Carlson: Gayness, Multicultural Education, and Community

Carlson discusses the marginalization of homosexuality in society and therefore within the school system. As the “normalizing community” promotes a dominant and limited idea of “normal” there is a silencing of the “other” or any person or idea that does not fit into the concept of what is normal. One way is through abuse. Since Matthew Shepherd, www.en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Matthew_Shepard, people are becoming increasingly aware of gay bashing as a hate crime. However, do we as a society step in to stop this form of hate? www.abcnews.go.com/WhatWouldYouDo/Story?id=7152579&page=1
What about at school? Do teachers speak up and defend students’ rights? Is it addressed? Many teachers are uncomfortable with talking about sexuality with students. Students use “gay”, “homo”, “fag”, etc. as everyday slurs without a thought.
Additionally, silencing is employed – we are familiar with “don’t ask, don’t tell” as a military practice. www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,1707545,00.html This is not the only environment where people are asked not to reveal their true selves as a means of silencing gays. Silencing may be the most powerful tool of marginalization because it denies not only voice but humanity. In the film Milk, there is a powerful scene where Harvey Milk asks the gay men and women to come out to their families so that all people could feel that connection to the movement for gay rights. Once it they became vocal, they became empowered.
We also need to remember that separate is not equal in multicultural education - www.usnews.com/blogs/on-education/2008/10/24/a-third-high-school-for-gay-students.html
I could not believe this article when I discovered it… Creating schools for gay students, for me, addresses Carlson’s argument that there is some idea that “the normals” have to be separated from “the gays” for fear of contamination. Homosexuality as a contagion or disease furthers the hostility. After all we refer to people who are against homosexuals as “homophobic”, phobic meaning fear.
Therefore, as teachers, we must address the issue by opening discussions around sexual orientation and that hate, violence, and discrimination are not tolerable. As I have found in my classroom, many students have gay relatives in their lives and once the silence is broken, the slurs and hate subside. We have a powerful obligation to see multicultural education not only in terms of color and religion, but in terms of gender, sexual orientation, and other communities.
For more reading on this subject and to find out what you can do as a teacher in your school:
www.ncrel.org/sdrs/areas/issues/educatrs/leadrshp/le0gay.htm
www.members.tripod.com/~twood/guide.html
www.glsen.org/