A transgender graduate of Foothills Composite School is pleased with the guidelines for respecting diverse sexual orientation at Alberta schools.
“I’m really happy with what they have done,” said James Benedetti. “Not just the GSA (Gay Straight Alliance) guidelines, but things like using a washroom at school and sports team as well.”
Alberta Education Minister David Eggen released guidelines for “Creating Learning Environments that Respect Diverse Sexual Orientations, Gender Identities and Gender Expressions” last week.
The guidelines give students the right to form gay-straight alliance clubs in the school without interference from boards or administration.
Benedetti came out in his Grade 10 year at the Comp. He said while he suffered some teasing, the establishment of an ‘underground GSA club’ curbed the abuse considerably.
“I was around when the club was started, but it was really underground,” Benedetti said. “My second year in Grade 11, it got a bit bigger.
“It was really nice to have – even when it was underground – because it was a safe space.”
He said when he got verbally abused, he would try to solve the issue through talks with the one bothering him and a teacher.
“When I first came out, there were students who gave me trouble,” Benedetti said. “I handled it. If I got threats or heckled I would go to the office and get it sorted out.
“The easiest way to sort things out was to teach them rather than get angry.”
He said the guidelines will help educate others.
Foothills Composite, Oilfields and Highwood High School, all of the Foothills School Division, currently have established GSAs. Divisions’ policies regarding GSA and other issues in the guidelines must be submitted to Alberta Ed by March 31.
At present, there is not a gay-straight alliance at Holy Trinity Academy.
Christ the Redeemer Catholic Schools does have policies in place for students to form clubs of any group, which would be facilitated by Catholic educators and usually counsellors. The policies are awaiting approval from Alberta Ed.
In response to Eggen’s Jan. 13 guidelines, CTR Catholic stated in a prepared statement: “We have policies and procedures on the creation of safe, caring, and inclusive communities, but they currently don’t include the breadth of information and possibilities that are outlined in the Ministry’s guidelines. We’ll need more time to review both the documentation from the Ministry and our policies and procedures.”
However, last week, Bishop Frederick Henry of the Calgary Diocese issued a letter on its website, condemning the guidelines.
“GSAs and QSAs are highly politicized ideological clubs which seek to cure society of ‘homophobia’ and ‘heterosexism,’ and which accept the idea that all forms of consensual sexual expression are legitimate,” he wrote. “The view of sexuality that they espouse is not Catholic.”
The letter was titled Totalitarianism in Alberta.
CTR Catholic superintendent of schools Scott Morrison said while division trustees will heed Henry’s advice, they must balance that with what is set by the province.
“Bishop Henry is our religious leader and guides us on moral and spiritual issues,” he said in a prepared statement. “The Board is called to heed his input while working to satisfy provincial expectations on policy. CTR Catholic will continue to create safe and caring school environments for all students.”
Benedetti is taking an “oh well” approach to Henry’s comments.
“When I was younger I would have gotten really angry,” he said. “Nothing at these (GSA) clubs is outwardly sexual. It’s not like you walk in and it’s gay-sex ed time. That’s not what it is about. There is a lot of fear for the people speaking out against it – they basically just don’t understand.”
He added he felt CTR Catholic’s statement is sound.
“I think it is good that they are taking the time to deal with their situation specifically – read it over and go all the way through it,” he said.
Foothills School Division superintendent of schools John Bailey said he wasn’t surprised by anything in the guidelines.
“We are trying to read throughout and make sure our policies are compliant — we were waiting for this document,” Bailey said. “Our emphasis is for our schools to be safe, caring and inclusive places… Certainly that comes through in the document.
“It is specific for diverse sexual orientation and gender expression — gender neutral washrooms, dress codes — we’re working through it and making sure all policies are where they need to be.”
To read Bishop Henry’s letter go to www.calgarydiocese.ca. To see the Alberta Education guidelines go to education.alberta.ca
