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Amnesty International gave the name "Breaking the
Silence" to its first international campaign in 1994 on behalf of
the rights of sexual minorities. Such a name has an ironic twist when
used to describe human rights education about lesbian, gay, bisexual,
and transgender (LGBT) rights. Though teachers, administrators, and textbook
publishers are often hesitant to talk about sexual orientation, our schools
are hardly silent.
Taunts of "faggot," "lesbo," and "homo" make the hallways a hostile
place for many students. A 1993 survey for the American Association
of University Women noted that male students in the 8th through 11th
grades believed that being called gay was a worse form of sexual harassment
than having their clothes pulled off or being forced to engage in
a sex act. Parents and pressure groups argue over books in the school
library and the curricular content of classes. The American Library
Association reports that one of the "most challenged" books of the
1990s was Daddyís Roommate, a childrenís picture book illustrating
a loving relationship between a young boy, his father, and his fatherís
male partner. One fifth grade teacher in California was disciplined
for allowing a 15 minute, student-initiated discussion of the "coming
out" episode of the television show Ellen, a moment in television
history that made the cover of Time magazine.
Some of the sounds "breaking the silence" are coming from students
seeking justice and dignity for all regardless of sexual orientation
and gender identity. High school students in Bremerton, Washington
rejected a proposal to oust student council members who were openly
homosexual. A group of Raleigh, North Carolina high school students
handed out fliers responding to posters ridiculing gays. In 1993,
Massachusetts became the first state to outlaw discrimination against
gay and lesbian students in public schools. The measure was signed
into law in large part because of work by gay and straight students
who held marches and rallies, lobbied legislators, and testified at
State House committees. Connecticut, Wisconsin, and California have
since followed suit.
This curriculum is intended to further thoughtful examination and
responsible action among high school students about LGBT issues. Unlike
other curricula, however, this discussion is not in the context of
civil or political rights but in the broader context of human rights.
These rights, as defined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights,
include, among others, the right to education, identity, security,
assembly, expression, employment, health, and familyóall relevant
to the current discussion of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender
rights.
The activities in this curriculum promote appropriate action in
addition to reflection and discussion. Students are asked to take
responsibility for the homophobia that causes human rights abuses.
This homophobia may be in their schools in the form of harassment
or violence against gay students, in their community during referenda
elections seeking to deny gays and lesbians their equal rights, or
in the world when persons are imprisoned, tortured, and executed for
their consensual relationships with adults of the same sex. This curriculum
prepares students for responding in meaningful ways to such challenges.
The activities in this curriculum can be taught individually or
all together in sequence. The more they are integrated into general
classroom investigations of human rights, the better since such integration
allows students to see LGBT rights even more clearly in a human rights
framework. While this curriculum was written specifically with an
audience of secondary school age students in mind, the activities
can be adapted for middle school students as well as adults engaged
in anti-homophobia training.
As a whole, the activities in this curriculum aim not only to balance
examination of and action on behalf of global and local issues, but
also to help students understand how the local and global issues are
connected. When students and staff create a safe school environment
for sexual minority youth, they ensure all students with equal access
to education and they engender respect that can contribute to appreciation
for the human rights of all. In schools where students and faculty
do not feel comfortable bringing up the institutionís homophobia,
the activities with an international human rights focus can provide
an opportunity for introducing discussion of the rights of sexual
minorities that may lead back to examination of the school. In other
schools, students may be concerned about their own setting, but lack
knowledge about the larger international human rights context for
addressing homophobia. In such cases, the activities about the local
context can become the springboard for looking at the larger world.
Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Rights: A Human Rights
Perspective also balances the objective and the subjective. For
many teens, sexual orientation and gender identity can be one of the
most difficult topics to discuss seriously. However, activities like
those featured in this curriculum, role playing and case studies from
around the world, allow students to engage in serious discussion about
human rights and sexuality without making their own sexual orientation
or gender identity the issue. Of course, in many schools, studentsí
real or supposed sexual orientation is often the issue, and young
people are ready to discuss the topic with adults who can provide
needed information and new perspectives. This curriculum provides
both facts and a variety of perspectives on what human rights means
for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender persons.
Drawing on this information and these perspectives, teachers can
address another dilemma in teaching about human rights and sexual
orientation and gender identityóbalancing a safe environment for all
students while at the same time encouraging the free flow of ideas
and opinions. Again, the activities in this curriculum have been developed
with this balancing act in mind. Role plays, for example, allow students
to present a variety of viewpoints, including homophobic ones, for
discussion and analysis without the discussion devolving into personal
attacks. Such methods allow teachers and students to examine and judge
ideas rather than each other. Where students and teachers believe
they are ready to connect objective discussion to more personal reflection,
the activities provide opportunities to do so.
Whether the discussion focuses on human rights abuses around the
globe or in the school halls, this curriculum is intended to help
students realize their responsibility to take action to promote human
rights and respond to their abuse. Through such action, we can insure
schools and a world recognizing and celebrating human rights for all.
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