Sunday, February 10, 2013

Oh. My. God. This is a hot mess. Students and parents from Sullivan High School in Sullivan, IN actually want to ban lgbt students from their prom.

A team of Valley high schoolers and parents petition to ban gays from their prom.

NBC 2's Paige Preusse reports how Sullivan High School says there's nothing legally they can do to allow it... several students and parents are taking matters into their own hands.
Several parents, students, and others who believe gays should be banned from the Sullivan High School prom met Sunday at the Sullivan First Christian Church.

"We don't agree with it and it's offensive to us," said Diana Medley.

Their idea is to create a separate...traditional prom.Students say there are several others from their high school who agree, but are afraid to take a stand.

"If we can get a good prom then we can convince more people to come and follow what they believe," said student Kynon Johnson.

And now they want everyone to know where they stand.

"We want to make the public see that we love the homosexuals, but we don't think it's right nor should it be publicly accepted," said a local student.

But not all in the community think what they're doing is right.
"We shouldn't be condemning people, and that's what judgement is. Christ came to save the people not to condemn them."
Local man Jim Davis says we've all sinned...so why should gays be treated with less respect?
"Love them as a person. You don't have to love what they do, because the gays may not love all the mistakes you make," said Davis.

The sad part is that Davis was the only person who spoke out against this awful idea. The television report (what you are reading is the transcript from the televised news report which does not allow embedded links) did not seek out anyone who was lgbt or an lgbt ally.

But if you think that is sad, check out this next passage:

Diana Medley is a special education teacher in town. She doesn't believe anyone is born gay.
"I believe that it was life circumstances and they chose to be that way; God created everyone equal," said Medley.
"I don't understand it. A gay person isn't going to come up and make some change unless it's to realize that it was a choice and they're choosing God," said Medley.

God help the lgbt student who goes to her school because Medley has shown that she will close them out if they come to her for help. I can't imagine what she would do if she sees an lgbt student being bullied.

When this controversy goes viral - and I have a feeling that it shall - I am betting that groups like the Family Research Council, the National Organization for Marriage, and networks like Fox News will rally to the side of these awful individuals.

I'm sorry for those who get offended by my words but these children and these parents are terrible. This is not merely expressing an opinion, it is mass bullying of lgbt students, some who are probably already struggling with their sexual orientation and are having feelings of sadness, isolation and depression.

Imagine a community of people attacking you, not because of anything you did, but because of their prejudices regarding who you are.

For those who whine that "gays are the bullies," you need to sit your ass down and check out what's going on here.

If there are some lgbts who can be called bullies, it's because incidents like this have taught us well.

Editor's note - Those who want to see the video news report can see it here.

UPDATE - The video seems to have disappeared from the page and the article has been altered. The lead now reads"A team of Valley high schoolers and parents rally for a traditional prom that bans gays." UPDATE 2 - The video is back up but it has been altered.It and the article seems to have been altered to include more information on Medley, including this passage:

Diana Medley is a special education teacher in town. She doesn't believe anyone is born gay."I believe that it was life circumstances and they chose to be that way; God created everyone equal," said Medley.

"Homosexual
students come to me with their problems, and I don't agree with them,
but I care about them. It's the same thing with my special needs kids, I
think God puts everyone in our lives for a reason," said Medley.

For those who are curious as to what the original news report said, here it is saved from youtube:

About Me

Alvin McEwen is 46-year-old African-American gay man who resides in Columbia, SC.
McEwen's blog, Holy Bullies and Headless Monsters, and writings have been mentioned by Americablog.com, Goodasyou.org, People for the American Way, PageOneQ.com, The Washington Post, Raw Story, The Advocate, Media Matters for America, Crooksandliars.com, Thinkprogress.org, Andrew Sullivan's Daily Dish, Melissa Harris-Perry, The Last Word with Lawrence O'Donnell, Newsweek, The Daily Beast, The Washington Blade, and Foxnews.com.
In addition, he is also a past contributor to Pam's House Blend,Justice For All, LGBTQ Nation, and Alternet.org. He is a present contributor to the Daily Kos and the Huffington Post,
He is the 2007 recipient of the Harriet Daniels Hancock Volunteer of the Year Award and the 2010 recipient of the Order of the Pink Palmetto from the SC Pride Movement as well as the 2009 recipient of the Audre Lorde/James Baldwin Civil Rights Activist Award from SC Black Pride. In addition, he is a three-time nominee of the Ed Madden Media Advocacy Award from SC Pride.