321 Questions Answered
Question 1: Isn’t policy 321 a common-sense safeguard against teachers hammering their own beliefs into kids?
Answer 1: No, it is not. If it were, it would not use the word “indoctrination” and it would have some evidence, any evidence, that any teacher is hammering their own beliefs into kids.
That kind of bully-pulpit coercion does not work in a classroom. Kids are onto it and they don’t like it. They push back.
What’s the worst thing you heard a kid say about a teacher when you were in school? “That teacher isn’t fair.” Teachers who try to force their beliefs onto kids will quickly run into wholesale revolt.
And that’s even assuming that teachers want to try to instill their beliefs into their students. Teachers have their hands full trying to instill their subject matter into their students. They don’t have time to launch into politicking. It’s not why they went into the profession.
Question 2: But aren’t Pride Flags political? I see them on Capitol Hill carried by people clearly lobbying for social policy.
Answer 2: It’s true that we have seen that. But those people are carrying those flags while engaging in political activity. It’s the activity that’s political, not the flag.
Does this sound like hair-splitting? It’s not. We all have American flags in our classrooms, but people who carried that flag attacked the capital and called for the execution of the vice president. The flag wasn’t violent and doesn’t stand for violence and we do not cede its meaning to those who committed violence. Flags are carried by many people in many contexts. But they mean what they were meant to mean, whether those carrying them stick to that meaning or not. We do not judge a flag based on everyone who has carried it. To suggest that the flag has come to mean something else is itself politicization.
The pride flag means that LGBTQ people can be proud of who they are. Who they are is not a matter of belief. It’s not something they “choose.” It’s what they are. The flag indicates support for all the identities, period.
Teachers display that flag NOT to advance an agenda, but to signal to kids that they are safe, seen, valued, welcome. That’s it.
Question 3: But what about teachers who were challenged about NOT flying that flag? Don’t they have rights, too?
(It’s curious that some people profess concern about the feelings of teachers on this point. After the names our community has called our teachers, the accusations hurled at teachers, the general climate of blame and fury at teachers, now all of a sudden we shed tears for the poor teachers at the mercy of their heartless students? Where was this sympathy when teachers risked their health and the health of their families to go to work during a pandemic?)
Answer 3: Yes, those teachers have rights. They are not forced to fly that flag. The only flag they are required to display is the American flag.
But if students challenge a teacher on not flying the pride flag, would it be difficult for a teacher to say, “My classroom, my choice?” Or: “This is a free country, and I choose not to display that flag.” Or any similar, brief statement. How hard is that?
And if students pursue that line of questions, we have arrived at a teachable moment. Kids are free to ask questions and teachers are free to answer them. If the student persists and becomes difficult, teach the class about freedom of thought, freedom of speech, and freedom from pressure, the power of mutual respect, and all the other needful lessons.
Teachers are not powerless in the face of student questioning.
Historical note: we had a presidential candidate who did not wear an American Flag pin on his lapel. This is what he said when challenged on not wearing the flag pin:
“You know, the truth is that right after 9/11, I had a pin. Shortly after 9/11, particularly because as we’re talking about the Iraq war, that became a substitute for, I think, true patriotism, which is speaking out on issues that are of importance to our national security, I decided I won’t wear that pin on my chest; instead I’m gonna try to tell the American people what I believe will make this country great, and hopefully that will be a testimony to my patriotism.”
Could teachers not borrow that sentiment and answer kids’ questions with some version of their own making about why the Pride Flag does not hang in their classroom?
Question 4: Well would you be all right with a MAGA flag/display/poster? A poster about Alex Jones as a beacon of truth? Blue Lives Matter or Pro-Life? Isn’t it hypocritical to say a pride flag is okay but symbols of the right are not?
Answer 4: This is a false equivalency. The Pride Flag is not a support of a political position, as explained above. The Pride Flag says to LGBTQ kids: you are seen, safe, and welcome here. It does not endorse a political position, policy, set of beliefs… It’s about welcoming whatever kids are assigned to sit in that room.
Symbols of political affiliation do not belong in the classroom except under unusual circumstances (for example: during a presidential race, posting both candidates’ campaign materials for comparison/contrast purposes).
Teachers are already well aware of the line between teaching and proselytizing. Generally, they do not now and have never displayed their political beliefs (see question 1, above). If any teacher has done so in error, the proper way to amend the situation is to speak to that teacher and include some lessons in professionalism.
There is a difference between beliefs, which we choose, and identity, which we do not. LGBTQ+ people are who they are. The kids are in the schools. The teachers want to help them feel safe enough to learn. That is why they fly that flag: to unite rather than divide.
Displaying support for a divisive policy alienates kids who disagree.
Does this question imply that you disagree with the existence of our LGBTQ+ kids? They are here. They have always been here, even if silent and concealed. Ignoring them, pretending they don’t exist, wishing they didn’t exist are unacceptable and discriminatory.
Question 5: But isn’t it true that accepting LGBTQ+ folks normalizes that behavior? And encourages it? And will turn kids away from their parents’ values?
Answer 5: No, people do not “turn” their identity.
Inside yourself, you feel your gender identity. No one could (or should try to) persuade you that you are not who you are. It’s not possible.
The purpose of the Pride Flag to make kids safer and able to learn. They already are who they are. The point now is for them to learn.
Question 6: Why does my kid need to celebrate another kid’s sexuality in school?
Answer 6: You child does NOT need to celebrate another kid’s sexuality in school or anywhere else. Your child has never been asked to celebrate another kid’s sexuality. Your kid’s opinion of any other kid’s sexuality is their own and nobody needs to hear or think about it.
Every kid’s sexuality is their own business.
The point of the pride flag is to signal to kids that they are safe, seen, welcome, valued. Not that we endorse their sexuality or, for that matter, know about it. Whatever it is, it’s their own business and the teacher will do what they can to prevent others harassing, bullying, shaming, or threatening them on the basis of it.
Question 7: But what’s the big problem? Why not take a stand against “indoctrination” and let it go? What harm could the policy do?
Answer 7: Untold harm. Grave harm. Here’s an incomplete list:
Teachers self-censor and fail to champion vulnerable kids’ rights.
Teachers self-censor and fail to teach to the fullest of their ability.
Kids fail to hear a variety of viewpoints and fail to develop good listening and critical thinking skills.
Kids are unprepared to go to college or the workplace, having been sheltered from anything with which they might disagree.
LGBTQ+ kids suffer diminished learning and self-esteem, resulting in various dire outcomes, such as self-harm and even suicide.
Kids and teachers are pitted against one another, with students on alert for a Gotcha moment rather than trusting their teachers to conduct their classes with probity.
Classroom discussion is stifled, kids don’t learn, teachers want to quit, the schools get worse, CB becomes a failed district, and we all lose money on our property values.
Conclusion:
Our kids are who they are, who they were born, and they know it. We cannot change them and should not try.
What we can and should do is signal to ALL the kids that, no matter who you were born to be, you are welcome in the school. You will be protected, equally with all the other kids. Nobody ranks higher and nobody ranks lower. Nobody gets bullied for what they are.
Pride symbols can help the most marginalized kids feel safe and valued, it enhances learning. Research shows that this is true.
Our teachers are already very, very good at keeping a balance of views in their classrooms, helping all the kids, 100% of them, feel safe, valued, and welcome. If they err in this crucial balance, our administrators and staff developers can help them learn to do better.
We support our teachers in creating safe, comfortable schools.
We support our children in discovering who they are, what gifts they have to offer the world, and what education they need to reach their highest potential.