Today, Community Allies of Rainbow Youth held a candidate forum for this year’s Board of Education candidates, where Tudy Adler finally had to say the quiet parts out loud in response to pointed questions about LGBTQ+ topics in HCPSS. We already knew that the book Gender Queer gives her the vapors, but today’s forum gave us further insight into her views on LGBTQ+ issues beyond just books in libraries. Her responses were window-dressed with phrases like “age-appropriate,” “focus on students’ core education,” and “parents’ rights.” But it’s quite clear that the essence of her stance on LGBTQ+ topics is that public schools should be complicit with the wishes of parents who would like all non-cishet people to get back in the closet, out of sight, and away from their children.
In response to the question “Do you believe elementary school students should be exposed to LGBTQ+ identities as part of the curriculum?”, Ms. Adler said “This is a topic that I am constantly asked about when I go throughout the community, and the introduction of LGBTQ topics in K through 3rd grade is not something the community is… uh, they’re very concerned about it, and feel that this is a topic to be discussed at home, and the age-appropriateness of it is a factor we have to consider at all times when talking about this particular topic. So, I’m not in support of that.” Her response to a similar question in CARY’s questionnaire was the following: “I support reference to LGBTQ curriculum beginning in high school. Parents should have the option to opt out.”
In other words: No student should be required to learn that LGBTQ+ folks exist.
In response to the question “To what age groups of students, if any, is it appropriate for teachers and other staff members to relate their LGBTQ+ identity, or that they have LGBTQ+ family members?”, Ms. Adler stated “I would rather see that we have teachers who are really focusing on getting our students on track in their core education, that sort of thing.” Her response to the same question in the CARY questionnaire was “Teachers can do an amazing job with their students without sharing their personal lives.”
In other words: Gay teachers need to just stay in the closet and focus on the three Rs.
While the question of parental notification did not come up during today’s forum, after the forum was over, Ms. Adler posted to her Facebook page a statement where among her other LGBTQ+ positions, she says “I do not support keeping information about the gender identity of a student from their parents.”
In other words: If you’re gender non-conforming, the school will out you to your parents whether you like it or not. Sure, they might kick you out of the house, but they have a right to know.
Viewpoints like Ms. Adler’s are as dangerous as they are ignorant. Not only do they reveal a fundamental lack of understanding of LGBTQ+ folks’ needs and experiences, they also reveal a fundamental lack of understanding of the purpose of public schools. Public schools do not exist as an extension of any one household or belief system; they are a reflection of the communities in which they exist, serving students from all walks of life in their academic endeavors. To that end, our public school system operates according to the one value system that unites us all: one of respect and safety for all students and staff.
And it is impossible for LGBTQ+ youth or staff to feel respected and safe within a system that keeps them in the closet.
(Note: Linfeng Chen didn’t attend the forum, nor did he respond to CARY’s questionnaire.)