Fighting for fairness.After she was outed by several peers at Holmdel High School Holmdel High School is a comprehensive community four-year public high school located at 36 Crawfords Corner Road in Holmdel Township, in Monmouth County, New Jersey, which serves 1,200 students from Holmdel Township. in Holmdel, N.J., as a freshman in 2001, Nancy Wadington says she was taunted and harassed by other students. In one incident she was pushed down a staircase. In another, several students urinated on her backpack. Through it all, Wadington, now 18, complained to school officials, who did nothing to stop it, she claims. Feeling unsafe, she left Holmdel High, eventually graduating from a special-needs school she attended due to stress. With the help of the gay rights group Lambda Legal Lambda Legal (Lambda Legal Defense and Education Fund) is a United States civil rights organization that focuses on gay men, lesbians, bisexuals, transgender people and those with HIV through impact litigation, education, and public policy work. , Wadington filed a lawsuit September 7 against the Holmdel Township board of education. That same day, 17-year-old Charlene Nguon and the American Civil Liberties Union American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), nonpartisan organization devoted to the preservation and extension of the basic rights set forth in the U.S. Constitution. of Southern California Southern California, also colloquially known as SoCal, is the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. Centered on the cities of Los Angeles and San Diego, Southern California is home to nearly 24 million people and is the nation's second most populated region, filed suit against Santiago High School Santiago High School is a high school located in Garden Grove, California and is a member of the Garden Grove Unified School District. The school's athletic teams are known as the Cavaliers. principal Ben Wolf and the Garden Grove Garden Grove, city (1990 pop. 143,050), Orange co., S Calif., a suburb of Long Beach and Los Angeles, on the Santa Ana River; founded 1877, inc. 1956. Many of its residents work in nearby aerospace and defense installations, and there is light manufacturing. Unifled School District in Orange County, Calif. Nguon says she was suspended twice for showing public affection on campus and was told by Wolf not only that she and her girlfriend had to be separated but that one of them had to leave Santiago. Nguon volunteered. The two pending lawsuits illustrate the legal stand that increasing numbers of openly gay and lesbian students are willing to take. They are arguing for basic protections and fairness, and in most cases they are winning. "The principal was just singling us out," explains Nguon, noting she has never had discipline problems in the past. "Even though straight students did the same thing, they never got in trouble." Nguon, who is back at Santiago High as a senior (where Wolf is still principal), is asking for a district-wide policy to ensure gay and lesbian students are treated equally. "It's just not right ... and I don't want [the school administration] to harass other students," she says. According to according to prep. 1. As stated or indicated by; on the authority of: according to historians. 2. In keeping with: according to instructions. 3. the Los Angeles Times Los Angeles Times Morning daily newspaper. Established in 1881, it was purchased and incorporated in 1884 by Harrison Gray Otis (1837–1917) under The Times-Mirror Co. (the hyphen was later dropped from the name). , in response to Nguon's allegations, district spokesman Alan Trudell said his district "does not engage in any discriminatory practices." Wadington also says she hopes her lawsuit will make things better for others. "Dealing with abuse and harassment from other students ... was a daily struggle for me and continues to be a problem for other gay and lesbian students," she says. Holmdel officials are denying Wadington's allegations, according to Lambda Legal's Alphonso David. The courage and tenacity shown by Wadington and Nguon are important to the overall fight for equality, notes David: "When a student sees another standing up for their rights, there is a ripple effect ripple effect Epidemiology See Signal event. ." Meet the new GenQ advisory board The Advocate is proud to introduce its first GenQ advisory panel. For the next six months, these young queer aspiring editors will work as stringers to gather and develop stories and ideas for the GenQ section in the magazine and on Advocate.com. Contact the editor closest to you with your story ideas. David Nguyen Seattle davidlucnguyen@aol.com Felicia Ortiz Berkeley, Calif. fortiz@berkeley.edu Brandon Nowalk College Town, Texas bnowalk@swbell.net Kevin Hauswirth Schaumburg, Ill. advocatekevin@gmail.com Kurt Dyer Milwaukee kurt@projectq.org Sarah Kennedy
Sarah Mary Kennedy MBE (born 8 July 1950 in East Grinstead, West Sussex) is a British TV and radio broadcaster. Athens, Ohio sarahkkennedy@gmail.com Brian Samuels Boston brianwsamuels@gmail.com Jorge Velez Union City, N.J. velez_a j@yahoo.com |
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