Spring Break
Schools overplay gay tolerance
Lazarus Austin
Issue date: 4/1/08 Section: Sports
Lazarus Austin is a junior majoring in history. He can be contacted at opinion@reflector.msstate.edu.
In February, Lawrence King was shot to death at E.O. Green Junior High School in Oxnard, Calif. What sets his murder apart from others is that King was openly gay. He often flirted with his fellow male students and wore feminine apparel and accessories. His murder has brought onslaughts of paranoia and calls for tolerance by gay rights advocates.
According to The Washington Post, gay rights advocates are claiming that King's murder is the "extreme consequence of a growing but often ignored phenomenon." The phenomenon they are referring to is homophobia.
As a result, they are calling for more tolerance education in schools and stricter anti-harassment rules. Many middle schools and high schools are opening gay and lesbian clubs for students. Other schools are openly teaching students about homosexuality at an early age, often at the frustration of parents.
Furthermore, schools are cracking down on bullying. They, of course, do not want bullies harassing people with a different religious belief, sexual preference, race or gender.
I have two problems with the controversy. First, people are blowing the situation out of proportion and automatically assuming King's murderer killed him simply because King was gay. This reminds me of how people love to cry racism when someone kills a person of a different race.
His alleged murderer, Brandon McInerney, 14, and also an eighth-grader, had a rough upbringing. According to The Washington Post, McInerney's parents divorced in 2002. His mother dealt with drug issues, the father had been accused of shooting his mother in the elbow, both parents had filed restraining orders against the other and both had been accused of domestic violence. Supposedly, McInerney was a good kid in school, so the results of his upbringing are hard to judge. However, if you ask me, McInerney was probably a fuse ready to explode, and King's fraternization possibly sparked it, which brings me to my second point.
In February, Lawrence King was shot to death at E.O. Green Junior High School in Oxnard, Calif. What sets his murder apart from others is that King was openly gay. He often flirted with his fellow male students and wore feminine apparel and accessories. His murder has brought onslaughts of paranoia and calls for tolerance by gay rights advocates.
According to The Washington Post, gay rights advocates are claiming that King's murder is the "extreme consequence of a growing but often ignored phenomenon." The phenomenon they are referring to is homophobia.
As a result, they are calling for more tolerance education in schools and stricter anti-harassment rules. Many middle schools and high schools are opening gay and lesbian clubs for students. Other schools are openly teaching students about homosexuality at an early age, often at the frustration of parents.
Furthermore, schools are cracking down on bullying. They, of course, do not want bullies harassing people with a different religious belief, sexual preference, race or gender.
I have two problems with the controversy. First, people are blowing the situation out of proportion and automatically assuming King's murderer killed him simply because King was gay. This reminds me of how people love to cry racism when someone kills a person of a different race.
His alleged murderer, Brandon McInerney, 14, and also an eighth-grader, had a rough upbringing. According to The Washington Post, McInerney's parents divorced in 2002. His mother dealt with drug issues, the father had been accused of shooting his mother in the elbow, both parents had filed restraining orders against the other and both had been accused of domestic violence. Supposedly, McInerney was a good kid in school, so the results of his upbringing are hard to judge. However, if you ask me, McInerney was probably a fuse ready to explode, and King's fraternization possibly sparked it, which brings me to my second point.
Viewing Comments 1 - 10 of 44
crtiquer
posted 4/01/08 @ 8:46 AM CST
are you really a junior in history? have you written a paper before? wow. reflector, please either write one yourself or pull something from the AP wire before publishing essays written by middle-schoolers. (Continued…)
Tim
posted 4/01/08 @ 9:30 AM CST
I agree that minorities shouldn't get special privileges, only equal privileges.
That means that stories in school shouldn't exclusively depict heterosexist norms. (Continued…)
bill
posted 4/01/08 @ 9:30 AM CST
To say that King "invited" harassment is ludicrous. He was a teenager experimenting with his identity and his sexuality -- and there's nothing wrong with that. (Continued…)
Bob Zuley
posted 4/01/08 @ 9:54 AM CST
I'm troubled by the author's use of statements such as, "By imposing his homosexuality on McInerney,...", and "Promoting tolerance can instill in children's minds moral and religious values. (Continued…)
Bob Zuley
Bob Zuley
posted 4/01/08 @ 9:59 AM CST
I'm troubled by the author's use of statements such as, "By imposing his homosexuality on McInerney,...", and "Promoting tolerance can instill in children's minds moral and religious values. (Continued…)
Aviva Hart
posted 4/01/08 @ 10:01 AM CST
That make perfect sense and explains so much of history, thank you dear Lazarus.
So many women around throwing their femininity about, obviously "inviting" rape and murder. (Continued…)
Kyle Hitchens
posted 4/01/08 @ 10:18 AM CST
This is how you spend your time..justifying murder? So all those people who "forced" their heterosexuality on me in high school were inviting me to murder them? You obviously don't know much about being gay in America. (Continued…)
Grant Haertter
posted 4/01/08 @ 10:19 AM CST
Thank you, Bob Z and Aviva. I had the same reaction when reading this article, and I agree completely. Heteros and homos should have the same rights to express themselves without fear and prejudice. (Continued…)
A. Heimberg
posted 4/01/08 @ 10:22 AM CST
So when you hit on a girl who isn't interested in you are you "inviting" her to blow your brains out?
Mad John
posted 4/01/08 @ 10:31 AM CST
What a depraved exercise in blaming the victim. I guess you've just justified my murder of the next straight girl who flirts with me, thus "imposing" her heterosexuality on me, huh?
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