First public gay high school set for NY

[Zero Signal]

http://www.msnbc.com/news/945134.asp?0cv=CB20

"New York City is creating the nation’s first public high school for gays, bisexuals and transgender students.The Harvey Milk High School will enroll about 100 students and open in a newly renovated building in the fall. It is named after San Francisco’s first openly gay city supervisor, who was assassinated in 1978."

Yay, let us just set the civil rights clock back 30 years. Some people just cannot get enough of segregation.

And how many high school kids do you know that have had a sex change? :rolleyes

"“I THINK EVERYBODY feels that it’s a good idea because some of the kids who are gays and lesbians have been constantly harassed and beaten in other schools,” Mayor Michael Bloomberg said Monday. “It lets them get an education without having to worry.”"

Until they get OUT of this high school and face a world that is NOT all gay. Fantastic, just shelter them until the brunt of reality and then drop them off like it was a bus stop.

"State Conservative Party Chairman Mike Long criticized the creation of the school.
“Is there a different way to teach homosexuals? Is there gay math? This is wrong,” Long said. “There’s no reason these children should be treated separately.”
The Hetrick-Martin Institute’s Web site says the school will give its students “an opportunity to obtain a secondary education in a safe and supportive environment. ... We believe that success requires the ability to respect and value the diverse human community.”"

Equal rights, not special rights. Taxpayers are paying for what is essentially a private school. I am sure so many are pleased about that. "We believe that success requires the ability to respect and value the diverse human community." Right, is that why you are seperating them from the rest of the world, so that they can be diverse? :rolleyes The longer this goes on, diverse it gets.

[mburbank]

I thought this was going to be about a NYC highschool that was only sexually aroused by other NYC highschools.

[The One and Only...]

I agree with Zero.

[AChimp]

I wonder how many different types of washrooms it'll have. :/

[El Blanco]

So, isn't this as bad as a high school telling students they are supposed to be straight?

[mburbank]

I think that high school in the Fame movie and TV show was gay. I think everybody accepted it as long as it stayed in the janitorial closet. But Hot Lunch Jam? C'mon, man. What do you think that was all about?

Incidentally, rumor has it one or two of the technical highschools are gay, but they'll rough you up something fierce if you make too much of it.

[Jeanette X]

Harvey Milk must be spinning in his grave. :(

[Abcdxxxx]

The funny part is Harvey Milk was against this sort of thing. Do people in NY even know who the guy was?

The Black Panthers had their own public school, and there are religious public schools.... sexual orientation is still pretty superficial.

[mburbank]

Do you think the rough trade kids will beat up the flamers and take their Harvey Milk money?

[O71394658]

Um...what the hell.

The name "Jim Crow" suddenly flashes across my mind...

[FS]

I wonder how they'll screen their new students for homosexualicity.

[Jeanette X]

Do you think the rough trade kids will beat up the flamers and take their Harvey Milk money?
And then use the Twinkie Defense?

[Zero Signal]

Do you think the rough trade kids will beat up the flamers and take their Harvey Milk money?
And then use the Twinkie Defense?
:lol good one

[El Blanco]

$20 says they have the best fencing team in the city.

[The One and Only...]

$20 says they have the best fencing team in the city.

Have you ever done fencing? Go do saber and tell me it's gay. DO IT!!! You'll end up being half black from the bruises if you fenced anyone good.

[El Blanco]

Hehehehehe. Dude, stand back and look at it.

They are literally sword fighting! Can we say "metophor"?

[CaptainBubba]

To be accepted to the school you probably have to write an essay about being gay.

I really don't see any problem with this. People naturally segregate themselves anyway. If you allow people to choose who they consort with then they'll be friends with people they either like to hang out with or want to have sex with.

[El Blanco]

So, you don't think there is a problem with an all white school?

[Cap'n Crunch]

I wonder how many different types of washrooms it'll have. :/

http://www.vi2.com/getFile/224316.gif :(

[CaptainBubba]

There is no problem with an all white school as long as they let anyone in.

I belive in absolute freedom. I shouldn't be forced to consort with anyone, nor should I be forbidden.

[El Blanco]

There is no problem with an all white school as long as they let anyone in.

What? Did you read that before you posted it?

I belive in absolute freedom. I shouldn't be forced to consort with anyone, nor should I be forbidden.

No school forces you to consort with anyone. Except a school that segregates.

[CaptainBubba]

I'm saying this in the context that the school is simply denoted as a "White School". Not that only whites are admitted.

Every public school forces its students to consort with others. Thats the purpose of "group projects" and such. School is a prison and children are not given the luxury of being allowed to avoid those you dislike or simply don't want to be around. In that sense public schools force you to not be segregated.

What I'm saying is as long as this new gay school is willing to admit anyone who wishes to go then its fine. Thing is, only people who want to go to a gay school will go, so what the hell is the problem? Wheres the victim?

[El Blanco]

OK, tell you what: Stop drinking, put down the pot, go to bed. Come back in the morning and then read through this thread again and then think about what you're written.

[CaptainBubba]

Wow. Pure brilliance. Your completely avoiding any actual disscussion of my post or any relevant material has blindsighted me. I don't know what more to say...just wow...wow...

[El Blanco]

Dude, you claim you don'tmind segregated schools as long as they don't discriminate.

I can't argue with a black hole of logic.

[CaptainBubba]

Forced segregation is illegal. I'm assuming this school is going to be segregated on an optional basis as otherwise it could not be done legally. I can see how youd get confused with my logic if this was 1961.

[Jeanette X]

Washrooms:
Male
Female
Male to Female
Female to Male
Not so hard, now is it?

[El Blanco]

I'm assuming this school is going to be segregated on an optional basis as otherwise it could not be done legally.

It is a public school that is only allowing gay students.

Tax payer dollars cannot go towards funding discrimination.

Where are you getting lost?

[CaptainBubba]

How can they determine wether you're gay or not? Thats ridiculous. If someone who is not gay wants to go to that school then I'm positive beyond a doubt they could get in.

Personally I don't believe in public education at all. I think the government in all its beaurocratic bullshit manages to turn education into a mandatory prison sentence for minors.

However, as long as we're agreed that the gov. is in charge then you have to also adress the fact that there are "magnet schools" which are public, yet only admit children who are notably more intelligent than most. Is this also not a form of segregation? Anyone can get in if they apply themselves. As anyone can get into this new gay school if they wish to.

There is a difference between mental and physcial segregation.

The difference being that you can't mentally segregate someone from an enviroment theyd actually want to be in within the bounds of these kind of systems. If you aren't gay then why would you want to go anyway?

As far as tax dollars go, yes, I agree, it is a waste. So is public education. I don't believe the gov. should have any say in education whatsoever. There are already school clubs devoted to homosexual studies, as well as religion. This new institution is simply the next step. However, if schools were completely privatized I'd see absolutely nothing wrong with this one.

From the tax dollar sense though I'd pretty much have to agree with you on eveything since I'm a fairly stern anti-big-gov. type of guy.

[El Blanco]

However, as long as we're agreed that the gov. is in charge then you have to also adress the fact that there are "magnet schools" which are public, yet only admit children who are notably more intelligent than most. Is this also not a form of segregation? Anyone can get in if they apply themselves. As anyone can get into this new gay school if they wish to.


Magnate schools are based on accomplishment.

The gay school only lets you in if you are gay. Again, its like a school that only admits white people.

[CaptainBubba]

I fail to see how thats legal. I'll have to wait for more info, but I highly doubt they would turn down anyone wanting to go, regardless of their sex.

They can't. :/

If schools were private this would happen anyway. The only possible problem is if they really do segregate, as the government should not be able to do that. My belif is that the school is intended for homosexuals but will not discriminate against people who wish to join.

If you can find something that says the school will absolutely not allow anyone who is not gay then I would expect to see this school never open or be quickly shut down.

[El Blanco]

If schools were private this would happen anyway.

As long as they don't get government funding, they can.

My belif is that the school is intended for homosexuals but will not discriminate against people who wish to join.


And you base that on.......

[FS]

However, as long as we're agreed that the gov. is in charge then you have to also adress the fact that there are "magnet schools" which are public, yet only admit children who are notably more intelligent than most. Is this also not a form of segregation? Anyone can get in if they apply themselves. As anyone can get into this new gay school if they wish to.

Chairman Mike Long already said it. "Is there a different way to teach homosexuals? Is there gay math?" No, there isn't. Is there a different way to teach children who are notably more intelligent than most? Yes, there is. You can present them with greater challenges so they can put their intelligence to use.

Come on, so an all-white school can exist in name, just not in practice? Where's the logic in that? Why is there need to call a school all-something if you're not going to do anything with it? Regardless of that, there's the psychological effect. What black parents, except maybe the ones who are willing to use their children in an act of protest, would send their kids to a school that boldly states it's all-white? Similarly, with the social stigma still clinging to homosexuality and gender disorders I'm pretty sure few parents of heterosexual children will send their kids to this place.

It's beyond ridiculous, if you ask me. Political correctness getting way ahead of itself and taking a wrong turn somewhere. Do you really want to teach kids that to fight lack of acceptance, you have to hide yourself from it?

[Zhukov]

an opportunity to obtain a secondary education in a safe and supportive environment. ... We believe that success requires the ability to respect and value the diverse human community


I don't think that creating a brand new school is the right way to go about making a 'safe and supportive environment' for all students. Perhaps improving existing social standards instead of spliting from them would work better for everyone involved...

[Jeanette X]

Diverse? How in hell is all-gay school diverse?

[mburbank]

I don't know, I think Gay, Lesbian, Bi and Transgenered is pretty diverse. All they're missing is straight.

I think a better idea might be a magnet school based around principles of tolerance.

New York already has tons of schools that are speciffically selective. How far do you think you'd get suing the High school of Performing Arts for discriminating against advanced physics students?

While I personally have nothing major against this idea, if you achknowledge need for a gay school where gay kids can study and learn in a terror free environmentg, that's pretty much saying you have really bad problem that you tolerate and have no intention of fixing.

[CaptainBubba]

Having a school intended for a particular type of people serves the purpose of allowing people to choose who they wish to consort and learn with.

The gov. already controls who plays with who. The more choices, the less control the gov. has in who people have to hang out with. Thus I find nothing wrong with this. As long as the gov. insists on being in control of education they must provide an artificial educational competive enviroment so to speak.

If there are 2 schools in city x that are both the same, then what is one to do if he does not like one school for whatever reason? Becuase the gov. has a monopoly on schools, he can do nothing. However, in a privatized enviroment there would be many competing schools which all fill a somewhat specific niche in an enviromental, social, and academic sense.

I simply see this as an artifical version of that natural system. So stop bitching and moaning about your fucking tax dollars. I KNOW AND SO DOES EVERYONE ELSE. And believe me, I don't agree with that part of this, nor the entire tax funded education system.

[Mike]

Diverse? How in hell is all-gay school diverse?

Good point. Unfortunately, in the modern obsession over "political correctness" the term "diverse" has somehow come to mean "containing minorities" even if that minority is the only one to be found in a given environment.

[Zero Signal]

America has become so tolerant that it tolerates intolerance. :/

[Bennett]

I would like to hear the opinion of people who were openly gay in public schools, to find out how tolerant, accepting, objective and influential their peers and instructors were.

I feel kinda in-between on this issue... I think initially, it would be good for those students in the schools to be outside of a hostile environment until they and their peers are at a more mature age... I know it's not an ALL gay world, but I think young adults are more well equiped and generally more tolerant than teenagers. On the other hand, I feel like it is a step back, almost a defeat for the cause of acceptance... I want to have faith in people, that one day we could get past being hung up on someone's sexual orientation, but we've all seen how ugly and destructive the taunts of high schoolers can be.

One side note: I find it funny that people still make the claim, "Gay people don't bother me, as long as they're not so in-your-face about it." See also: I wouldn't mind gay people, if they weren't so gay!

[ItalianStereotype]

I wouldn't mind gay people....IF I COULD KILL THEM ALL.

[The One and Only...]

Having a school intended for a particular type of people serves the purpose of allowing people to choose who they wish to consort and learn with.

Which only supports prejuidice. Why do think rascism has gone down so much since segregation was tossed?

[Ninjavenom]

What a ridiculous idea. Being gay is not an occupation, it can't be taught in public schools. Besides, do they think that opening a school that is publicly "All gay" is not going to cause more problems for the kids? When they get home, all the neighborhood kids will point and laugh at them because they go to Homosex Tech, or whatever, and the school will have its fair share of eggings and front yard Mustang burnouts. The only difference is that for a straight person to egg that school or to beat up one of the students (for a reason other than the student's sexuality) would be considered a hate crime. The kids will get harassed just as much as at any public school, because other people don't go away. Joey Gayguy is still going to get mocked for his choices no matter what school he goes to, it's a high school kid's M.O. to be ignorant.

[Mike]

I find it funny that people still make the claim, "Gay people don't bother me, as long as they're not so in-your-face about it."

That depends how you define "in-your-face". My first roommate in college really was in-your-face about it. He got all pissed off at me when I wasn't willing to display gay pride signs on our door and when my girlfriend was hanging out in the room he got all pissed off when he caught us making out claiming that we were doing it to make a statement against his homosexuality. He complained that I wouldn't let him display pictures of what looked to me like gay porn on the table that we shared.

I can honestly say that "gay people don't bother me, as long as they're not so in-your-face about it".

[CaptainBubba]

Having a school intended for a particular type of people serves the purpose of allowing people to choose who they wish to consort and learn with.

Which only supports prejuidice. Why do think rascism has gone down so much since segregation was tossed?

Segregation was not just tossed. It was outlawed. Effectively doing nothing as the gov. did not relinquish any of its power. It simply modified the ways it must implement it.

I have no problem with prejudice. I have no problem with racism. LEGALLY. I believe people should be able to be prejudiced and racist if they want to. Hell I know in some respects I'm highly prejudiced and even somewhat racist.

Personally I am against most racism however, and find it ignorant and repugnant.

Btw. Whats this about racism "going down"? Are you by chance, oh just a chance, completely and tottally pulling that arbitrary little tibit of info out of your freshly wiped cornhole? hmmm, could it be? hmmmm.

Heres a question for all of you: WHAT IS WRONG WITH GIVING PEOPLE CHOICES FOR WHICH THERE IS NO VICTIM IN EITHER CHOICE?

Please don't bring up tax dollars unless you read my previous post adressing that.

[The One and Only...]

Segregation was not just tossed. It was outlawed. Effectively doing nothing as the gov. did not relinquish any of its power. It simply modified the ways it must implement it.

Segregation does not exist in public education today. By tossed I meant outlawed.

I have no problem with prejudice. I have no problem with racism. LEGALLY. I believe people should be able to be prejudiced and racist if they want to. Hell I know in some respects I'm highly prejudiced and even somewhat racist.

Personally I am against most racism however, and find it ignorant and repugnant.

The world would be a better place if rascism/prejuidice towards people did not exist. I think that is pretty much accepted, but if you feel the need for someone to explain why just ask.

Btw. Whats this about racism "going down"? Are you by chance, oh just a chance, completely and tottally pulling that arbitrary little tibit of info out of your freshly wiped cornhole? hmmm, could it be? hmmmm.

If you believe that rascism is as bad today as it was in the 50s, then I pity you. Seriously.

Here's a question for all of you: WHAT IS WRONG WITH GIVING PEOPLE CHOICES FOR WHICH THERE IS NO VICTIM IN EITHER CHOICE?

There is a victim. It's called society, and it's progression is being killed.

[CaptainBubba]

The world would be a better place if rascism/prejuidice towards people did not exist. I think that is pretty much accepted, but if you feel the need for someone to explain why just ask.

I think you've been brainwashed and are spurting out rhetoric gurgling that sounds exactly like what they tried to convince me in school. racism for the most part is, I agree ridiculous and ignorant. Personal prejudice is however often very accurate as it is based on ones own experiences after repeated incedince. As long as one stays open to the possibility of an anomily in his or her prejudice then its fine.

Do you want to make these two ways of thinking thought crimes? Oh wait they already are. And you buy it. Do you not see the error in thinking you can make someone change their mind by making it illegal to think a certain way?

If you believe that rascism is as bad today as it was in the 50s, then I pity you. Seriously.

Why?

But anyway, yeah, if you mean government enforced racism, sure and fine. But the stuff the common citizen says is pretty much the same shmeal with a little dash of public education brainwashing thrown in there.

There is a victim. It's called society, and it's progression is being killed.

So for society to progress we must enforce a specific way of thinking under penalty of forcable coercion? Do you even bother thinking for yourself, because I can tell you are not truly thinking about the words coming out of your mouth. You think they just sound pretty.

You seriously sound like you just got out of a D.A.R.E class or something and bought every fucking word.

I bet you think sex is fatal and girls get pregnant once more for every time you initiate heavy petting. :lol

[Abcdxxxx]

Yeah but now who are all the closet cases going to beat up while figuring out their sexuality? This is horrible!

The truth is it's just a small program. I bet these kids have to go to other schools for gym class, and electives. Self imposed segragation is dangerous. It's setting a precedence that these kids are different and need to be different, which then shoots them in the foot when it comes ot equal rights. This is the rainbow curriculum gone haywire.

[Zero Signal]

Personal prejudice is however often very accurate as it is based on ones own experiences after repeated incedince. As long as one stays open to the possibility of an anomily in his or her prejudice then its finel
"Prejudice" comes from "pre-" and "judge". I promise you that I am not prejudice. I do not pre-judge.

I judge.

[CaptainBubba]

Prejudice does not come from nowhere. It is the product of repeated occurences. You pre-judge constantly throughout the day. Otherwise how would you know that the next sandwhich isn't poisonous? It might be. But your prejudice tells you that most bread isn't full of cyanide.

The same idea can be applied to people to get "racism". From repeated incedince I have a prejudice (or racist idea) that black people are more often mesomorphs than white people. Which is a good thing for black people.

[kellychaos]

Remember that irrational fear that their MIGHT be homosexual guy in gym class who just MIGHT be looking at your luscious bod? I think that this might raise the probability a bit.

[The One and Only...]

I think you've been brainwashed and are spurting out rhetoric gurgling that sounds exactly like what they tried to convince me in school. racism for the most part is, I agree ridiculous and ignorant. Personal prejudice is however often very accurate as it is based on ones own experiences after repeated incedince. As long as one stays open to the possibility of an anomily in his or her prejudice then its fine.

Brainwashed? No, I'm actually making some god damn sense. You have to understand that judging people as a whole versus on a personal level is a bad thing. It can lead to conflict. I don't like seeing gay people killed because they're gay, and the isolation of them from normal schools certainly isn't going to have them more accepted.

Do you want to make these two ways of thinking thought crimes? Oh wait they already are. And you buy it. Do you not see the error in thinking you can make someone change their mind by making it illegal to think a certain way?

I don't understand what they heck you are saying. I'm not making it illegal for anyone to think anything: I'm just making it a hell of a lot less likely in future generations.

Why?

How many white people do you know who will not swim in the same pool as a black because they think it's dirty?

But anyway, yeah, if you mean government enforced racism, sure and fine. But the stuff the common citizen says is pretty much the same shmeal with a little dash of public education brainwashing thrown in there.

Please, shut up with the brainwashing thing. It's making you look foolish.

The government did not enforce that. It's just human nature to accept something different than you more as you interact with it.

So for society to progress we must enforce a specific way of thinking under penalty of forcable coercion? Do you even bother thinking for yourself, because I can tell you are not truly thinking about the words coming out of your mouth. You think they just sound pretty.

Do you even bother thinking at all? I don't understand where the heck half the babble is dribbling out of your mouth from.

Get the notion that I am enforcing someone to think anything out of your mind. I am not. I am just saying some ways of thinking are bad. Take Charles Manson. He is an example of someone who had a bad way of thinking.

You seriously sound like you just got out of a D.A.R.E class or something and bought every fucking word.

You seriously sound like someone who just walked out of Hot Topic and is trying to be different from everyone else, even though you are surrounded by people just like you.

I bet you think sex is fatal and girls get pregnant once more for every time you initiate heavy petting. :lol

I bet you have an IQ lower than 80. BTW: I desperately want to get laid.

[FS]

Prejudice is not necessarily based on experience. Many people are prejudiced because of what the media, their friends or family tell them. And sometimes even not that. Sometimes people simply make up reasons to be prejudiced for themselves because they don't like people who are different.

[badlydrawn]

this isnt going to help really. give people a reason to complain. the people that go there wont realize much. and bleh. :/

[Abcdxxxx]

Look this isn't really a school, it's a program. A lot of programs have their own principles. This particular one isn't old, it has been around for a long time. They just now got their own principle as opposed to the one guy who oversees all the other ones. Every major district has speciality programs for "troubled kids" and other various special need demographics. These kids most likely switched into this program at the advice of a counselor after they were failing to survive at a regular school. Without these programs you'd see a lot more drop outs , or worse. Public Schools with taxpayer money tend to force the same curriculum on everyone, which means a lot of kids are alienated. So special need curriculums are created, and funded mainly through special grant money from various places (private, state, federal, etc.)

I do tend to think people put themselves in their own ghettos, and self segragation can be a problem, especially if they're just compensating for feeling "left out". A better method would be to fight for proper intergration, and broaden the curriculum to meet the needs of it's student bodies in a way that is inclusive and not imposed. Meaning something like the rainbow curriculum that forces a lesson plan in diversity on all students is as dangerous as any forced curriculum plan in ignorance. Anything that sweeping and broad will not meet the needs of the students. Harvey Milk wanted to be treated the same, not special, and to be recognized for what he was.

This isn't the issue for this particular school though. These kids aren't looking for a sepcial gay education. The media is just jumping all over anything homosexual related and making it sound like an entirely new school is being created when that isn't the case.

[Anonymous]

The reason it's a public school is because most private schools are accepting to begin with; Public school is generally more hostile. There is no legal way for them to turn down non-homosexuals, and the focus of the school is well-enough-known to deter most of them in the first place.

This really isn't any different than the white and black schools we have in our area. At Baltimore Polytechnic, for example, they didn't stop Raymond Yu from transferring to it after he got booted out of my school, but the student body is 99% black at Poly. The only problems here are being raised by people that aren't gay in the first place and are assuming what 'them queers' would want, which is homophobic to begin with.

In conclusion, gay kids get beat to fuck and back in public school, and here they won't. Even if we lived in a model society this school would still be a good idea.

[Abcdxxxx]

does the disctrict recognize that school as a "black school" ? or did it just end up that way because of the areas demographics?

[Drew Katsikas]

OMG, there wrestling team is gonna be like the friggin! No one will wrestle a fag-boy gay fag homo queer!??! :bacos