From A Facebook Note: Thoughts

This is from a Facebook note I wrote earlier. It is about a speaker that came to our school last night. The reaction was intense. So here is my response:

All right. I'm just getting my thoughts out here. Read it if you wish.
So last night, the speaker. This woman, Eliza Byard the current head of GLSEN (Gay Lesbian Education Network), came and spoke to our whole school about many different things. I thought she was a fabulous speaker and had many good things to say. Then it came to the survey. Earlier, they had sent out a survey to our school on the "climate" of our community. Out of less than 400 students, around 230 completed the survey. More than half. When the survey results were displayed next to the national survey, it showed our school in a much better light than the rest of the country. Which, for me, gave me hope. Yes, there was still work to do, but we were on our way to a good place. But, apparently, there are some people who did not agree with the results.
Numerous students stood up and voiced their opinions on the data. Some said it was skewed, that there was a bias in those who actually responded, that there couldn't possibly be that many students who felt "unsafe" in such a "welcoming community." Well, in my opinion, such a "welcoming community" would be more open to things like this. Would be more open to realizing their flaws and trying to fix them. But no, we just decide to deny them and say that the statistical data is false.
I, honestly, was embarrassed. My peers and classmates embarrassed me and my vision of the school by being to blatantly close minded and offensive. I did the math and there had to be at least 50 people who answered to feeling unsafe at the school. At least 50. Possibly more. I don't care if the number was two, we should still take that into consideration and do something about it. Instead of denying it. I am one of those people. Ever since I decided I was Wicca I have felt unsafe. Both before and after I told everyone about it. No, not unsafe in a way that I think everyone is going to beat me up. But in a way that I fear people will talk about me, think I'm strange, treat me differently. There are people out there who feel that way. Just because you personally do not does not mean no one else does.
The close mindedness of the Brooks community appalled me. And the fact that we were defending how open and accepting we were! If we were open and accepting we would accept this data, don't you think? Don't argue about it. Do something about it. I've never felt so disconnected from Brooks as I did last night. I even had a moment where I wished I wasn't part of the community and I could stand up like that woman at the end and say I wasn't and state my opinion. But I couldn't. Cause I am part of Brooks. I know there are people out there that think like me about this issue. Please take a stand if you haven't already. The idiots that think they can hide facts with denial need to see that there are some of us who stand up for the data and know by personal experience what it is like to feel unsafe.
Thank you.


Much Love,
~ Jenna