Inappropriate Fliers Upset Students’ Parents
February 28, 2012
A couple weeks ago, a controversial group called Parents and Friends of Ex-Gays and Gays (PFOX) circulated filers to Albert Einstein High School and other MCPS schools stating that homosexuality can be cured by therapy or self-determination.
Although the fliers were not sponsored by the Board of Education, the superintendent or the schools, many parents and students began to question the regulation which states that non-profit organizations can distribute information that is not “hate speech.”
Not only did the fliers present information that caused outrage to parents and students, the information being presented challenged the MCPS sex education curriculum. The sex education curriculum for MCPS, which went into effect in 2007, describes homosexuality as innate. PFOX, however, claims that homosexuality is not innate and that no person can be born gay.
Groups like PFOX, which have a legal right to circulate fliers and other sources of information, should not be allowed to distribute controversial information to high school students and their parents if it is potentially malicious.
Especially with the rise in bullying against homosexuals, it is imperative that the fliers approved for distribution should not have the potential to cause harm to any students. While these groups have the legal right to distribute, the schools should draw the line as to what can and cannot be distributed and what is appropriate for the school environment.
Fortunately, school principals can send materials to the Office of School Performance if there is reason to believe that the material being circulated is inappropriate for distribution. The material is then sent for legal counsel and review and the executive staff makes a decision. Giving the schools the decision to circulate controversial information is a proper course of action in order to prohibit hurtful information from being distributed. We can only hope more principals take this step in the future.
There are a growing number of bullying prevention programs, such as RHSa�� Gay-Straight Alliance (GSA) which emphasize the importance of acceptance. Groups like the GSA play an important role in helping homosexuals and heterosexuals support each other and provide a safe place to socialize. After all, school is supposed to be a safe place where students do not feel persecuted for their beliefs, values, or sexual orientation. A flier should not jeopardize a student’s safety and security.
W.R. Allen '82 • Mar 1, 2012 at 8:54 am
Why does my belief have to be "hate" and not a sincerely held religous belief that I have the right to hold? Can I not believe homosexuality to be immoral wihtout being accused of hating?
One of the first rights to be protected in early America was the right of conscience – the right to believe differently on issues of religious faith. As John Quincy Adams explained, this right was a product of Christianity:
Jesus Christ. . . . came to teach and not to compel. His law was a Law of Liberty. He left the human mind and human action free.
Early American legal writer Stephen Cowell (1800-1872) agreed:
Nonconformity, dissent, free inquiry, individual conviction, mental independence, are forever consecrated by the religion of the New Testament.
President Franklin D. Roosevelt likewise declared:
We want to do it the voluntary way – and most human beings in all the world want to do it the voluntary way. We do not want to have the way imposed. . . .
W.R. Allen '82 • Feb 29, 2012 at 8:12 am
I respectfully disagree with many unchallenged positions. What science was used to determine that homosexuality is innate? The answer is none. The change in declassifying homosexuality as a mental illness was done purely via political pressure not by any science or medical studies. The fact is there is no "gay " gene. MCPS take a political position not a scientific one. Gay people should never be persecuted but why should they be allowed to persecute those who have a different opinion than they by calling their position "hate speech"? It is a moral position based on Judeo-Christian values. The real crime is the loss of religous freedom in this country and the right to practice ones religion without government interference. The real hatred in this country comes from those who hate and persecute Christians for there belief. The most intolerance is coming from those who scream the loudest for it!