Yea Or Nay

Is this segregation?

Is this ghettoization?

Is this paradise?

I can see this be many things for LGBTQ+ both positive and negative.

Connecticut's first LGBTQ-centered school to open later this year
As lawmakers continue to debate LGBTQ representation in U.S. schools, Connecticut’s PROUD Academy plans to open its doors to queer youths and allies this fall.
NBC News
By Matt Lavietes
February 4, 2023


Throughout her 30 years as a teacher, Patricia Nicolari said she faced repeated harassment from students due to her sexuality. Some left notes on her desk asking if she is a lesbian. Others called her a “dyke” under their breaths. And one day, students carved “Lez” into her car.

“At the time, I remember thinking, ‘I’m going through so much anxiety as a teacher. I can’t imagine what our students go through questioning themselves and how unsafe it is for them to come out,’” Nicolari said.

Years later, Nicolari is done imagining. Instead, she’s taking action. 

In September, she plans to open a private school in Connecticut that’s designed to be an oasis for LGBTQ students. PROUD Academy, which stands for Proudly Respecting Our Unique Differences Academy, will prioritize what Nicolari saw lacking in the U.S. education system: a safe, affirming and bully-free academic environment for LGBTQ students.

I can see it. It is not easy being LGBTQ in a straight world.

Just over 83% of LGBTQ students said they experienced in-person harassment or assault at school, according to a 2021 survey by GLSEN, an advocacy group that aims to end LGBTQ discrimination in education. And nearly 1 in 3 respondents said they missed at least one day of school in preceding month as a result of feeling unsafe.

To quote Kermit, “Its not easy being green”

PROUD Academy will join a handful of other LGBTQ-centered schools — including Alabama’s Magic City Acceptance Academy and Ohio’s Albert Einstein Academy — that have opened within the last handful of years, as the nation’s culture wars over LGBTQ issues have intensified.

I can see that for some thins is very desirable but I can also for some they see it as ghettoization, put all the gays in one place and we don’t have to worry about discrimination law suits. As one comment in the Yahoo copy of this article said,

Perfect!!!   Good!   Been pushing this all along. Their own school, own agenda, etc.

Get the public schools back to a neutral environment, no politics or ideology, just teach!

We saw with segregation did not work? "Separate but equal" didn't work and I see this as another version of that. Besides since these are private schools only the well off LGBTQ+ students can go there, while those who will be from already marginalized communities will be forced to defend for themselves in public schools.

 I much rather see the non-discrimination laws enforced. I much rather see the seventy percent who say that they support us speak up. Ten years ago it was the haters who were in a closet, now after a president who green lighted the animosity against us and a national party that backed him up are out in the open now.

“The political climate absolutely accelerated the need for a PROUD Academy and a need for PROUD Academies across the United States,” Nicolari said. “Our kids matter. Their lives matter. Their education matters. Their mental health matters. And we can’t have our students and families be bullied into being less than they’re capable of being.”

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