Issue link: http://educator.cta.org/i/1500904
President Charles Shannon shares stories and pic- tures of his partner and family with his class, working to demonstrate dif ferent types of relationships and family structures for his students. Shannon shows his students the value in learning about each other, the things they have in common and the differences that make everyone unique. Using lessons from Welcoming Schools and GLSEN (see sidebar, page 22), he works to make sure his students know they are all important, cared for and supported. " You can' t shy away from w h at 's go o d for ki d s," says Shannon. "Our kids are always watching and lis- tening. The inf luence you have is so powerful. Think about every word you say, everything you do — all of it impacts students." Defending LGBTQ+ Youth Even in California, the vast majority of LGBTQ+ students report that school is a hostile environment. According to GLSEN's 2021 National School Climate Report, 96% of California students reported hearing anti-LGBTQ+ remarks at school, with nearly half hearing school staff make homophobic remarks and two-thirds hearing neg- ative remarks about someone's gender expression. e report also found that most LGBTQ+ students reported being harassed or victimized at school, and half said their school had discriminatory practices toward students who are LGBTQ+. While Equality California's 2022 Safe and Supportive Schools Report Card ( safesupportiveschools.org) showed more than two-thirds of school districts have policies that explicitly prohibit bullying on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity, 68% of LGBTQ+ students nationally felt unsafe at school because of their sexual orientation, gender identity or gender expression, according to GLSEN. According to the Trevor Project's 2022 National Survey on LGBTQ Youth Mental Health, 45% of LGBTQ youth seriously considered committing suicide in the past year, with less than a third of transgender and nonbinary youth finding their own home to be gender-affirming. e survey showed that LGBTQ youth who found their school to be LGBTQ-affirming reported lower rates of attempting suicide, underscoring the importance of supportive educators. West Sacramento art teacher Naqiba Gregory has a former student who is transgender and has been hospitalized for sui- cide watch three times since being outed at his new school. Gregory said the student shared that he felt unsupported by his educators, many of whom refused to use his preferred name, and said he did not see LGBTQ+ people represented in his class lessons and curriculum. "e challenges he faces daily are not something any child should be dealing with," says Gregory, a member of West Sac- ramento Teachers Association and CTA Human Rights Cadre trainer. "Students aren't asking us to agree with their deci- sions or give them special treatment, they simply want to be accepted. ey desire that one aspect of themselves won't make them less deserving of support or advocacy when it comes to bullying or teasing." e targeting of LGBTQ+ youth by conservative lawmakers across the country over the past five years (see sidebar, page 20) is amplifying the rising tide of hate — the Trevor Project report found that four in five nonbinary or transgender youth said they are concerned about being prohibited from playing sports due to state or local laws, while 93% said they are worried about transgender people being denied access to gender-affirm- ing medical care. Melanie Bean (she, her) supports educators who are working to build inclusivity in their schools throughout the Sacramento area. 19 J U N E / J U L Y 2 0 2 3