National
Pa. school board faces lawsuit over GSA refusal
Wednesday deadline for Chambersburg’s response
Witold Walczak, legal director of the ACLU-PA, said Chambersburg has until this Wednesday to respond to a lawsuit threatened over the town’s refusal to allow a GSA to form. (Photo courtesy of Wikimedia)
By MICHAEL MARTIN GARRETT
UPDATE 3/21: The Chambersburg Area School Board informed the American Civil Liberties Union of Pennsylvania on Wednesday of its intent to “reconsider their vote on the [Gay Straight Alliance’s] application to be a club at their meeting on Wednesday, March 27,” Molly Tack-Hooper, staff attorney with the ACLU-PA, said.
The GSA will be granted all the privileges of an officially sanctioned school club, though Tack-Hooper said that this is a “temporary status pending their revote. We won’t know anything for sure until the evening of the 27.”
The American Civil Liberties Union of Pennsylvania and Equality Pennsylvania are threatening the school board of Chambersburg, a south central Pennsylvanian town, with legal action after the board voted 5-4 against allowing high school students to form a Gay-Straight Alliance on Feb 27.
The ACLU-PA and Equality PA sent a letter on March 12 to the Chambersburg Area School District superintendent and board president asking them to reverse their decision by March 15 or face a lawsuit in United States district court.
Witold Walczak, legal director of the ACLU-PA, said the school board asked for a month’s extension. The board now has until Wednesday, March 20 to respond, he said.
The school board’s Feb 27 decision came after several delays, including tabling the issue and questioning the club’s bylaws, which Equality Pennsylvania Executive Director Ted Martin called “traditional delaying tactics.”
“[The ACLU-PA and Equality PA] decided to give the ultimatum to the school board because the decision they made was wrong,” Martin said. “It was time for them to realize that what they were doing was violating the law.”
Walczak said the board’s decision was a violation of the Equal Access Act, a federal law that prevents discrimination against noncircular clubs in federally funded secondary schools.
“If the school board allows any noncircular clubs, then they have to allow the Gay-Straight Alliance,” Walczak said. The Chambersburg high school currently has a Bible Club and a Ping Pong Club, among others, he said.
“Not only is this the right thing to do from a policy perspective – to treat all students fairly… but they also have a legal obligation to do so,” Walczak said.
School board member Carl Barton said he voted against allowing the GSA because he “thought we needed to do some more research and consensus building.” Barton said that he was also concerned about the possible liability of students receiving “counseling” from non-licensed individuals at club meetings.
“You can’t do counseling, per se, because we then might have a liability,” Barton sad. “Legally, if one kid’s sitting down with another and talking to him about critical things – like depression – it can become quite serious.”
Barton said he also was trying to keep the GSA from “becoming the major issues for the school board election.”
The other members of the school board and superintendent Joseph Padasak could not be reached for comment. Assistant superintendent Eric Michael declined to comment, saying it would be inappropriate to discuss the actions of the board in light of the threat of legal action.
Former Chambersburg Area Senior High School student Thomas McCalmont started a petition on Change.org for the school board to reverse its decision two days after the board’s decision. As of March 16, the petition had 6,057 signatures.
McCalmont, who tried unsuccessfully to start a GSA each year he attended CASHS, said he felt compelled to act because of his experiences with bullying as a gay youth at CASHS.
“I had gone through every year being verbally bullied two to three times a day… and I knew other kids were going through the same thing,” McCalmont said.
One incident in his senior year led to McCalmont no longer being able to use the locker room before and after gym class because of the harassment he faced, McCalmont said.
“What I was trying to do [with the petition] was just to… put a little pressure on the school board to show there’s a lot of support for this club, both in and outside of the community,” McCalmont said.
Barton said he’s unsure how much of a factor McCalmont’s petition is on his position on the GSA because “there’s not a great indication of any great number of local people [who signed it].”
McCalmont said approximately 300 of the signatures are from people in Chambersburg, while almost 300 more are from the surrounding school districts. Almost 5,000 of the signatures are from Pennsylvania gay and lesbian allies, he said.
Federal Government
US Census Bureau testing survey on LGBTQ households
Agency proposing questions about sexual orientation and gender identity
The U.S. Census Bureau is seeking public comment on a proposed test of sexual orientation and gender identity questions on the American Community Survey. The test would begin this summer and continue into next year.
The Census Bureau published the request as a Federal Register notice. In its press release the agency noted that the ACS is an ongoing survey that collects detailed housing and socioeconomic data. It allows the Census Bureau to provide timely and relevant housing and socioeconomic statistics, even for low levels of geography.
As part of the process for adding new questions to the ACS, the Census Bureau tests potential questions to evaluate the quality of the data collected.
The Census Bureau proposes testing questions about sexual orientation and gender identity to meet the needs of other federal agencies that have expressed interest in or have identified legal uses for the information, such as enforcing civil rights and equal employment measures.
The test would follow the protocols of the actual ACS — with one person asked to respond to the survey on behalf of the entire household. These particular questions are asked about people 15 years of age or older. Households are invited to respond to the survey online, by paper questionnaire or by phone.
The current Federal Register notice gives the public a final opportunity to provide feedback before the Census Bureau submits its recommendations to the Office of Management and Budget for approval. The public may provide feedback through May 30 online.
The White House
Judy Shepard to receive Presidential Medal of Freedom
Nancy Pelosi is also among this year’s honorees
Beloved LGBTQ advocate Judy Shepard is among the 19 honorees who will receive the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the highest civilian award in the U.S., the White House announced on Friday.
The mother of Matthew Shepard, who was killed in 1998 in the country’s most notorious anti-gay hate crime, she co-founded the Matthew Shepard Foundation with her husband Dennis to raise awareness about anti-LGBTQ violence.
The organization runs education, outreach, and advocacy programs, many focused on schools.
In a statement shared via the Human Rights Campaign, Shepard said, “This unexpected honor has been very humbling for me, Dennis, and our family. What makes us proud is knowing our President and our nation share our lifelong commitment to making this world a safer, more loving, more respectful, and more peaceful place for everyone.
“I am grateful to everyone whose love and support for our work through the years has sustained me.
“If I had the power to change one thing, I can only dream of the example that Matt’s life and purpose would have shown, had he lived. This honor reminds the world that his life, and every life, is precious.”
Shepard was instrumental in working with then-President Barack Obama for passage of the landmark Matthew Shepard and James Byrd Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act in 2009, which was led in the House by then-Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), who will also be honored with a Presidential Medal of Freedom during the ceremony on Friday.
Also in 2009, Shepard published a memoir, “The Meaning of Matthew: My Son’s Murder in Laramie, and a World Transformed,” and was honored with the Black Tie Dinner Elizabeth Birch Equality Award.
“Judy Shepard has been a champion for equality and President Biden’s choice to honor her with the Presidential Medal of Freedom is a testament to what she’s done to be a force of good in the world,” HRC President Kelley Robinson said in a statement.
“A mother who turned unspeakable grief over the loss of her son into a decades-long fight against anti-LGBTQ+ hatred and violence, Judy continues to make a lasting impact in the lives of the LGBTQ+ community,” she said.
“It is because of her advocacy that the first federal hate crimes legislation became law and that countless life-saving trainings, resources and conversations about equality and acceptance are provided each year by the Matthew Shepard Foundation,” Robinson said. “We are honored that Judy is a member of the HRC family and know that her work to create a more inclusive and just world will only continue.”
Other awardees who will be honored by the White House this year are: Actor Michelle Yeoh, entrepreneur and former New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg, Jesuit Catholic priest Gregory Boyle, Assistant House Democratic Leader Jim Clyburn (D-S.C.), former Labor and Education Secretary and former U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Dole (R-N.C.), journalist and former daytime talkshow host Phil Donahue, World War II veteran and civil rights activist Medgar Evers (posthumous), former Vice President Al Gore, civil rights activist and lawyer Clarence B. Jones, former Secretary of State and U.S. Sen. John Kerry (D-Mass.), former U.S. Sen. Frank Lautenberg (D-N.J.) (posthumous), Olympic swimmer Katie Ledecky, educator and activist Opal Lee, astronaut and former director of NASA’s Johnson Space Center Ellen Ochoa, astronomer Jane Rigby, United Farm Workers President Teresa Romero, and Olympic athlete Jim Thorpe (posthumous).
National
United Methodist Church removes 40-year ban on gay clergy
Delegates also voted for other LGBTQ-inclusive measures
The United Methodist Church on Wednesday removed a ban on gay clergy that was in place for more than 40 years, voting to also allow LGBTQ weddings and end prohibitions on the use of United Methodist funds to “promote acceptance of homosexuality.”
Overturning the policy forbidding the church from ordaining “self-avowed practicing homosexuals” effectively formalized a practice that had caused an estimated quarter of U.S. congregations to leave the church.
The New York Times notes additional votes “affirming L.G.B.T.Q. inclusion in the church are expected before the meeting adjourns on Friday.” Wednesday’s measures were passed overwhelmingly and without debate. Delegates met in Charlotte, N.C.
According to the church’s General Council on Finance and Administration, there were 5,424,175 members in the U.S. in 2022 with an estimated global membership approaching 10 million.
The Times notes that other matters of business last week included a “regionalization” plan, which gave autonomy to different regions such that they can establish their own rules on matters including issues of sexuality — about which international factions are likelier to have more conservative views.
Rev. Kipp Nelson of St. Johns’s on the Lake Methodist Church in Miami shared a statement praising the new developments:
“It is a glorious day in the United Methodist Church. As a worldwide denomination, we have now publicly proclaimed the boundless love of God and finally slung open the doors of our church so that all people, no matter their identities or orientations, may pursue the calling of their hearts.
“Truly, all are loved and belong here among us. I am honored to serve as a pastor in the United Methodist Church for such a time as this, for our future is bright and filled with hope. Praise be, praise be.”
PHOTOS: Taste of Point
Miyares joins efforts to fight Title IX changes
US Census Bureau testing survey on LGBTQ households
What property should I purchase if I’m not sure how long I’ll be in D.C.?
Comings & Goings
Pride season has begun
Judy Shepard to receive Presidential Medal of Freedom
Kenyan court bars homophobic protests
As You Are bar closes temporarily, citing problems with building
