Some LGBTQ teachers have come under fire recently so New York City teacher Matt Tratner wanted to show some support for his fellow educators. The popular teacher showed up at John Bowne High School today wearing this t-shirt. And, he posted on his Facebook page:
“Yes- I am OUT at my job… Yes the students like my shirt :).”
A little after 3pm today, after classes were over a few teacher came over to me to tell me what they thought of my OUT SHIRT I had worn to school today… They said that they had heard all about me wearing it. They asked where they could get one so they too could wear them at school- gay and straight teachers asked to have one. I was never so proud to be OUT…
Those lucky, lucky students…I wish I had an awesome, out, hunky teacher when I was in high school…but, the Coolidge Administration probably wouldn’t have approved.
Read the original post on The Huffington Post by Jeffrey Campagna who also has some issues with how President Obama is handling LGBTQ issues:
Tratner’s shirt is also inspiring because it speaks truth to power when others, who should be speaking have been silent. The President has been confronted on his silence about this and a number of other LGBT issues and has refused to use his bully pulpit speak out about it. The teacher in Oregon got fired and Jim Demint got away with his comments because in the year 2010 this country still tolerates the lie that gay teachers lack integrity and that they corrupt the morals of young people. The President has a bully pulpit that he can use to change attitudes and to speak out about injustice. He should be speaking out for the integrity of LGBT professionals, and the need to enact the Employment Non-Discrimination Act. ENDA was supposed to be voted on in 2009. Now it looks like it might not be introduced before 2013 at the earliest. But even if it can’t pass now, the President has to speak out against discrimination against LGBT people and set the tone so that it can pass when it does come up. He can’t just let hate sit out there and fester.
Tratner doesn’t have to worry about professional retribution for being out at work or wearing a t-shirt. In New York, unlike the United States, it is illegal to discriminate against someone in employment because of his or her sexual orientation. But the fact that he can do this while in other parts of this country he would be fired instantly only highlights the fact that the President has a lot of leading to do. Mr. President, are you listening?
– Michael Strangeways
