Tennessee High School's Yearbook Advisor Slammed For 'It's OK To Be Gay' Student Profile
41 replies, posted
Source: [url]http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/05/04/tennessee-high-school-gay-yearbook-profile-_n_1477761.html?ref=gay-voices&ncid=edlinkusaolp00000009[/url]
[quote]
A Tennessee high school journalism professor has infuriated locals, including one school board member, after publishing a pro-gay profile of a graduating student in the yearbook.
Written by a member of the Lenoir City High School yearbook's student staff, "It's OK to be Gay" describes the experiences of openly gay student Zac Mitchell. In the piece, Mitchell describes coming out in public and being bullied, as well as cross-dressing and being "hit on by straight guys," according to the Knoxville Sentinel.
"It wasn't as bad as I thought it would be," Mitchell says of coming out in eighth grade. "The girls were all so excited and the boys were pretty much half and half. Some of them didn't care and seemed like they had always known, but some weren't okay with it." Later, describing his experience visiting Nashville, Mitchell adds, "A lot more people are out about being gay their [sic] than there is here...cross dressing was so much fun. It was funny, so many straight guys came and hit on me that night."
You can read "It's OK to be Gay" in its entirely on Towleroad here.
However, one person who is not OK with the article is Loudon County School Board member Van Shaver, who is calling for a criminal investigation of the yearbook's faculty adviser, James Yoakley.
"Some might think I'm intolerant toward homosexuals but that would be wrong," Shaver wrote on his blog. "If an individual wants to be a homosexual, that's their own decision and they will have to live with the consequences of that decision. What I am intolerant of is an adult, a teacher no less, inflicting their personal beliefs and sexual orientation decisions on impressionable students." He concluded, "I know many other parents and members of our community expect a full and open investigation by school administrators and law enforcement into this issue and to hold accountable any and all those who had a hand in this despicable act."
Some students also say petitions were being circulated urging others to tear the page from their yearbook as a sign of protest during graduation or to deny Mitchell the right to attend the ceremony, according to the Sentinel.
Yoakley, who has reportedly taught at Lenoir City High School for 11 years, admitted in an email to the Student Press Law Center that the reaction to the story had been mixed, but nonetheless praised the author of the piece. "The editor tried to capture the school from all the different ways and places students fit into the school community," he is quoted as saying. "She did it quite well. The gay student was just one of many 'elements' we covered."
As the Sentinel notes, however, this isn't the first time one of Yoakley's journalism students has faced controversy. Krystal Myers, editor of the school newspaper, was denied permission to publish an essay titled "No Rights: The Life of an Atheist," after it drew protests from some local Christian groups. Her piece was subsequently published in newspapers across the country.
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They want a fucking criminal investigation, really?
[quote=OP]one person who is not OK with the article is Loudon County School Board member Van Shaver,[/quote]
Van Shaver? I guess I know to go to if my van gets hairy, now. :v:
How the fuck do you impress a sexual orientation upon to someone?
[quote].cross dressing was so much fun. It was funny, so many straight guys came and hit on me that night."[/quote]
haha
And this is why we can't have nice things folks.
What does personal belief have to do with a piece describing the life of a homosexual boy? Makes me wonder why people have to be stupid in our society.
[quote]"....cross dressing was so much fun. It was funny, so many straight guys came and hit on me that night."[/quote]
Hot
"A student isn't a heterosexual white christian male? And they [I]aren't[/I] ashamed of themselves? Get the police on this case! Those students make me sick."
God dammit America.
[quote]
"If an individual wants to be a homosexual, that's their own decision and they will have to live with the consequences of that decision. What I am intolerant of is an adult, a teacher no less, [b]inflicting their personal beliefs and sexual orientation decisions on impressionable students[/b]."
[/quote]
I read the article, and I turned gay. Thanks a lot you good for nothing homosexual!!
[quote]"Some might think I'm intolerant toward homosexuals but that would be wrong," Shaver wrote on his blog. "If an individual wants to be a homosexual, that's their own decision and they will have to live with the consequences of that decision. What I am intolerant of is an adult, a teacher no less, inflicting their personal beliefs and sexual orientation decisions on impressionable students." He concluded, "I know many other parents and members of our community expect a full and open investigation by school administrators and law enforcement into this issue and to hold accountable any and all those who had a hand in this despicable act."[/quote]
Exactly how is the teacher "inflicting"(the fuck?) his personal beliefs and sexual orientation on others? He's adding the profile of a STUDENT, not his own. Even then, how is he forcing (which I assume he means) that onto others? He's literally just describing what happens. Nobody's forcing you to read it, just skip it if you want.
The complete and utter stupidity is mindboggling, I'm losing IQ points by reading this shit.
Yay, Tennessee! It's weird, as somebody that lives in the Chicago area, that a few miles down, it's idiot central. So much ignorance
[quote]What I am intolerant of is an adult, a teacher no less, inflicting their personal beliefs and sexual orientation decisions on impressionable students.[/quote]
That statement was so ironic, that after reading it my shirt turned plaid.
[quote]"Some might think I'm intolerant toward homosexuals but that would be wrong. If an individual wants to be a homosexual, that's their own decision and they will have to live with the consequences of that decision. What I am intolerant of is an adult, a teacher no less, inflicting their personal beliefs and sexual orientation decisions on impressionable students."[/quote]
Oh please, that holds just as much weight as "I'm not racist, but-". See, you have a problem with homosexuals, if you didn't then you wouldn't have a problem with this one expressing himself. And telling them they have to "live with the consequences of that decision" is a bigoted thing to say, as there should be no "consequences" in the first place. It is you who create these so called "consequences".
well no shit these people are fucking idiots, this is the South
Fucking bible belt
Tennessee is in the bible belt right?
[QUOTE=Killer900;35824861]Fucking bible belt
Tennessee is in the bible belt right?[/QUOTE]
Yes
[QUOTE= OP]Krystal Myers, editor of the school newspaper, was denied permission to publish an essay titled "No Rights: The Life of an Atheist," after it drew protests from some local Christian groups. Her piece was subsequently published in newspapers across the country.[/QUOTE]
I think that the Christian groups kinda proved her point.
[quote]"Some might think I'm intolerant toward homosexuals but that would be wrong," Shaver wrote on his blog. "If an individual wants to be a homosexual, that's their own decision and they will have to live with the consequences of that decision. [/quote]
To add what Someguy said above, I think it's hilarious that every anti-homosexual individual, or individual who is inherently against the idea of homosexuality existing, believes its the choice of the student/person to be gay.
I don't know a single homosexual individual EVER who is gay, because they chose to be gay (including me). It's something we were born with and/or developed growing up (like a personality trait). I was gay because when I hit puberty and started to have my sexual side "activated", I liked guys rather than girls. There's really no choice in that.
Apparently "living with the conciquences" of that "decision" is having to deal with intolerant douches who live in Tennessee, as society as a whole begins to leave their socially close-minded and uneducated mindsets behind in the dust.
Stories like this just make me question how stupid humans can be.
[QUOTE=Tall Russian;35825191]Stories like this just make me question how stupid humans can be.[/QUOTE]
Humans are intolerant, judgmental assholes.
See, I live in Alabama. This is something I totally expect from the south.
This is why we need Santorum for president. Gosh darned fagosexuals are turnin' god-fearin' Christian men and women into the Gay Plague
[QUOTE=TheFishyG;35825306]See, I live in Alabama. This is something I totally expect from the south.
This is why we need Santorum for president. Gosh darned fagosexuals are turnin' god-fearin' Christian men and women into the Gay Plague[/QUOTE]
That's the completely wrong person you need. Why would you want a Republican if you want to expand gay rights?.
Tennessee is notoriously for being so hilarious and stupidly anti gay.
They're one of the reasons I think that state rights is a dumb concept. I just wouldn't like the governors and legislatures of that state gain any more power.
[QUOTE=TheFishyG;35825306]See, I live in Alabama. This is something I totally expect from the south.
This is why we need Santorum for president. Gosh darned fagosexuals are turnin' god-fearin' Christian men and women into the Gay Plague[/QUOTE]
Santorum is a stupid piece of shit.
[QUOTE=Headline]After hiatus, Tennessee and Tennesseans make incredible return the to the bigotry race with Arizona[/QUOTE]
[QUOTE=Last or First;35824116]"A student isn't a heterosexual white christian male? And they [I]aren't[/I] ashamed of themselves? Get the police on this case! Those students make me sick."
God dammit America.[/QUOTE]
It's not this bad outside of the bible belt states. But they are pretty bad.
Also: I'd call for an investigation of Van Shaver.
