Saturday, January 14, 2012

High School Stupidity. Like, I know, right?

A teenage boy claims he was thrown out from a notoriously rough high school after turning up to class dressed as a girl.

Jamie Love, 17, arrived at Govan High School wearing tights, mini-shorts, a high-waisted belt, hair extensions and make-up - shortly before he was ordered to leave.

Jamie, a dancer, who asked schoolmates to call him Keirny, claims he was speaking to teachers for months about how he felt trapped in a boy’s body.

He plucked up the courage to face his classmates as a girl on Monday - despite being taunted by some pupils for his outward feminity.

The school's reaction was what you expected. Love was pulled from class, and asked what he was trying to do to the school. In other words, zero concern for Jamie. I believe that they knew, not maybe that day but that it was likely. Their reaction could have been worse, but they did plenty of harm with how they handled it.

We've got to stop this pink is for girls stupidity. As long as there is a difference, there will be problems. Girls dress in guy shirts and carry wallets instead of purses. A guy in tights will not destroy the world as we know it. Siding against someone so young without thought is never the right answer. Even if the school wants to define a gender dressing policy, basic support should be mandatory. I see the difficulty for teachers committed to keeping kids safe. It's a nightmare for them, regardless of what they think about it. There are no easy answers, but there are plenty of wrong ones. This school did an excellent job of defining how NOT to behave.

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