Subject: strictly fyi: RIGHT WING WATCH
From: Ryan Schwartz <ryan@hummingbirdink.com>
Date: Thu, 9 Dec 2010 17:07:11 -0800
To: NEWS@safeschoolscoalition.org

Dear Safe Schools Coalition members and friends:

RIGHT WING WATCH … 
(1) Focus on the Family takes over 'Day of Truth'
(2) 
Pacific Justice Institute tries to create false divide between LGBT families and families of color
(3) AFTAH battles SPLC over 'hate group' designation
(4) Family 'Research' Council releases study of what makes a lesbian
(5) Gay teachers and private schools: EU vs. US

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(1) 
Focus on the Family takes over 'Day of Truth'
Exodus International recently announced they will end the 'Day of Truth' in response to the high-profile suicides of LGBT teens. Unfortunately, Focus on the Family decided to adopt the project, which seeks to challenge GLSEN's 'Day of Silence' with negative messages about gay and lesbian people. You can read Focus on the Family's press release here, which announces a renaming to the "Day of Dialogue" and its scheduled date for April 18, 2011. You can also read excerpts from interviews with conservative leaders about this project, which has divided anti-gay activists. One conservative activist says the announcement shows Focus is "adopting gimmics and stunts" to remain relevant. 

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(2) 
Pacific Justice Institute tries to create false divide between LGBT families and families of color
As part of a settlement with a student who was harassed by both students and teachers, the Vallejo City Unified School District adopted bullying prevention curriculum for grades K-12. The lessons, which feature GroundSpark's films and curricula, teach tools to address and challenge bias of all kinds. However, the conservative Pacific Justice Institute 
is using race-baiting tactics to try to manufacture a false divide between families of color and LGBT families, of course ignoring the fact that many youth in Vallejo are both LGBT and of color. You can read their press release here, including an analysis that can't escape the stereotypes and bias they are pretending to fight against. Fortunately, the Vallejo community saw though this attempt, and the school board voted 4-1 to keep the curriculum, which is endorsed by the National Black Child Development Institute and National Council of Negro Women.

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(3) 
AFTAH battles SPLC over 'hate group' designation
The Southern Poverty Law Center is internationally known for tracking and exposing the activities of extremists and hate groups. Their 'hate map' can help you be aware of such groups in your neighborhood. In a recent announcement, SPLC added 18 anti-groups to their list for disseminating "demonizing propaganda aimed at homosexuals." The additions were made bade on "propagation of known falsehoods" and "repeated, groundless name-calling," and recognizes that "viewing homosexuality as unbiblical does not qualify organizations for listing as hate groups." Americans For Truth About Homosexuality immediately responded with an action alert asking subscribers to complain to the Senate Judiciary Committee since SPLC works with the FBI to investigate hate crimes.  The announcement, ironically full of repeated, groundless name-calling, tries to defend their work by, once again, referring to hurtful known falsehoods. One blogger has taken to pointing out why this defense, and others like it, fail. 
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(4) 
Family 'Research' Council releases study of what makes a lesbian
A few months ago, we pointed out how Focus on the Family argued against GLSEN's research because it was done by GLSEN, while forgetting that Focus on the Family also does its own research that it uses to justify its agenda. A new study by the Family Research Council tries to argue that girls are more likely to identify as lesbians if they grow up in a home without fathers. Unlike GLSEN, the Family Research Council did not make public its study design, although they did reveal that only 7,643 individuals were contacted. (For a laugh, note that over 10% of readers polled said schools were to blame for same-sex attractions). The Box Turtle Bulletin did their own digging, however, and poke plenty of holes in this supposed 'research' study. Read their analysis here.

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(5) 
Gay teachers and private schools: EU vs. US
The European Union's justice commissioner made it clear that Polish Roman Catholic schools cannot discriminate against sexual orientation in their hiring practices. The move came after a senior Polish official made statements to the contrary. Of course no such standard exists in the United States, where the Director of Educational programs at the Catholic Benedictine University was fired after announcing she would marry her partner, and the Christian Belmont University fired their women's soccer coach after she announced her and her female partner were expecting a child. 
 

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Ryan Schwartz
Hummingbird INK