From Speech to Slurs
The well-being of queer students is always at risk, and our administration doesn’t do much to preserve it
![A representation of potential inclusivity at Castle View demonstrates the progress that has been made. This message sits outside of Mr. Yaryan’s room, where the GSA club meets. Though there has been some progress, there is much more that needs to be done. “I’ve definitely received negative treatment because of my sexuality. I didn’t talk to [the] administration because I’ve dealt with this stuff my whole life and I don’t really let it get to me,” Middleton said.](https://cvstudentmedia.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/brookeseptonline.jpg)
A representation of potential inclusivity at Castle View demonstrates the progress that has been made. This message sits outside of Mr. Yaryan’s room, where the GSA club meets. Though there has been some progress, there is much more that needs to be done. “I’ve definitely received negative treatment because of my sexuality. I didn’t talk to [the] administration because I’ve dealt with this stuff my whole life and I don’t really let it get to me,” Middleton said.
Homophobia is not a new concept. The queer community has never been truly accepted in society, which is mainly due to imposed religious beliefs that lead to stigmas surrounding the community.
Especially with the rise of political and social tension within Castle View, many students tend to abuse their freedoms in order to spread bigotry while using their religious beliefs as an excuse.
According to senior Ella Bowen, every student should be granted their freedom of speech, “but when they twist it and turn it into a way to harm others, [that] is where the trouble lays.”
“People who use those ‘rights’ as an excuse to bully and harass others should take a step back and think about the implications of their hate speech. Thousands of queer students have committed suicide because of bullying, which is something that no one, especially religious people, should be condoning,” said junior Drew Middleton.
When queer students are forced to attend an establishment where other students are openly homophobic, the mental and physical safety of those students is always at risk. Even after instances where queer students are being harmed, the Castle View administration does not take these situations as seriously as they need to be taken. This is specifically shown through the lack of consequences that some students get when spreading verbal bigotry due to the freedom of speech that is granted to them.
“Mainly I just hear inappropriate comments and invasive questions; typical sexualizing-my-identity type of thing,” said Bowen. “I haven’t really talked to [the] administration about it, but mainly because I don’t think they would do much.”
There is always room for improvement in every school administration, regardless of how “progressive” they seem to be.
“Some things that the admin could do include uplifting clubs and inclusive activities (theater, GSA, No Place for Hate, etc.) and making sure teachers and other staff are reporting incidents of discrimination,” said Middleton.
My question to our administration is: to what extent do we choose to value our constitutional rights over the mental and physical well-being of our minority youth?
