When high school and middle school students in Yulee Florida public schools put together their plans to form a gay-straight student alliance, they were told that clubs with names referencing sexual orientation would not be allowed and their club was denied.
I'm sure it was the "straight" part that got to them.
Gay-straight alliances have been forming in middle schools and high schools for about a decade now. There are hundreds of them all over the country. The clubs are student-led, faculty advised, and follow the setup rules of any other school club. Their purpose is to bring students who are queer-identified together with students who aren't and ally them in keeping the school safe for everyone.
The ACLU has taken up the cause of the kids in Yulee and will be arguing that the school administration's decision to disallow the club violates the Equal Access Act, since other clubs organized in the same way are allowed to use school facilities. This isn't the first time such a challenge has been posed for a gay-straight alliance, and it won't be the last.
Meanwhile, good luck to the brave kids in the Yulee schools for holding out for what is fair.
See also:
Mother and Daughter Parted by Court after Lesbian Break Up
image: http://www.gsacolumbusin.org/
