An Act of Bravery? - From today's Boston Globe, an article about the first private school targeted specifically to gay students (and the children of gay parents). A part of me asks, why would you subject yourself to such attention and potential for harassment by painting your nails? Why put yourself into the situation where you are a prime target for bullies? But, when I think about it, it's heartening to think about the openness and self-acceptance they are able to achieve at their ages. For them to take these small symbolic steps is to feel they can come out at an earlier age than those of us who aren't that much older could have fathomed. These students are not only out to themselves, not only out to their friends and families, but symbolically demonstrating their differences to the world.

Nevertheless, the article raises an interesting point for me. These kids are pulled out of mainstream schools. Now, to have made this radical change, maybe they wouldn't have been able to graduate in those settings anyway. But in the new, "safe" setting, they still won't be prepared to go to prestigious colleges, nor will they have the opportunties for extracurricular activities that a larger school would offer. The idea of a "handsome, masculine, gay football player" connotes that this student is in a tolerant environment and has the support of his peers already and probably wouldn't need to attend an inferior school targeted at gays. Moving to Dallas, away from friends and family, doesn't strike me as the best solution to this problem. In the end, I think it boils down to the fact that administrators and teachers need to ensure that the same educational opportunities are afforded to all students, no matter what their circumstances, including protection from bullying and harassment.