Asst. Supt. Aird has a backbone, Board President Johnson does not
THE GUERRILLA ANGEL REPORT — Let me get this confusing story straight for you: First, a school official recommends that the school board adopts a transgender protection policy — something progressive school districts around the country are already doing. So far, so good. Then the school board adopts the policy unanimously. Good, good. A few days after the policy is passed, the board feels heat for adopting the policy and start to distance themselves from it. Not good. The board calls a special meeting and decide they didn’t ‘understand what they were doing’ and repeals the pro-trans policy only 5 days after they adopted it. Bad. Following the repeal, the school board discuss firing the school official that suggested adopting a pro-trans policy. Really bad.
Background on the East Aurora (Ill.) School District transgender policy saga here: http://lexiecannes.wordpress.com/2012/10/18/update-trans-policy-rescinded-hate-group-pushing-illinois-school-district-to-drop-new-perverse-transgender-student-inclusion-policy/
Pressure to rescind the transgender rights policy was prompted by hate groups and individuals. The school board quickly offered up the head of assistant superintendent Dr. Christie Aird, the person who suggested the trans policy, to appease the hate groups.
At a recent meeting, board president Annette Johnson stated they weren’t going to fire Aird after all. However, Illinois Safe Schools Alliance’s Shannon Sullivan believes Aird might lose her job down the road anyway.
The school board has planned some meetings with community members to see if a trans policy can be worked out another way.
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I don’t see anything good coming from this existing school board. During the entire ruckus, no mention was ever given to transgender students in the district — how did the school board backpeddling affect them? By putting the possibility of firing Aird on the agenda in the first place clearly indicates the school board has no backbone and no clue.
Asst. Supt. Aird has a backbone and a clue, Board President Johnson does not
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Filed under: Discrimination, Equality, Civil Rights, Policy, Administrative, Transgender, Transsexual, Trans, Violence, Hate, Christie Aird, East Aurora school, Illinois Safe Schools Alliance, president Annette Johnson, school board, Shannon Sullivan
Despicable Asses, then again it is in the bible belt and anything like treating people of LGBT fairly is Verboten ! Nutty American religionists are in charge there and life is miserable for anyone who is labeled LGBT in anyway shape or form. America has a long, long way to go in treating this minority group fairly and those that support them.
Yes, they’re despicable, but East Aurora is not in the bible belt. It’s in northern Illinois, a state with a very good human rights law that includes coverage of trans* people in most public venues (housing, employment, etc.). Problem is that school children have typically been excluded from coverage under a lot of these laws simply because they’re not adults, and the schools, for whatever reason, are apparently not considered to be public accommodations.
A plea to Annette Johnson, Illinois School District superintendent: “Annette, the IFI is a HATE group, who fears LGBT people; you must distance yourself and the Board from them. Please reconsider this action! Dr. Aird is the hero in this story, which I hope has a good resolution; not only for her, but for the many trans children in your District. They need your support more than anyone. Please help them, please show that you too are a hero!”
[...] This is quite a contrast from the recent actions of a school board of a nearby mid-western state who adopted a trans protection ordinance only to rescind it a few days later in the face of vocal opponents. More on that: http://lexiecannes.wordpress.com/2012/11/06/illinois-school-board-decide-not-to-fire-official-who-su… [...]
[...] More about the school board’s flip-flop: http://lexiecannes.wordpress.com/2012/11/06/illinois-school-board-decide-not-to-fire-official-who-su… [...]