Because it really means alot to me..... i have put alot of time and effort getting sponsers and getting this club allowed at johnsonville high school and it just hurts when you cant even be in your own schools yearbook!

On August 9, a police officer shot and killed an unarmed black teenager, Michael Brown, in Ferguson, Missouri. People and organizations have responded with shock, outrage, and solidarity, especially as the police have met the community’s nightly protests with rubber bullets, tear gas, and assault rifles. But for us, as young people leading Gay-Straight Alliance clubs across the country – including in St. Louis – this murder did not come as a shock. We know what it is to be criminalized and we are outraged, but our outrage is not restricted to the Ferguson town limits or even the police force. Michael Brown’s murder is one of many tragic expressions of a system that we fight to survive under every day. It is a system rooted in a historic pattern of racism, violence against the black community, as well as homophobia and transphobia. It is a system that criminalizes young people, pushing us out of school and into incarceration or death. We do not only stand in solidarity with the community of Ferguson; we stand in active resistance to the systems of oppression that killed Michael Brown, terrorize his community, and have a devastating effect on all of our lives. This system affected Michael Brown long before August 9th. He attended a high school that, with its alarmingly high suspension rate, treats its almost entirely black student population as a problem that cannot be solved, only removed. He survived this school only to be murdered by the state before he could continue his education. As his community responds to his murder in anguish and protest, the town has shut down its schools, denying even more youth an education and a meal that many count on. This year, youth of color will make up the majority of students in public schools in the United States. As a community, we are no stranger to police violence and injustice, particularly against our trans sisters of color. GSAs must take part in the national conversation happening on social media and mobilize to support Ferguson and the youth whose schools are closed. But most importantly, we must reflect on how our own communities fit into this system, organize against the criminalization of young people in our own towns, and fight back against the school-to-prison pipeline in our own states and across the country.

Yordy Cancino is a leader who worked to transform his high school and his city of Los Angeles as the Gay-Straight Alliance (GSA) club President at Animo Jackie Robinson High School. A GSA Network alum from the class of 2011, Yordy has lived in California since he was a child and gone to school here since elementary school. Now, Yordy is being held in detention, not allowed to return to the home he worked so hard to make safer for all LGBTQ youth. As a GSA president, he was a trained leader who graduated as salutatorian and would have qualified for higher education. Unfortunately, officials in his high school did not provide him information about college opportunities, including the Dream Act that grants students in CA the right to higher education. While in California as a student leader, Yordy regularly spoke out for LGBTQ rights, but because he was unable to attend college or attain a job, he returned to Mexico where he faces violence and cruelty for being gay. Hoping to return home and escape homophobic violence, Yordy took the courageous step of placing himself into immigration custody and asking for humanitarian parole and asylum. Yordy along with other LGBTQ Dreamers are now in immigration detention in San Diego facing deportation. GSA Network alum Yordy Cancino has devoted so much of his life to enriching this country with his courage and leadership, making it a safer, more just place for LGBTQ youth. Now Yordy and fellow LGBTQ immigrants in detention are the victims of homophobia, violence, and our broken immigration policy. Yordy, like all LGBTQ immigrants in detention, deserves to come home to the United States and pursue his dreams of higher education. We call on President Obama to be a champion for all LGBTQ youth and exercise discretion in granting the asylum requests for Yordy Cancino, and all LGBTQ immigrants who seek protection within our borders.

The bill's purpose is to amend the education code to require schools to integrate age-appropriate, factual information about social movements, current events, and history about the roles and contributions of people with disabilities and lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people into existing social studies and history lessons. It also prevents the State Board of Education from adopting instructional materials that discriminate. This is important to the students because it reflects that the district has an interest in all their students, and also does not discriminate against them.

I cannot express how much it means to know that there are people in this world who support one through life. As we grow older and prepare ourselves for the world after high school, we spend years through school figuring out who we are and everything about ourselves. Yet, when a teen is lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, or any other LGBTQ* identity, it can feel immensely more complicated and scary. In serious cases, feelings of isolation and non-support can lead to tragic outcomes, with suicide being the 3rd leading cause of death in youth ages 10-24. We need to put a stop to this and ensure that all youth have an equal shot at success and a bright future. For this reason, this simple project has one goal: show teens everywhere, we do care! In the end, this can make all the difference.

In November 2013, Jewlyes Gutierrez, a transgender girl from California, was outrageously charged with assault for defending herself against bullying at school. A year earlier, Dynasty Young in Indiana was expelled for bringing a stun gun to school in self-defense after enduring months of harassment based on his sexual orientation and gender expression. Jewlyes, Dynasty, LGBTQ youth, and all students deserve better. Our district can -- and must -- take action now to make sure our students are never put in a similar position. We often hear about bullying in schools, but the anti-bullying and zero tolerance policies adopted in response pose just as much of a danger for LGBTQ youth of color. Together, hostile school environments and extreme disciplinary policies create a school-to-prison pipeline for youth of color, youth with disabilities, and LGBTQ youth, telling them that their lives are disposable and that simply trying to get an education carries a risk of jail time. LGBTQ youth make up just 5-7% of the youth population, but represent 15% of those in the juvenile justice system. We believe restorative justice practices are the best solution for school discipline problems involving bias-based bullying and harassment. Further, we believe that punitive exclusionary practices (like suspensions and expulsions) hurt all students' ability to succeed and achieve their academic goals and dreams. In January, the Obama administration released guidelines for improving school climate and discipline. Those guidelines recommend best practices like restorative approaches and condemn punitive policies and court referrals. It has been proven that alternative discipline with non-punitive approaches provides better student outcomes and keeps the student community together. In March 2014, the National Education Association, the American Federation of Teachers, the Opportunity to Learn Campaign, and the Advancement Project jointly released a toolkit highlighting restorative approaches as a best practice and providing guidance to administrators and educators on implementing them. In order to keep ourselves and fellow students in school, we demand that restorative justice practices, as outlined in the "Restorative Practices: Fostering Healthy Relationships & Promoting Positive Discipline in Schools" toolkit, be implemented in our district.

In November 2013, Jewlyes Gutierrez, a transgender girl from California, was outrageously charged with assault for defending herself against bullying at school. A year earlier, Dynasty Young in Indiana was expelled for bringing a stun gun to school in self-defense after enduring months of harassment based on his sexual orientation and gender expression. Jewlyes, Dynasty, LGBTQ youth, and all students deserve better. Missouri can -- and must -- take action now to make sure our students are never put in a similar position. We often hear about bullying in schools, but the anti-bullying and zero tolerance policies adopted in response pose just as much of a danger for LGBTQ youth of color. Together, hostile school environments and extreme disciplinary policies create a school-to-prison pipeline for youth of color, youth with disabilities, and LGBTQ youth, telling them that their lives are disposable and that simply trying to get an education carries a risk of jail time. LGBTQ youth make up just 5-7% of the youth population, but represent 15% of those in the juvenile justice system. We believe restorative justice practices are the best solution for school discipline problems involving bias-based bullying and harassment. We can make this happen together by building a powerful student network to push back against school push out. Further, we believe that punitive exclusionary practices (like suspensions and expulsions) hurt all students' ability to succeed and achieve their academic goals and dreams. In January, the Obama administration released guidelines for improving school climate and discipline. Those guidelines recommend best practices like restorative approaches and condemn punitive policies and court referrals. It has been proven that alternative discipline with non-punitive approaches provides better student outcomes and keeps the student community together. In March 2014, the National Education Association, the American Federation of Teachers, the Opportunity to Learn Campaign, and the Advancement Project jointly released a toolkit highlighting restorative approaches as a best practice and providing guidance to administrators and educators on implementing them. In order to keep ourselves and fellow students in school, we demand that restorative justice practices, as outlined in the "Restorative Practices: Fostering Healthy Relationships & Promoting Positive Discipline in Schools" toolkit, be implemented in Missouri.

Recently, The Laramie Project was proposed as the spring, open audition play on Troy High School's campus. The play was vetoed by Dr. Giokaris for containing mature themes. Our school has put on plays containing mature themes before, with To Kill a Mockingbird (containing themes of rape, racism, and violence), The Cat and the Canary (in which a character was shown hanged and others shot on stage), and One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (blunt depictions of abuse in mental institutions). The Laramie Project is no worse ( and likely more appropriate) than many plays we have put on in the past. Our drama department has the right to put on this production, and does not deserve to be the victim of injustice. For more info on the Laramie Project, see: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Laramie_Project and http://community.laramieproject.org/

Without the proper publicity, teens who are struggling with their sexual and romantic orientations won't be able to find our club as easily. We're working very hard to educate students on the LGBT community so they can feel safe and protected, but my kids feel like they're being targeted by school officials. GSA should be extended the same rights as every other club, not singled out because of what we stand for.

All students/faculty/staff should be able to bring their full-selves to work and class every day by adding this protected class we can further ensure this is the case.

Many people do not remember the Day of Silence or do not know anything about it. A pride week is a great way to make people aware of the Day of Silence as well as the school GSA.

We had asked students from Capuchino, Penninsula, Mills, San Mateo High, Aragon, Burlingame High, and Hillsdale why this was important to them. These were their responses. "Students are not gender binary. In fact, they fall in many different places on a spectrum, especially in high school when teens are exploring where they fall on the gender identity spectrum. " "This tradition presents more of a sense of separation at graduation than it does unity, because it does not allow students who do not conform to the gender binary the comfort that they deserve. By giving all students the simple choice to wear either green or gold or even a combination of the two, the students are given more freedom to make a choice regarding their own graduation and are able to come together as a community through the availability of a choice. " "Students should not feel uncomfortable on the day they are recognized for graduating high school. If the student does not feel the gender color gown they are assigned is accurate or if they do not identify with either gender, they should not be forced to wear that color graduation gown. We need to change this style of deciding gown colors by gender because there are many students that may not be sure of their gender identity at this point in their life or have not told their families and friends yet. These students should not be forced to wear a color that labels them as strictly male or female. A last name or numbering off system of deciding gown color for graduation would alleviate the pressure of fitting a gender binary." "I find it profoundly strange how we are told that as students that we are all different and that is is good to be that. From what I have taken from my high school experience is that we shouldn't allow ourselves to be defined by those around us and that who we are is solely determined by us. Yet if I can’t be who I am at my school due to gender specific roles that the school places on us then why try? School by itself is a difficult thing and its even harder when being told who to be. It comes to a simple thing “Let me be me”." The reason we want this petition to be done is to end that gender binary system that schools in this district still have. There have been schools, such as Hillsdale, that have successfully been able to implement this into their school. This was not done without being given a reason to, a reason that revealed the urgency of this need for getting rid of the segregation. A few years ago, a transgender student who had not been out to his parents was unsure what robe to choose. He had decided to not go to graduation because of this issue that he was facing. The part that had gotten many students the most upset was the fact that this student was also valedictorian. Not only had he missed out on his graduation, he had missed out on his chance to make a speech as the representative for the class. We do not want this segregation to continue and to even create issues that escalate to students deciding that they can't go to graduation because of how uncomfortable they feel. We are making a stand together to speak out against this segregation and to make a change. We thank you for your consideration.