| Compiled By GayToday
 GLSEN Field Director John Spear |
San Francisco, California-- The thirteen California chapters of the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network (GLSEN) expressed their profound disappointment last week with the California State Assembly's failure to pass AB 222, The Dignity for Students Act. |
The bill would have amended state education code to prohibit discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation. GLSEN representatives note that in failing to pass AB 222, legislators missed a key opportunity to make much-needed headway in creating school communities that are safe places for every student, regardless of sexual orientation.
"As State Assembly members go home and wash their hands of this debate, lesbian and gay students will continue struggling against discrimination and harassment in California's public schools," said GLSEN Field Director John Spear.
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"We made a lot of headway this year -- educating legislators and the general public about the pervasive harassment and discrimination these students face -- and we expect to pick up again next year. One can only hope that next time around, facts and compassion will win out over politics and misinformation."
The facts, says GLSEN, are undeniable. As documented by the Massachusetts State Department of Education's biannual Youth Risk Behavior Survey, lesbian, gay and bisexual students are more than seven times as likely as their non-gay classmates to be threatened with a weapon while at school. They are more than five times as likely to skip school because they feel unsafe at or en route to school. GLSEN studies indicate that average high school students hear anti-gay epithets 25 times a day.
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California State Assembly
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According to GLSEN, the vote against AB 222 will not only impact lesbian, gay and bisexual students as they attempt to access their educational entitlement, but entire school communities as they strive to create safe learning environments for all. "It doesn't take a rocket scientist to recognize the links between prohibiting discrimination, stopping harassment, and creating a learning environment that is free from student-on-student violence," continued Spear. "It's a shame that these connections were lost on certain members of the California State Assembly."
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