reverend Margo Richardson, a Christian Church-Disciples of Christ minister who is gay, voiced similar objections. "There is no neutral or middle-of-the-road position here," she said. "You either believe it is OK for some students to die so others won't be made uncomfortable, or you don't. Gay students deserve the same respect for who they are that every other student in this district gets. Craft a policy that protects students' lives, not a policy that protects prejudice."

Also, two high school seniors presented the board with petitions bearing 350 signatures against both the current policy and the proposed new one, AP notes.

Some more conservative citizens testified in favor of keeping the present policy. "I don't want my kids educated on morality. ... I want them educated on the basics," said Mary Jane Milless, whose children attended parochial school through eighth grade before going to a public high school in the district.

The board is scheduled to vote on the new policy January 23, but the date could change if it revisits the wording, chairman Tom Heidemann said.