Teacher Suspended for "gay" article.

Started by Kotah, November 01, 2009, 09:03:52 PM

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Kotah

So, back to the land of my birth. A teacher I had (at a different school he worked at then this) got suspended for assigning an article about homosexuality in animals.

The article on what happened:
http://www.freireproject.org/blogs/high-school-teacher-suspended-after-assigning-article-homosexuality-animals

The article he assigned:
http://seedmagazine.com/content/article/the_gay_animal_kingdom

The topic for the assignment was controversial media.
Finally in a rage we scream at the top of our lungs into this lonely night, begging and pleading they stop sucking up dry.There as guilty as sin, still as they always do when faced with an angry mob: they wipe the blood from their mouths and calm us down with their words of milk and honey. So the play begins, we the once angry mob are now pacified and sit quietly entertained. But the curtain exists far from now becasue their lies have been spoken. My dear, have you forgotten what comes next? This is the part where we change the world.

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Kotah

Let me clarify the project. The kids were given three controversial topics to choose from. This, abortion, and war. They were then to write an essay both for -and against- the opinions displayed in the article they had chosen. He supplied the three articles, and I don't have the other two. I was just talking to a friend on the phone about it, and wanted to clear that up a little bit.
Finally in a rage we scream at the top of our lungs into this lonely night, begging and pleading they stop sucking up dry.There as guilty as sin, still as they always do when faced with an angry mob: they wipe the blood from their mouths and calm us down with their words of milk and honey. So the play begins, we the once angry mob are now pacified and sit quietly entertained. But the curtain exists far from now becasue their lies have been spoken. My dear, have you forgotten what comes next? This is the part where we change the world.

DarklingAlice

It is a religious conservative parent's worst nightmare. Homosexuality and evolutionary biology all in one glorious package! Seriously whoever complained about this is probably trying to make a fuss just for the hell of it. Especially since their kid had two other options to pick from. I can't believe any school would take this seriously. At least they aren't docking his pay.

On the bright side at least an interesting article is getting much more publicity than it otherwise would.
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Satnslillgrl

I actually read the article he assigned for my Honors writing class in college.

It just goes to show how stuck up too many people can be. Do they think not talking about animals being homosexual will make it not happen? Do they think that a kid is going to read about a gay goat and suddenly become gay? I'm going to say that the majority of the population is ignorant and really needs to take the stick out of their ass.
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Doomsday

Fuck the science behind all this, this shit doesn't agree with my books!

Scott

#8
They kicked the influence of Christianity (in any form) out of the schools. The influence of Homosexuality (in any form) should be kicked out of the schools with just as much vigor. Can't we let them learn the periodic tables, and go to Friday night football games in peace?

The teacher should have been suspended, he without a doubt knew this would be a controversial subject, and chose to throw the rock in the pool regardless.

Doomsday

Christianity is out of schools because of the separation of church and state. Are you insinuating that gay is a religion? :o

MercyfulFate

We seem to be moving towards restrictions on free speech everywhere, for good or ill.

Austria once elected a former Nazi president, and then jailed a man for saying the holocaust didn't happen. While what he said is wrong, he should be allowed to say it.

Here it seems like if you speak out for gays, you're in trouble. You speak out against, you're in trouble. This shit drives me up the wall.

Satnslillgrl

Quote from: Scott on November 02, 2009, 12:18:42 PM
They kicked the influence of Christianity (in any form) out of the schools. The influence of Homosexuality (in any form) should be kicked out of the schools with just as much vigor. Can't we let them learn the periodic tables, and go to Friday night football games in peace?

The teacher should have been suspended, he without a doubt knew this would be a controversial subject, and chose to throw the rock in the pool regardless.


If that is the case, and homosexuality should be removed, then anything that has any reference to heterosexuality would have to be removed as well. Otherwise it would be flat out discrimination. Any love stories, or historical events that involve a man and a woman being together would have to be taken out.

Clumping Christianity and Homosexuality together like that doesn't make sense. Christianity is a religion. Homosexuality is a sexual orientation. They have nothing in common. They aren't in the same category.
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Scott

Quote from: Darkly Dreaming Doomsday on November 02, 2009, 12:41:06 PM
Christianity is out of schools because of the separation of church and state. Are you insinuating that gay is a religion? :o

No sir, I'm insinuating Christianity is a lifestyle choice, and Homosexuality is a lifestyle choice... and therefore the discussion of neither should have a place in primary education.

I am insinuating though, that in US schools, even saying The Pledge of Allegiance isn't allowed anymore. Why? because it offended someone, just as Christianity offends some, and homosexuality offends some.

If we are going to maintain the sensitivity to stop doing something that offends a minority, then shouldn't this stance be carried on across the board, and the decisions made to protect a minorities rights be applied to all subjects of controversy?   

Satnslillgrl

Quote from: Scott on November 02, 2009, 01:02:50 PM
No sir, I'm insinuating Christianity is a lifestyle choice, and Homosexuality is a lifestyle choice... and therefore the discussion of neither should have a place in primary education.

I am insinuating though, that in US schools, even saying The Pledge of Allegiance isn't allowed anymore. Why? because it offended someone, just as Christianity offends some, and homosexuality offends some.

If we are going to maintain the sensitivity to stop doing something that offends a minority, then shouldn't this stance be carried on across the board, and the decisions made to protect a minorities rights be applied to all subjects of controversy?


First off, I wouldn't say Homosexuality is a "lifestyle choice". That implies it's something you choose. You don't just decide to be homosexual and heterosexual or any other sexual orientation.

I also believe that the Homosexual Population is still the minority, if we're comparing it to the Heterosexual one, so I'm not sure how you think removing it would avoid offending the minority.
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Scott

Quote from: Satanslillgirl on November 02, 2009, 01:12:56 PM

First off, I wouldn't say Homosexuality is a "lifestyle choice". That implies it's something you choose. You don't just decide to be homosexual and heterosexual or any other sexual orientation.

Well, you don't really decide to be a Christian either, if your immersed in your parent's Christian  lifestyle and taught it was the truth and the way since birth, then chances are your going to be a Christian. 

Quote from: Satanslillgirl on November 02, 2009, 01:12:56 PM
I also believe that the Homosexual Population is still the minority, if we're comparing it to the Heterosexual one, so I'm not sure how you think removing it would avoid offending the minority.
Then shouldn't the majorities right not to be offended be given the same consideration?

Transgirlenstein

Quote from: Scott on November 02, 2009, 01:23:02 PM
Then shouldn't the majorities right not to be offended be given the same consideration?

As long as it isn't at the expense of the minority.

He absolutly didn't do anything wrong.  There is homosexuality activity in the animal kingdom.  Pretending it doesn't exist does not make it untrue.

Just as pretending homosexuality is a lifestyle choice.
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#17
I don't think anyone has a "right to not be offended."  That flies in the face of exactly what it means to live in a free society.  You can be offended, and you should be offended when you come face to face with opinions and ideas vastly different from your own, that's part of freedom.  And this has nothing to do with that (or at least shouldn't).

Talk of Christianity isn't banned from school either.  It's discussed in a historical context all the time.  We read early Christian literature (Dante's Inferno, Paradise Lost, etc).  Evangelizing is banned from school; just as trying to convert people to the homosexual agenda is, and should be, banned from school.

This case is pretty ridiculous.

EDIT:  As for the pledge of allegiance, it should also be banned from all schools until the "Under God" b.s. added in the 1950s is taken out.  Government and Religion need to remain absolutely separate at all times.  This is a nation under popular sovereignty, not a deity.

MercyfulFate

Quote from: Jude on November 02, 2009, 04:06:51 PM
I don't think anyone has a "right to not be offended."  That flies in the face of exactly what it means to live in a free society.  You can be offended, and you should be offended when you come face to face with opinions and ideas vastly different from your own, that's part of freedom.  And this has nothing to do with that (or at least shouldn't).

Talk of Christianity isn't banned from school either.  It's discussed in a historical context all the time.  We read early Christian literature (Dante's Inferno, Paradise Lost, etc).  Evangelizing is banned from school; just as trying to convert people to the homosexual agenda is, and should be, banned from school.

This case is pretty ridiculous.

EDIT:  As for the pledge of allegiance, it should also be banned from all schools until the "Under God" b.s. added in the 1950s is taken out.  Government and Religion need to remain absolutely separate at all times.  This is a nation under popular sovereignty, not a deity.

Agreed. To start saying things that are offensive should be restricted is a never ending slippery slope that's wrong to even begin with. Censorship of "swear words" on TV and even in music bothers me to no end, if you don't like it, don't listen.

What offends you may not offend me, frankly I don't get offended by much. There are people out there that would be happy with bans on any type of uncouth remarks, whether it be a dead baby joke, racist remark or what have you. While you may not agree with what is said, it's wrong to say it should not be allowed to be said.

Jude

#19
I firmly believe people choose to be offended based on the lifestyle choices they make.  You decide who you are, and in turn that decides what effect hearing various things is gonna have on you.  That makes you ultimately responsible for what words and phrases frustrate and anger you, not the person who's saying it.

Obviously there are a few examples where certain things said would offend... just about anyone, and it's not so much about personal choice as it is about belonging to a consensus on a subject.  Even then we shouldn't rob people of their freedom of expression because we didn't like what we saw.  You have a right to scold them verbally for what they did and they have the right to do it.  With freedom comes excess, that's just the way a free society works.

MercyfulFate

Quote from: Jude on November 02, 2009, 04:34:29 PM
I firmly believe people choose to be offended based on the lifestyle choices they make.  You decide who you are, and in turn that decides what effect hearing various things is gonna have on you.  That makes you ultimately responsible for what words and phrases frustrate and anger you, not the person who's saying it.

Obviously there are a few examples where certain things said would offend... just about anyone, and it's not so much about personal choice as it is about belonging to a consensus on a subject.  Even then we shouldn't rob people of their freedom of expression because we didn't like what we saw.  You have a right to scold them verbally for what they did and they have the right to do it.  With freedom comes excess, that's just the way a free society works.

Very, very true. I've found some people look to various European countries as good because they restrict things like "Hate" speech, which is such a vague term it's impossible to pin down. While I think it's deplorable to be a bigot, you do have the right to say it barring legal reasons like libel/slander and whatnot.

However someone should be able to write about something bigoted without fear of government reprisal. I remember watching Penn and Teller: Bullshit! with their episode on the Vatican. An Italian comedienne was nearly busted for saying the Pope will burn in hell and be sodomized by gays for his actions.

If you can suddenly say well "Word X is racist and banned" then what's to stop someone for saying "Speaking against the church is banned"? I don't think it's worth it.

Serephino

Quote from: Satanslillgirl on November 02, 2009, 11:44:40 AM
I actually read the article he assigned for my Honors writing class in college.

It just goes to show how stuck up too many people can be. Do they think not talking about animals being homosexual will make it not happen? Do they think that a kid is going to read about a gay goat and suddenly become gay? I'm going to say that the majority of the population is ignorant and really needs to take the stick out of their ass.

I second that!  It seems like they're acting like he told them to watch a gay porn video and write a report on it. 

MercyfulFate

Quote from: Chaotic Angel on November 02, 2009, 08:40:43 PM
I second that!  It seems like they're acting like he told them to watch a gay porn video and write a report on it. 

I guarantee that's exactly how they thought about it too.

Jude

After having read the article, I have to admit I made a few comments without glancing it over first, I don't think things are quite as transparent as they seemed before.  Certain sections seemed a bit overly risque and given that she's a known ally of the gay lesbian and transgendered community, she was really just asking for it when she assigned an article containing this to read in an English class (NOT SCIENCE CLASS).

QuoteBonobos, one of our closest primate relatives, are similar, except that their lesbian sexual encounters occur every two hours. Male bonobos engage in “penis fencing,” which leads, surprisingly enough, to ejaculation. They also give each other genital massages.

Kotah

#24
Quote from: Kotah on November 01, 2009, 09:13:39 PM
Let me clarify the project. The kids were given three controversial topics to choose from. This, abortion, and war. They were then to write an essay both for -and against- the opinions displayed in the article they had chosen. He supplied the three articles, and I don't have the other two. I was just talking to a friend on the phone about it, and wanted to clear that up a little bit.

Mr. Delong is a him as well. I am currently awaiting word back on if he is getting fired. They are taking a while to deliberate it.
Finally in a rage we scream at the top of our lungs into this lonely night, begging and pleading they stop sucking up dry.There as guilty as sin, still as they always do when faced with an angry mob: they wipe the blood from their mouths and calm us down with their words of milk and honey. So the play begins, we the once angry mob are now pacified and sit quietly entertained. But the curtain exists far from now becasue their lies have been spoken. My dear, have you forgotten what comes next? This is the part where we change the world.