GLSEN [Gay, Lesbian, and Straight Education Network]

GLSEN The Gay, Lesbian, and Straight Education Network 121 W. 27th Street, Suite 804 teaching respect for all in our schools New York, NY 10001 tel: (212) 727.0135 fax: (212) 727.0254 e-mail: [email protected] internet: http://www.glsen.org Fall, 1997 Dear GLSEN Member, On July 22, I found myself in a place I never thought I'd be: the President's office in the White House. No, I had not snuck away from the official tour and made my way there on my own. I had come as an invited guest, one of twelve lead- ers from the lesbian and gay civil rights movement who had been asked to come and share their concerns with the President in a private, ninety minute meeting. I was seated on the President's left. More importantly, I got the chance to make several lengthy comments in which I explained to the President the depth and breadth of the problem of anti-gay prej- udice in our schools. At one point I shared with him the startling statistic that the average high school student hears anti-gay com- ments like "faggot" 26 times a day, and that teachers fail to inter- vene in these incidents 97% of the time. President Clinton sat back in his chair, shook his head, and murmured, "That's unbelievable" in response. For the first time in history, a U.S. President had been confronted with exactly what anti-gay prejudice does to our young people, and I don't believe he will ever forget that. My meeting with the President was, in many ways, not so extraor- dinary. GLSEN has always believed that the best way to end anti-gay prejudice is to simply tell people about it. When people hear about what this prejudice does to young people from someone they know and trust, they never view the issue the same way again. I may be naive, but I honestly think that most people don't mean to hurt others and that, when they are educated as to what they are doing, they will change. This principle is the basis of our Back-to-School Campaign, now in its third year. Each fall, we mobilize thousands of our members and supporters who write to their former teachers, to elected officials, and to school administrators to share their experiences with anti- gay prejudice in our schools. We have found that these letters can cause the recipients to forever change their views, and can motivate them to take action. By reaching out to our fellow Americans one person at a time, GLSEN believes we can make a huge difference in what happens in our schools.