Tag Archives: Pennsylvania LGBT

OPINION: Christian school sets dangerous precedent

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Sharon Wright’s son came out via an online social media blog nearly three years ago, and ever since then, his Christian-affiliated school has been making nothing but trouble… for both of them.

Apparently, it’s no longer enough for some religious institutions to condemn their homosexual youths as sinners, it is now grounds for expulsion and removal of all involved. But there’s no reason to worry; this Harrisburg mother and teacher is busy making sure we never have to hear about something like this again.

Wright had been teaching full-time at Covenant Christian Academy since 2002 so you’d think she might have had an easier time convincing her school board to let her son finish his final year there. However, when she appealed to them, blame was put on her as well. They told her that it was her job to “fix” her son who was, in their words, “broken.” They went on to say that his soul was at stake and that he “may have been abused as a child” and “didn’t bond with [his father].” She, being an amazing, supportive mother, took all the tedious steps of sending her son through psychiatric and pediatric review. The doctors’ verdicts? His sexual orientation is pre-determined, and the school making him “renounce his sin” could be potentially harmful.

What a shocker.

Ms. Wright kept on sticking by her son and the school simply wouldn’t budge. Naturally, this all took a toll on her. But when she told the school she needed some time to take care of her adjustment disorder, anxiety and depression during the school year, they told her not to bother coming back. And this was after they clearly stated that her employment should not be affected. So here comes the legal system, hopefully, to her side. Wright is using claims under the Americans With Disabilities Act, the Pennsylvania Human Rights Act, and the Human Relations Act to fight against her unlawful dismissal (which we all understand is definitely related to her support of her son’s sexual orientation, rather than her disabilities). She is currently being represented by Solomon Krevsky of the Clark & Krevsky firm from Lemoyne, Pa.

Pennsylvania students shouldn’t have to limit their options when it comes to their education. If Wright’s school gets away with this, it could trigger a chain reaction of other private institutions to commit similar heinous actions against LGBTQ students, faculty, and, as in this case, anyone even associated with them. This is hitting home turf and that’s not okay. Whatever happened to schools being places for nurturing and growth? Let’s keep our fingers crossed that the Wright v. Covenant Christian Academy case wins in Sharon’s favor.

This post was written by Danielle Hernandez, a student at Gettysburg College.

Swarthmore College faces continued challenge of hate speech

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Chalk is for more than child’s play and blackboards, as it turns out.

The Daily Gazette, Swarthmore’s independent student publication, brought to the attention of the college’s community the defacing of a wall directly at the entrance of Worth Courtyard, tainted earlier today with homophobic language written in chalk that read, “Queer Dorms” and “Tits.” The writing then pointed with an arrow to the nearby Worth Hall and “Lodges,” conveying a disturbingly straightforward message of “Kill em’ all [sic].”

Local students and activists around the country are left wondering just who the ambiguous “all” entails.

“This hateful activity is harmful not only to LGBTQ students, but to the student body as a whole,” said Joy Horner, deputy director of the Pennsylvania Student Equality Coalition (PSEC). “This is a safety threat to the campus at large, and should be of everyone’s concern.”

Swarthmore administration officials have since denounced the act, insisting that the university is looking to take more aggressive action against hate speech going forward.

“…Swarthmore is not a community that will tolerate hate or threats against any member of our community,” Dean of Students Liz Braun said in a statement. “There is more work to be done.”

The college had a similar pair of occurrences last month; first during a “Pub Nite,” when a guest stood on a bench waving the Confederate flag, chanting and drawing negative attention from the event’s attendees, and again when a slew of homophobic slurs were written on David Kemp – a Swarthmore dorm building. The administration’s then-lukewarm response to the two incidents has manifested in increased tension between students and administrators leading into today’s events.

Will Lawrence, a witness of the chalk writings and student at Swarthmore, expressed concern to The Daily Gazette that these instances will only continue if the administration does not produce stronger reactions.

“Considering that this seems to be becoming a pattern, we really need to develop an immediate response mechanism among the students that will allow the community to denounce hate speech and express support for those who were targeted,” Lawrence said.

If history is in fact meant to repeat itself, this won’t be the last we see of this controversy at Swarthmore. For the sake of student safety and civic justice, we hope Swarthmore administrators will take these issues more seriously than they have in the past.

Brandon Baker is the Director of Communications for the Pennsylvania Student Equality Coalition (PSEC). Brandon can be contacted at bbaker@pennsec.org.