Mississippi teen Constance McMillen's Daddy Supports Her

[Emit]

Mississippi teen Constance McMillen's daddy is not only ridiculously hot, he supports his gay daughter. This national outpouring of support for Constance is, in my reckoning, unprecedented. Major national LGBT organizations could work all year and never create such a perfect storm of media attention focused on an attractive, well-spoken, sympathetic figure. ...

~snip~

Dan Savage nails it:

This is about more than Constance, this is about more than just the bigots on the Itawamba County school board. This is about vulnerable LGBT high school and middle school all over the country. While more and more LGBT students enjoy the support of their families and friends, LGBT students still face harassment from their peers and hostility from school administrators. And the harassment doesn't just impact the lives of openly gay students. Closeted students witness discrimination against openly gay students and are made fearful. By coming down on the Itawamba County School system—and by coming down on them hard—we're not just sending a message to the bigots running the schools in a corner of Mississippi. We're sending a message to school boards and superintendents and principals all over the country: you will pay a price if you discriminate against or encourage other students to retaliate against LGBT youth.

http://www.joemygod.blogspot.com/

[Ellen Forradalom]

1. It amazes me that the school board

walked right into this.

Effective nonviolence involves laying a moral trap. Civil rights activitists carefully laid them in the 1950s and 60s, and their opponents in the South walked right into them. It amazes me that fifty years later they did it again.

[Withywindle]

2. Goddess bless you, Mr. McMillen!

Some people object to the idea of comparing the struggle of black people to be recognized as full human beings who deserve equal rights with the struggle of GLBT people to be recognized as full human beings who deserve equal rights.

The critics are right. There are differences. One of the biggest differences is that very few, if any, black children have ever been cast out by their parents when they reached that point where they had to say, "Mom...Dad...I've wrestled with this for years. I've finally realized I'm...black."

Something like 40% of all homeless teenagers--doing drugs, turning tricks, no future--are queer, and thrown out by their homophobic parents. GLBT youth are pretty much the most vulnerable population in the US--even school systems everywhere run by right-wingers want to censor ANY possible positive representation or honest source of information for gay kids.

Mr McMillen, you are what parenthood should be. You love and defend your child, and listen to her and learn who she really is. Even if it challenges your original beliefs, you rise to meet her--not try to drag her down.

[Emit]

3. I just read an article last night entitled "Gay, Young, and Homeless"

... In the United States there are between 1.6 and 2.8 million homeless youth, and approximately 320,000 to 800,000 of them identify as LGBT. Because LGBT young people comprise only between five and 10 percent of the overall population, their community is drastically overrepresented in the homeless community...

http://www.campusprogress.org/fieldreport/5163/gay-young-and-homeless

Thanks for bringing up that topic ~ it's an important topic that doesn't get a lot of air time.

This subject hits close to home for me as a mother of a bisexual teen. Fortunately, despite some minor discomforts with required permission slips, her school made no issue with her taking her girlfriend to prom last year.

It's hard enough for teens, at their age, discovering themselves and their sexuality, etc., but to have to contend with these hateful rules and these adults who discriminate against them, well, I admire this young woman for her courage and her family for sticking by her.

[Withywindle]

4. Being a parent of a teen is never easy.

I know I had huge fist-swinging, cussing fights with my parents at that age. But they never THREW ME OUT.

That's the thing about homophobia that is so incredibly evil; it leads parents to reject their own children. What other force on earth can do that?

The GLBT homelessness rate is appalling, and the GLBT suicide rate is even higher. Some of the same hypocrites who are militantly "pro-choice" are TOTALLY pro-death when that idealized fetus grows up enough to know that he or she is queer.

[theHandpuppet]

5. This is why my partner and I support The Point Foundation

"Point Foundation provides financial support, mentoring, leadership training and hope to meritorious students who are marginalized due to sexual orientation, gender identity or gender expression."

I encourage everyone to visit their site and if possible, donate, or encourage an LBGT youth to apply for a scholarship.
http://www.thepointfoundation.org/

[Emit]

6. Thanks for the link, theHandpuppet

I'll check it out.