Posted on Advocate.com  October 05, 2010
Franken Takes on Bullying
By Andrew Harmon and Julie Bolcer

http://www.advocate.com/News/Daily_News/2010/10/05/Franken_Takes_on_Bullying/

Minnesota senator Al Franken, who earlier this year introduced a bill explicitly addressing antigay bullying in public schools, has condemned recent statements by a social conservative group claiming that such legislation is not only unnecessary but would serve to indoctrinate students into homosexuality.

Franken responded to comments by Minnesota Family Council president Tom Prichard, who in a blog post last week said that "homosexual activists" were manipulating media attention of multiple suicides this past year in the Anoka-Hennepin school district in the Minneapolis area to further an agenda. Prichard also asserted that LGBT youths are at greater risk of suicide because "they've embraced an unhealthy sexual identity and lifestyle" — not because they face a well-documented higher incidence of harassment from their peers.

Found what appears to be the blog in question.

Quoteand the word among students is that Justin was distraught over his male lover having an affair. Whatever the exact reason for Justin's suicide it's an enormous tragedy that shouldn't be manipulated for ideological purposes which is what's being done now.

..........

I would agree that youth who embrace homosexuality are at greater risk, because they've embraced an unhealthy sexual identity and lifestyle.

http://mnfamilycouncil.blogspot.com/2010/09/gay-activists-manipulate-suicide.html

It's a little disturbing that there appears to be some manipulation of realities here. Not sure if this is from those involved or the reporting.

The issues are, or I suggest, should be, perfectly straight forward.

People have a basic right to live as they choose. No-one should be harrassed or have their freedom an opportinities, granted to citizens, limited because of their lifestyle.

The right of a Jewish or Muslim child to wear whatever their faith dictates. The right of a vegitarian child to not be exposed to dead meat.

The claims by the Minnesota Family Council to explain this suicide are weak and specious. The general belief of fellow students is relevant only in as much as an indicator of the general porblems in the school. (When I was at school we believed one of our teachers to be a witch. That didn't make it so).

If  Al Franken did indeed say that  "Prichard also asserted that LGBT youths are at greater risk of suicide because "they've embraced an unhealthy sexual identity and lifestyle" Then that is sad and regretable since that isn't quite what was said.

The issues are quite simple, basic human right to self expression. Embellishment by either side is not helpful.

Last year a group of boys were calling me a "Dyke" and making fun of me and all the principle did was give them a warning and I told them that I thought I could be in danger and all they said was "If they do it again.....blah" and this year all I did was tell a girl I loved her and they said it was sexual harassment and used it to get me kicked out of school.

QuoteLast year a group of boys were calling me a "Dyke" and making fun of me and all the principle did was give them a warning and I told them that I thought I could be in danger and all they said was "If they do it again.....blah" and this year all I did was tell a girl I loved her and they said it was sexual harassment and used it to get me kicked out of school.

How many young men in high school who are not gay/trans tell a girl who isn't interested in them that they love them??? I expect it happens regularly in your old school.  So that means they threw you out for being trans, bottom line.

...Makes me wish I was your mom...I would have raised as much of a stink as I knew how to raise, tried to get protestors out in front of the school, and tried as hard as I could to get a civil-rights lawsuit going as well.   In fact...

I don't see why you can't contact GLAAD and/or the ACLU and see if they are interested in taking this case.  In fact, if you haven't, I strongly urge you to contact both your state's ACLU and GLAAD by e-mail, and if you haven't gotten a non-form response back in a week or so, call them both also.  See if you can get a lawyer to help you-because what they did was a civil-rights violation.