How Long…

Will our school systems remain free from right-wing pressures. We are a bastion of Blue but it is eroding and one of the first symptoms of that erosion happened in Stonington where they banned the rainbow flag.

Stonington schools remove Pride flags from classrooms
The Day
By Carrie Czerwinski
October 18, 2022


A group of residents is criticizing a decision by Superintendent of Schools Mary Anne Butler to remove Pride flags from classrooms in the school system.

While the issue was not listed on the agenda of last Thursday’s Board of Education meeting, it was discussed after two residents confronted the board about the decision to remove the rainbow-colored flag which symbolizes lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) pride and social movements.

Some parents and residents, including 43rd House District Democratic candidate, Ashley Gillece, have now called on the school board to hold a special meeting to discuss the issue.

[...]

Butler said in an email Monday, that the issue arose when a parent expressed a concern about a Pride flag in a classroom and asserted it was a violation of the district’s policy on political materials in classrooms.

But then it got very warm for the Board and they huddled again and…

Stonington votes to allow Pride flags back in the classroom
The Day
By Carrie Czerwinski
October 25, 2022


The school board on Tuesday accepted the recommendation of Superintendent of Schools Mary Anne Butler that Pride flags be returned to classrooms and voted unanimously to approve a resolution allowing teachers to display them again.

The vote came as close to 100 residents wearing clothing displaying support for the LGBTQ+ community, waving Pride flags and holding signs filled the meeting room in the former Pawcatuck Middle School. The board scheduled the special meeting in response to public outcry after Butler’s decision that teachers remove the flags two weeks ago.

After a brief discussion, the board voted to approve a resolution that allows flags to be displayed in classrooms and requires the district to review and update policies to ensure they prohibit LGBTQ discrimination, and to work with the teachers’ union to ensure that those same policies are reflected in future contracts within 30 days.

I point this out to show that the craziest can happen here in the Blue state of Connecticut where just about every public school system and a number of privates have GSAs (Gay Straight Alliances) contrasting it to southern school systems that ban them as “groomers.”

Meanwhile in Florida…

Melbourne High School gay-straight alliance describes threats as LGBTQ debate heats up
Florida Today
By Bailey Gallion
February 25, 2022


Members of the Melbourne High School Gay-Straight Alliance (GSA) — a club dedicated to providing a safe environment for LGBTQ students and their allies — said they have been dealing with threats and vandalism that have made them too afraid to attend class.

The vandalism which destroyed club posters and the threats of physical harm come as debates about LGBTQ students rage locally and in the Florida Legislature.

Concerned about a controversial Florida bill nicknamed the “Don’t Say Gay" bill, students with the GSA put together a display on a hallway bulletin board reading “LGBT YOUth belong” with a rainbow silhouette of the state of Florida.

The students say they returned from a long weekend Feb. 8 to find the display was vandalized; someone ripped out the letters “LGBT” and a rainbow silhouette of Florida, leaving behind “youth belong.” Across the hallway “gays r going 2 hell” was scrawled on the wall.

The bigotry and harassment are also affecting the teachers and educators…

The culture wars are pushing some teachers to leave the classroom
NPR
By Scott Neuman
November 13, 2022


[…]

The growing polarization in the nation's classrooms comes as many schools are struggling to hold on to teachers and staff. One recent study estimates there are more than 36,500 teacher vacancies across the country and more than 163,500 teachers are either not fully certified or not certified in the subject they are teaching. Those figures are conservative, because data from more than a dozen states could not be collected, according to the study. Meanwhile, a report released last month by the Government Accountability Office says "[negative] perception of the teaching profession and perceived lack of support for current teachers" are "among key recruitment and retention challenges."

[…]

Perhaps no other state has become more embroiled in the controversy than Florida, where Gov. Ron DeSantis has spearheaded efforts to reshape the public school curriculum to reflect his conservative values. That includes the passage of the Parental Rights in Education bill and the governor's strategy of weighing in on local school board races. The bill, dubbed the "Don't Say Gay" law by critics, prohibits teachers from discussing LGBTQ-related topics "in kindergarten through grade 3 or in a manner that is not age appropriate or developmentally appropriate for students in accordance with state standards."

"The law is clear, and simple: educators are prohibited from instructing students on matters of gender identity or sexuality in grades K-3," DeSantis spokesman Bryan Griffin wrote in statement to NPR. "Florida's education will be focused on the fundamentals: reading, writing, math, civics, and other core subjects – not politically motivated indoctrination."

Andrew Spar, president of the Florida Education Association, says the politically charged environment around K-12 education is one of several factors "driving a lot of teachers, especially experienced teachers, out of the profession."

[…]

"I've heard the things that are said about educators," he says. When he once defended LGBTQ students, he was publicly berated by members of the community as a "pedophile and a groomer."

Since Florida's Parental Rights in Education law went into effect, Ingram says he's "very aware of what the punishment can be right now, which is me losing my certification as well as the civil case against me."

We have a national teacher shortage right now in part because of COVID but also the right-wing agenda. Stop and think for a minute what the long term effects of the pogrom on teaching race and LGBTQ topics will have?

• Experienced teachers are retiring and many of them while not liberal were more broadminded and are not biased.
• Younger teachers are replacing them and have conservative views because the more broadminded teachers are going to Blue states.
• Teachers who are LGBTQ+ are not being hired or are moving to friendlier states.
• Students who are LGBTQ+ are staying in the closet or are facing more bullying, harassment, and discrimination if they are out.
• While bullying, harassment, and discrimination are increasing not only on LGBTQ+ students, but also Blacks and religious minorities.

States like Florida are becoming bastions of white supremacists and bigots where they are becoming entrenched in politics and the general population.