So in my random facebook newsfeed cruising the other day, I happened upon an article ( http://advocate.com/News/News_Features/Arkansas_School_Board_Member_Thinks_Fags_Should_Die/ ) about the VP of a school board in Midland, Arkansas decrying "Spirit Day" (That day where people wore purple to commemorate the gay kids who committed suicide because of the bullying/pressure/etc that they were faced with.
I've just read a follow up piece where Clint McCance has stated he's resigning as VP of the Midland School Board and was filled with oodles of joy - but that's not the point of this.
I did some hunting around and found a screen cap of the comment thread underneath his initial post.
In the FB thread, he lashes out to someone who commented "Because hatred is always right" with
"It pisses me off though that we make a special purple fag day for them. I like that fags cant procreate. I also enjoy the fact that they often give each other aids and die. If you arent against it, you might as well be for it."
My initial reaction was blinding rage; like opening my fridge to see bacon gone bad, then turning around to see someone setting my house on fire. Not. Cool. Plus - Screw this guy, I'm going to have to jump through flaming hoops to get the privilege of being a parent, (and I'm going to be amazing at it FYI) while people like him can be drunk in their back seat and it just happens, resulting in some poor lil nugget having to be raised by someone like that.
Then I think about it. This guy who has a fleeting grasp of the English language is an ELECTED OFFICIAL!! (ex - he even used the word "thereselves" a bunch of times. Am I the only one whose FB automatically spell checks?) This is a man who presumably hundreds of people voted for to lead educators! The Vice President of a SCHOOL BOARD is unaware that thereselves isn't a word. I know I'm harping on that tiny thing, but I'm Constable Patrick of the spelling police. Ask around.
The other COMPLETELY HORRIBLE bit about his being an elected official is that he CANNOT BE FIRED. The closest thing would be for the board to hold a vote of non confidence and oust him that way. This obviously made me think of the bigoted mess Toronto has just elected as Mayor and the obvious parallels.
An elected official making racist/homophobic/uneducated comments sets the example that being racist/homophobic/uneducated is the way to live, as long as you back it up with religious conviction.
Here's a fucking newsflash. Pick a religion - go ahead, take your time...
The core message of ALL organized religion is to do right by people. Love thy neighbour, blah blah blah. Using whatever thing in the sky you point at as a basis for being judgmental makes you a GINORMOUS FUCKING JERKASS!! It's a direct opposition to the core message in whatever book of make believe you choose.
The next thing - Being an Elected Official means your responsibility is to represent the needs of your constituents. That means you have to be legitimately invested in the best interests of everyone. You represent a whole group of people publicly, which may lead to the world stage whether you like it or not. Had this matter gone unchecked, the whole world would be looking at Wherever, Arkansas as a place where bigotry is right. Here in Toronto, if you google Rob Ford, you're inundated with Youtube videos of examples of why he's the exact wrong person to have in a position of responsibility to anyone but himself. The world is currently having a huge laugh at our expense, because he as our representative makes the people who live in Toronto look automatically like bigots. As one of the most progressive cities in the world, it's doubtless that there's head scratching abounding.
Then we come to the bit where it turns out Clint McCance is resigning his post as VP of the School Board due to the backlash from his commentary. I squealed. Like I was just presented with a walk in closet to call my own. (For storage not for myself, we're clearly past that, right?)
Reading further about his decision to step down... he was partly concerned with his word choice (not the point dude), partly concerned with the impact his words had on a group of people who have lost their loved ones to hate-related suicide (exactly the point) and partly concerned about the thousands of phone calls, letters etc with death threats to him and his family - which incidentally caused him to move his family away to keep them safe.
Seriously?
First, let me own that I'm constantly advising people and things to set themselves on fire as a general statement that indicates I'm irritated about something. It's my way.. shwatever.
People seriously threatened him and his family because of what he said. What exactly did his wife or kids do to deserve fearing for their lives? Sure, I get that people are angry about the things he wrote, but telling someone that you're going to kill them for shit they say WILL NEVER SOLVE ANYTHING. I jumped on the "get him to resign" bandwagon immediately because someone who behaves that way should NEVER be involved with educating children. My reaction was to send a note to the board about WHY his words were not acceptable.
EDUCATION is the key to changing perspectives. I'm not talking about 10th grade algebra (Sorry Mrs Faux, I've still never used it) I'm talking about helping people understand how they can help to improve their lives and the lives of others.
So to all those people who reacted like cavemen - "You Wrong - I keel you." Look at yourselves. If you disagree with something / someone - explain why. Remember that time your kindergarten teacher said "Use your words"? She didn't mean use them to say "I'm going to kill you and your family because you said/did something awful. To wrap it up - I now feel badly for this person who doesn't deserve it, because the backlash of his utter jerkassness was the wrong sort. Overshadowing my utter joy that progress was made in the fight against homophobia with a shroud of utter crap that the message was lost just sucks.
