'Don't Ask Don't Tell' Still A Reality For Gay Educators

Inspiration to Action:

On December 22, 2010, President Obama made history by signing the repeal of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell."

During the emotional ceremony, he said: "No longer will tens of thousands of Americans in uniform be asked to live a lie, or look over their shoulder, in order to serve the country that they love. For we are not a nation that says, 'don't ask, don't tell.' We are a nation that says, 'Out of many, we are one.'"

Read the whole story: Inspiration to Action

Comments

[johndoewasthere]

09:32 PM on 02/28/2011

Why is this a problem, here in Bangkok ladyboys teach, education is a haven for pedophiles, of course so is Thailand and grades are bought, and sold at every level.I taught here so I know.
The two foreign department heads were both pedophiles, one of the many reasons I quite.
I went on 7 job interviews, all 7 were gay, I mean swish gay. They even have high school drop outs teaching, they get them at bargain rates.

[Ldcook]

08:53 AM on 02/28/2011

As an educator, one of my greatest challenges has always been how best to handle my student curiosity about my life. They are always asking questions and they are curious about my life outside the school walls. So far I have taken the tack of "don't lie" but not really sharing anything other than what is directly asked.

I am coming to terms with the fact that I am a tattooed (though most of them are invisible), gay (though I am by no means flamboyant), large male with facial hair... I am going to run into issues as an educator and I need to find a school and an administration that is willing to back me up.

What my wish is, to paraphrase a greater man than I, MLK, judge me based on what I do and who I am, judge me based on the job I do and how well I do it. Judge me based on my ability to teach your children, judge me based on my capacity to love and cherish every child. DO NOT judge my abilities as an educator based on the fact that I love Nick and not Nicole.

[dbishop76]

09:44 AM on 03/02/2011

My experience is that children don't have a problem with gay, adults have a problem with it. The double standard is astonishing- even more astonishing is that people don't even realize there IS a double standard. My sister can have pictures of her boyfriend Joe all over her classroom, she can talk about Joe- but if that was JoAnn, all hell would break loose.

[Nicole Dixson]

12:00 AM on 02/28/2011

Why do we care about things that have nothing to do with the matter at hand? If the teacher is a good teacher, who cares if the person is gay? Let's find valid reasons to dislike someone that isn't based on race, sexual orientation or religious beliefs.

[been2there]

11:17 PM on 02/27/2011

Because my parents gave me a male name, and my interests are math and science, I endured endless homophobia in the 1960s world of Orange County, California. People don't know who is or isn't gay, and it is none of their darn business. I realize that some of the people I work with are gay, and I realize that I don't know who they are. That is fine with me.
When my son's girlfriend became pregnant (no, sex education does not always work), one friend said, "But he is gay!" Obviously missed that boat, didn't he?

[rjmtx]

03:39 PM on 02/27/2011

It's a shame people still have to live like this, but...

Doesn't that picture look like hands holding a weiner?

[paintitblack]

12:34 PM on 02/28/2011

LOL. I thought it was just my mind in the sewer... I came in here to say the same thing.