Discrimination in NYC public school

[jimrent66]

Hey everyone, i'm not really a "big poster" here, i usually spend hours just reading what everyone else likes to talk about but something happened recently that disturbs me to no end and i'll like to get some feedback / advice.

here goes:

So, i'm a literacy coach in a NYC public school (one of the largest in NY) and we have a drug and alcohol counselor that comes in and speaks to Freshmen classes about preventative measures concerning drugs and alcohol.

Recently, he visited my classroom and prompted a student to walk to the back of the room and open a closet door. When the student did so, the instructed informed that class that "[thats] what gay people do; they come out of the closet"

Second situation: Another drug and alcohol class he was asked by a student if it was true that gay men originated the AIDS virus, and he replied yes they had.

Third situation: He was telling students that drugs can lead to jail time and that if you went into jail as "john smith" you left jail as "Al Bendover" and drew on the board heterosexual and an arrow to the word homosexual, implying that you became gay when you went to jail.

There are many more instances of his off task comments that really are just feeding hate to students. I sometimes wondered why students loved to insult each other with the word "faggot" well its because their being taught that the gay population is to blame for the AIDS virus, among other things.

I'm at a loss because i feel completely backed into a corner. We aren't getting any satisfaction from the administration because they believe that "its true" which seems so messed up. I don't know what i should do. I'm upset that stuff like this is happening and i'm sad because he's blaming MY community of such horrendous things.

Sorry for the rambling, I just felt like this was really important. Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks again.

jb

 

[RationalLunacy]

Report the counselor's behavior direct to the facility they work out of. I work for an alcohol & drug rehab and we have zero tolerance for that sort of thing. That counselor's attitude needs to be reported directly to their supervisor immediately.

 

[Croynan]

I would report the matter immediately to your immediate supervisor and indicate you are reporting the matter to the principal. If this individual is going into other classes in your department, I would inform all the members of your department.

Write down as specifically as you can the comments, words, language, questions and responses to questions by students, and or drawings he makes while in your classroom.

I would report the matter to your principal immediately.

I would report the matter to your union rep. immediately, if you are a member.

If he is associated with any particular organization, I would contact them immediately and ask to speak to the head of the organiation.

I am not so sure that this might not constitue a form of sexual harrassment, for yourself and for some student in that class that may be homosexual and or lesbian.

 

[Eagle653]

RL and Croynan gave excellent advice.

 

[Rand]

RL and Croynan gave excellent advice.

I agree. Please fight for your students rights to learn, not be lied to.

 

[portohottie]

Report the son-of-a-bitch(period)

 

[jimrent66]

thank you all for your advice.

I'm in this profession for my students, and them alone. I don't really care about it offending me, I just want to make sure that my students get all of the correct information so that they will KNOW that every person deserves respect. This man is trying to show that its okay to hate by placing blame on the gay community. It hurts me, but i know it must KILL the glbt students that i'm sure he has encountered.

So thank you to all of you, it really makes me happy to see that some people actually understand and feel strongly enough to help me out.

love you all.
jb

 

[SexyGuy]

Give me a shotgun, his address, and I'll save you the hassle....

People who are like him really get on my nerve. I seriously sometimes want to strangle people who spread lies and myths and crap like that....

SexyGuy

PS: Sorry if I sound bitchy. Bad day today...

 

[trawler69]

Please fight this bigot. Is there a GLBT group, are any of them taught by him? Would they support you reporting him? You could use an mp3 player to record his comments. This bloke needs to be stopped he could do so much harm throwing about these misconceptions. How about the people in his class who are young and Gay. How is it going to affect their self image? And those who are straight, how is it going to affect their reaction to those who are Gay. This man is single handedly undoing all the good work so many others have worked so hard on to bring forth a bit of enlightenment and understanding.

Go for him mate, bring him down for all of us. Good luck

 

[luminum]

Get that motherfucker fired.

You live in NYC, I'm sure there's a plethora of resources to turn to.

 

[okstatecowboy]

DOCUMENT! DOCUMENT! DOCUMENT! Document any and all his inappropriate comments. In my district, we have to videotape ourselves once every three years and share our comments with the principal. Maybe you could just happen to be videotaping a session with this individual and share with others his comments...

mikey