Right-Winger: Gay Kids Are Recruiting Vulnerable Christian Kids to LGBT Clubs and Ruining Their Lives

You know how LGBT people try to *recruit* others to join them in spreading the gay agenda?

*crickets chirp*

Apparently, “gay clubs” in public schools do the same thing. And word on the street is they target Christian kids.

You remember infamous pastor/politician Gordon Klingenschmitt, who claims that LGBT people want to execute Christians and that Obamacare causes cancer. He recently welcomed Brian Camenker, of the anti-gay group MassResistance, onto his program “Pray In Jesus Name” to discuss how gay kids are ruining education as we know it.

Here’s their conversation, from a video collected by Right Wing Watch:

Klingenschmitt: Do you think there’s an effort to recruit the children of Christians or Catholics in Massachusetts using taxpayer-funded education? What are the teachers’ unions trying to teach in the classroom?

Camenker: Well, I have seen over the years, a movement of, in general, where you have kids who are very vulnerable, maybe having troubles at home, maybe having their own issues and the gay clubs will say ‘the reason that you’re not fitting in is because you’re really gay.’ And they will take them under their wing and they will persuade them to come out because ‘this is who you really are.’ And pretty soon these kids are getting involved in these really horrible behaviors, horrible things at these meetings. We’ve seen it up close and we’ve seen the anxiety that the parents go through when their kids are suddenly taken over by this. And, yes they love getting kids from Christian backgrounds. That seems to be something that they particularly enjoy to do.

It’s unclear what “horrible things” are happening at these meetings. Talking about acceptance and diversity? Discussing personal experiences of discrimination and bullying? Holding bake sales to buy rainbow-colored T-shirts? None of this sounds traumatizing for any student of any identity. I’m not sure what “horrible behaviors” Camenker has heard of, but it doesn’t sound like an accurate representation of what really happens in student clubs.

LGBT student clubs like gay-straight alliances are safe spaces for everybody, and persuading a person to do something they’re not comfortable with or be someone they’re not is the complete opposite of what these clubs seek to do. A GSA is the last place anybody would try to do any “recruiting.” If Christian kids happen to seek these clubs out because they’ve experienced anti-LGBT sentiment at home… well, go figure

15 YEARS AFTER LANDMARK RULING IN FAVOR OF GAY STRAIGHT ALLIANCES, SCHOOL DISTRICTS CONTINUE TO DENY THEM

Fifteen years after a landmark federal court ruling upholding the right of students to form Gay Straight Alliance clubs at public schools, some districts continue to violate the law by refusing to recognize GSAs.

The American Civil Liberties Union filed a federal lawsuit Tuesday against a school district in Bainbridge, Indiana — 35 miles west of Indianapolis — on behalf of three students and the GSA at North Putnam High School.

The students formed the GSA at North Putnam more than a year ago, but after months of stalling, the school board voted Nov. 20 not to recognize the club.

The ACLU alleges the district's failure to recognize the GSA violates both the federal Equal Access Act and the students' First Amendment rights:

LGBT students at the school have frequently been harassed and wanted to form the GSA to provide a place to educate the community and support vulnerable students. The school, which allows other non-school-sponsored clubs and activities to meet, such as the Fellowship of Christian Athletes, Key Club and Best Buddies, has denied recognition of the GSA club for more than a year. The students followed all the school's required procedures outlined in its student handbook to establish the club, including securing a faculty member to supervise the group. ... 

"The law is clear in this matter," said Ken Falk, ACLU of Indiana legal director. "There is no excuse for the school district's intransigence, which is causing real harm to its students." 

The ACLU of Indiana was successful in reversing a similar decision by a school in the Town of Munster in July, 2014. 

"The actions of the school district in clear violation of federal law leave the most vulnerable students at North Putnam without critically needed support," Chase Strangio, Staff Attorney at the ACLU added.

In November 1999, a federal judge ruled that the Salt Lake City school district's decision to reject a GSA at East High School violated the federal Equal Access Act. The Salt Lake district said it was banning all non-curricular clubs to get around the Equal Access Act, but continued to allow other clubs to meet. 

From Lambda Legal, which served as lead counsel in the Salt Lake City lawsuit: 

This case more than any other put the issue of GSAs on the nation's radar, letting students know they could fight back and letting school districts know they might be in violation of the law.

Apparently, some districts still haven't gotten the message.

Students Prevail Over Principal Who Blocked Efforts To Establish Gay-Straight Alliance

A high school principal who tried preventing students from establishing a Gay-Straight Alliance is eating his words this week.

Students at the Winfield High School in Putnam County, West Virginia had been lobbying to start a GSA alliance at their school for weeks. But principal Bruce McGrew, who has worked for Putnam County School District for over 20 years, blocked their efforts, saying “It’s not a subject to even discuss.”

In an interview with Charleston Gazette last week, he claimed a GSA would promote bullying.

“It would bring more problems to the issue of bullying and so forth if it were to occur,” he claimed. “Our job is to protect all kids from that.”

But not everyone agreed.

Teacher Steve Shamblin, who runs a GSA at a different high school, told the newspaper, “I get as many straight kids as gay kids, who just want to ask what they can do to help and make sure their friends aren’t bullied. It promotes tolerance at our school.”

Jennifer Meinig, executive director of West Virginia’s chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union, went so far as to say denying students a GSA would be breaking federal law, citing the Equal Access Act, which states public schools must treat all extracurricular clubs fairly.

“I think that this proves how much the school needs a club like this,” Meinig said, “because it must be a hostile environment there for students if there are concerns about bullying. On top of that, it’s the legal thing to do. It’s important that these students have somewhere to go.”

So McGrew changed his argument. Rather than saying the club would promote bullying, he said there wasn’t a faculty member willing to sponsor it.

Refusing to take no for an answer, students launched a Change.org petition aimed at McGrew.

“A gay-straight alliance club (GSA) is a club that would provide support, acceptance, and a safe place for students at this school, especially members of the LGBTQ+ community,” the petition said. “The Equal Access Act (1980’s) requires public schools to treat all extracurricular clubs fairly. This club is not being treated fairly, and it should be approved.”

The petition garnered over 150 signatures and got the media’s attention. This ultimately prompted McGrew to reverse course. Within a day, he located a faculty member to oversee the group and gave the GSA the green light.

Jeff Haught, the school’s show choir director, will be the club’s sponsor.

Putnam County Schools spokeswoman Rudi Raynes told BuzzFeed News, “Everyone is entitled to their personal beliefs. I can’t speak for Mr. McGrew. We have to set aside personal beliefs and go with the law of the land. Our school district is very open to all the preferences of our students.”

We presume you meant “orientations” instead of “preferences,” Ms. Raynes but we’ll let it slide this time.

After it was announced the school would get a GSA, an update to the Change.org petition was made. It now says:

“GSA Club is a go!! … Thank you for all your support!!!”

Catholic Students Wear Rainbow Socks to Support Gay Rights

This weekend at Vanier Catholic Secondary School in Canada, half of the graduating class wore rainbow socks to their commencement ceremony to celebrate their school’s newly-formed GSA. Half of them. At a Catholic school. You are doing it right.