Article on incoming RU student

[iReC89]

and the question comes here because the football world handles this issue so well?

Graduation speeches often if not always contain unnecessary personal side stories. Usually they help pull together a larger point that is very relevant to the situation. I'm sure some version of the speech will be available online in a few days and we can all see how horribly salacious this was, or not.
I'm not sure what the school accomplished. At a minimum, in some way they should have recognized the valedictorian - the person that won the game, and up to that point, followed all the necessary rules. The fact that the district has their lawyer and PR people out in front of this makes me think the people who made the decision are at a minimum very concerned about the perception of their actions.

 

[MADHAT1]

Hopefully what was sent to the school board will become public knowledge, with Evan Young's permission and we can see if the principal's action was warranted or not.
Talking about yourself should be allowed, maybe even encouraged, but it's how he intended to do that is where the problem could have been and that problem might not just be about coming out as a gay person.

Until that speech is presented to the public in the original form it was sent to Twin Peaks Charter Academy High School’s officials, we can only speculate about why it was denied and the content in the speech that caused it to be denied.

 

[REDRICH65]

This whole affair is what many of we straights dislike about homosexuals: their bragging about it, acting out, parades, etc. Hey gays -- just stfu. If you want respect and equality -- earn it.

 

[mal359]

This whole affair is what many of we straights dislike about homosexuals: their bragging about it, acting out, parades, etc. Hey gays -- just stfu. If you want respect and equality -- earn it.

Yeah man! Shutting up and being complacent totally works for equality movements!

I have no idea how his sexuality is a "political agenda."

 

[jtung230]

Red, you forgot to mention the blacks and Jews. Go all-in.

 

[Caliknight]

Good move by th school. No one cares about your gayness.

 

[RUJohnny99]

Hmmm. Interesting. Did the older generations' valedictorians need to have their speeches approved?

In 1990, yes. My speech had to be pre-approved. The principal made several changes to mine.

 

[NJBorn]

“My main theme is that you’re supposed to be respectful of people, even if you don’t agree with them,”

NJBorn, RUsSKii - I strongly condemn your opinion, and that of the school, that 'respect towards people of all walks of life - regardless of any characteristic or action of theirs' - is a 'personal agenda to not be 'pushed' among a graduation audience'. It is a key principle upon which I have based my adult life in the medical field and in the community - no matter if you are dealing with someone of a different race, creed (Republicans, as an example, different for me), sexual orientation, gender, etc. - no matter if you are dealing with a homeless woman or a criminal man, a sinner in the eyes of your church or not - I will give you compassionate care in the hospital and I will treat you with respect in the community.

"I strongly condemn your opinion" Piss off you pompous jerk. What a douchey thing to say.

That said, I believe you treat everyone equally, one of the last employees I hired was gay, but if he or anyone else in the office started talking about their sex life in the office, I would probably fire them. There is a time and place for everything and I dont need to hear about anyone else's sex life and as a parent I would hate to have sat there and heard his drivel. Just because you are gay, it doesnt make you special, you are just like everyone else.

I also have no compassion for the kid if he didnt tell his parents and planned to it in public. Thats a crappy thing to do to them regardless of their reaction. Kid sounds like he is looking for attention.

 

[FanuSanu52]

This whole affair is what many of we straights dislike about homosexuals: their bragging about it, acting out, parades, etc. Hey gays -- just stfu. If you want respect and equality -- earn it.

Or you could, maybe, not attend their parades so much.

 

[NewJerseyGuy]

If you were to reference your girlfriend or wife in a speech, would the audience assume you were automatically going to then be discussing your sex life with her? It's not just about what goes on in the bedroom.

I think I agree with the earlier poster who said we should wait to see the text this valedictorian submitted for his speech.

I did not read in the article that the student intended to reference his boyfriend or husband in his speech.

Rather, the article said, "Young planned to disclose his sexual orientation publicly for the first time during his speech." (Emphasis supplied.)

So I do not think your hypothetical is analogous. Until I read the specific text that the school found objectionable, I will continue to believe it is unnecessary for a valedictorian to disclose his sexual orientation publicly in his speech.

Therefore, I do not see the benefit of trying to imagine whether my hypothetical speech audience would assume I was going to discuss my sex life were I to reference a wife or girlfriend.

Anyway, thanks for commenting on my post. Have a good week.

 

[M1stman]

This kid's speech was censored because he goes to a school run by people who hate homosexuals and are offended by homosexuality.

The BS about him discussing his love life is a red herring. The school's attorney said it himself.

Let's just call a spade a spade, shall we?

 

[JQRU91]

I'm tired of being force fed the homosexual agenda, and I don't believe in gay marriage. That being said, I think the principal was wrong to out the student by calling up the parents. I mean the guy is eighteen, so I don't see why it was necessary to contact the parents. Sure they were about to find out any way, but it's one thing to have him tell them himself and another to have them find out the way they did.

 

[NewJerseyGuy]

This kid's speech was censored because he goes to a school run by people who hate homosexuals and are offended by homosexuality.

The BS about him discussing his love life is a red herring. The school's attorney said it himself.

Let's just call a spade a spade, shall we?

I disagree. I do not believe everyone who thinks a graduation speech may not be the proper forum for a student to come out to his parents or to discuss his sexual inclinations necessarily hates homosexuals or is offended by homosexuality.

Will be interesting to see the specific text that the school censored.

 

[M1stman]

I'm tired of being force fed the homosexual agenda, and I don't believe in gay marriage. That being said, I think the principal was wrong to out the student by calling up the parents. I mean the guy is eighteen, so I don't see why it was necessary to contact the parents. Sure they were about to find out any way, but it's one thing to have him tell them himself and another to have them find out the way they did.

You're tired of homosexual people fighting for the same rights, recognition and acceptance as heterosexuals? Oh, boo freaking hoo. How truly awful for you!

 

[M1stman]

I disagree. I do not believe everyone who thinks a graduation speech may not be the proper forum for a student to come out to his parents or to discuss his sexual inclinations necessarily hates homosexuals or is offended by homosexuality.

Will be interesting to see the specific text that the school censored.

Note that I didn't say that. I said that in this case, it sure as heck sounded like the school was operating under a very different mindset than you and some of the other posters here. Especially with the attorney using all of the same dog-whistle terms you hear people like JQRU91 using.

I agree that the censored text could be instructive. I'm guessing he mentioned being gay in one line, as a means to hit home a point about the importance of tolerance. I doubt very much he went into details about the fine points of touching other men's penises.

 

[NJBorn]

This kid's speech was censored because he goes to a school run by people who hate homosexuals and are offended by homosexuality.

The BS about him discussing his love life is a red herring. The school's attorney said it himself.

Let's just call a spade a spade, shall we?

Thats BS. Just because someone doesnt agree with you doesnt mean they HATE homosexuals. The speech was inappropriate, wrong forum. Why does everyone else need to be subjected to your personal life.

I am really shocked how far left most of this board is, I must be getting old, because the guys I graduated with are all pretty conservative.

 

[Caliknight]

I am sure if the focus of his speech was Jesus and him attributing all of his success in school due to following His teachings, the rainbow crowd would be just as supportive.

Outside of being incredibly selfish of the kid, it is also really f'ing boring. Really, really boring. Kid learned a good lesson. Don't make your sexuality the focus of your life. Focus on something more important and more interesting.

Funny, Condi Rice giving advice due to her many accomplishments- horrible. A high school kid with a gpa and is gay, great. Logic is in dire need on this board sometimes.

 

[M1stman]

Thats BS. Just because someone doesnt agree with you doesnt mean they HATE homosexuals. The speech was inappropriate, wrong forum. Why does everyone else need to be subjected to your personal life.

I am really shocked how far left most of this board is, I must be getting old, because the guys I graduated with are all pretty conservative.

How do you know whether the speech was inappropriate? Did you read a copy? What if the speech contained one line mentioning the guy's boyfriend? Would that be inappropriate to you?

Actually, here's a link to a transcript of the speech, which the kid was able to read at a Boulder-area GLBT organization meeting:

http://www.democracynow.org/2015/6/1/exclusive_gay_high_school_student_delivers

There's a bunch of corny jokes -- many of which are actually at liberals' expense -- and maybe four sentences about him being gay, none of which crosses any line into impropriety. But it's good to know that someone telling you they're gay gets your panties all in a bunch.

 

[FanuSanu52]

I am sure if the focus of his speech was Jesus and him attributing all of his success in school due to following His teachings, the rainbow crowd would be just as supportive.

Outside of being incredibly selfish of the kid, it is also really f'ing boring. Really, really boring. Kid learned a good lesson. Don't make your sexuality the focus of your life. Focus on something more important and more interesting.

Funny, Condi Rice giving advice due to her many accomplishments- horrible. A high school kid with a gpa and is gay, great. Logic is in dire need on this board sometimes.

So boring that you have commented about it twice, once on a Sunday, and counting.

After reading the text (thanks, M1stman), I have to say ... giant meh. Don't think it was inappropriate and didn't really come across like "world exclusive: coming out for the very first time." I'll bet his family and close friends already knew. He used it as a step toward a greater point, though not sure the point was all that necessary to the speech. Seems like a little editing without removing the entire gay revelation could have made it punchier. Or he could have just removed it without losing a whole lot. Much todo about nothing.

 

[RU848789]

How do you know whether the speech was inappropriate? Did you read a copy? What if the speech contained one line mentioning the guy's boyfriend? Would that be inappropriate to you?

Actually, here's a link to a transcript of the speech, which the kid was able to read at a Boulder-area GLBT organization meeting:

http://www.democracynow.org/2015/6/1/exclusive_gay_high_school_student_delivers

There's a bunch of corny jokes -- many of which are actually at liberals' expense -- and maybe four sentences about him being gay, none of which crosses any line into impropriety. But it's good to know that someone telling you they're gay gets your panties all in a bunch.

Thanks for sharing the original speech. Anyone who is offended by that speech is very likely homophobic. He reveals all kinds of personal details about his life, schoolwork, hopes and dreams, and, yes, his sexuality, all in weaving a narrative about who he is and how he became who he is. I'm appalled that they censored this. Here's the "offensive" part, in which coming out took up well less than 10% of the speech...

"And I’m not quite done yet. I’m sorry. We’re getting there, though. And that’s my biggest secret of all: I’m gay. I understand this might be offensive to some people, but it’s who I am. And whether you’ve always suspected this, or this is a total shock to you, now you know. When I was writing this speech, I was endlessly debating with myself whether I should reveal this, on account of how divisive an issue this is and how gay people tend to be stereotyped, and I thought that, if I did, I should repeatedly apologize and beg you guys not to think any differently of me. But then I realized: I don’t have to. I shouldn’t have to. If there’s one thing I learned at this school, it’s that we can still be friends even if we profoundly disagree with each other. And sure: There’s only like 30 of us, so it’s not like we had much of a choice, but at times, it took a serious effort to put up with one another. We disagreed and argued about many things: about gun control, the minimum wage, politics, books, movies, who would speak at our graduation, pretty much everything else. But no matter how much we disagreed, we learned to overlook our differences and respect everyone else, no matter how wrong we thought they were, no matter how annoying they were, no matter how boring their speeches were, or no matter what weird snacks they brought to history class, from coffee creamer to coconuts. And I want everyone here to do the same."

 

[MADHAT1]

Now that I've seen what was unacceptable, don't think it was.
Like Fanu Sanu said ":Much todo about nothing."

Except the School not letting the kid give that speech , it wouldn't have been a big deal.

 

[NotInRHouse]

Does anyone here notice how everyone who has a problem with the speech was the apoplectic when Condi pulled out?

Basically they think RU was wrong when it DIDN'T tell Condi not to come, but say students infringed on her free speech....yet a principal actually bans a speech and they love it...

Maybe Barchi should have banned Condi's speech. Those Iraq War mongers and their parades....oh wait they never had a victory parade because Iraq had its leadership deposed by Condi and replaced by ISIS...

 

[NotInRHouse]

Or you could, maybe, not attend their parades so much.

Imagine if he had it said it about blacks or Hispanics or any other group. He should be banned. It's pride month, he should head over to the parade and let them know how he feels.

 

[bac2therac]

good lord you people got your panties in a bunch over that....face palm...what agenda was pushed on you and for that matter with all the attention I thought the speech would have had something objectionable not the mere mention he was gay

 

[RU1993]

He got to give his speech over the weekend at a lesbian and gay meeting in colorado

 

[RUevolution36]

I don't know what the hullabaloo is all about...that speech was terrible in all aspects...gay revelation or not.

 

[imbazza]

It is a sad state when a principal dictates his homophobic agenda, now where was he waving his gayness but rather point out the difficult time teens have with identity Hell he almost had a girl friend that may have flipped him to heterosexuality; this is the torment of a teen.
All you arses who side with the principal read the speech without your vile distain for people who are not like you, be it gay or liberal or black. I see you all on this spitting at each other because of different view point on everything from politics to football.
Why be all so vile., are you all so unhappy with your lot in life?

 

[j10oreo]

So the school claims he shouldn't address his sexual orientation in his speech and to prevent him from doing so they prevent him from giving his speech...... and also pretend he doesn't exist, period. I see.

 

[Caliknight]

I don't know what the hullabaloo is all about...that speech was terrible in all aspects...gay revelation or not.

Kid needs toast masters. Using "I" that much is completely lame and is a great way to lose the crowd, especially in a valedictorian speech.

Hopefully, he learns better at Rutgers.

 

[RUinsane]

The reality is, had they let the speech go on, no one would have even noticed. Instead, the principal created more attention and controversy by banning it.

 

[NJBorn]

ipal read the speech without your vile distain for people who are not like you, be it gay or liberal or black. I see you all on this spitting at each other because of different view point on everything from politics to football.
Why be all so vile., are you all so unhappy with your lot in life?

I am ecstatic with my life and I keep my personal life, just that, personal. I dont feel the need to tell everyone my sexual orientation as it does not define me. Its not the right place.

 

[imbazza]

I am ecstatic with my life and I keep my personal life, just that, personal. I dont feel the need to tell everyone my sexual orientation as it does not define me. Its not the right place.

It is oblivious that you did not read his speak. It was not look at me I am gay! it was look at all of us were are unique. he speaks of hugging Liberals and conservatives and gays. I am sure you are one of those but lets not bring that up it might disturb people as well. He was referring to tolerance and acceptance of our diversity, but alas your homophobia just screams in your bigoted statement, with out reading the context. Take the time to read before you scream

 

[RUsSKii]

“My main theme is that you’re supposed to be respectful of people, even if you don’t agree with them,”

NJBorn, RUsSKii - I strongly condemn your opinion, and that of the school, that 'respect towards people of all walks of life - regardless of any characteristic or action of theirs' - is a 'personal agenda to not be 'pushed' among a graduation audience'. It is a key principle upon which I have based my adult life in the medical field and in the community - no matter if you are dealing with someone of a different race, creed (Republicans, as an example, different for me), sexual orientation, gender, etc. - no matter if you are dealing with a homeless woman or a criminal man, a sinner in the eyes of your church or not - I will give you compassionate care in the hospital and I will treat you with respect in the community.

Now, if you think I've "shifted the goalposts" by stating the theme of this speech by the student and not the statement "I am a gay American", you fail to realize - if you invalidate this theme because it draws from personal experiences you invalidate every theme of every speech that draws from personal experience. And that's, I'm sure you will agree, absurd.

The fact of the matter is that sexuality is a part of identity, and these identity groups are subject to persecution in some cases and have their own experience in America, just as Black Americans, female Americans, Asian Americans, Republican Americans have their own personal experiences based on parts of their identities. If this boy was talking about sexual acts that would be a completely different thing. He is talking about his experience as a member of an identity group and has a theme we should all appreciate.

You and NIRH are welcome to condemn my opinion, but I don't care. And you are unnecessarily attempting to broaden the discussion and lecture others about equal treatment of others in the workplace and/or medical fields, which I'm a believer of to begin with

Graduation is a time to celebrate the achievements of an entire class of students, who have worked hard from two to many years and can now share the momentous occasion with their family, faculty, and classmates. Sure, speeches can touch upon a variety of topics, individual experiences, and even mention personal identity. In that sense, it's okay to talk about shooting at the range, religious faith, personal race, sexual orientation, world issues/peace, etc.

But as far as we know from the article, the valedictorian planned to 'come out' to everyone during his graduation speech. This personal revelation distracts from the overall occasion, since the ceremony attendees are there to celebrate the students' completion of their secondary education. Allegedly, nobody knew about what he had planned to reveal during his high school tenure. Therefore, I interpret his refusal to omit that part from his speech, as asked by the school, as a 'personal agenda.' It is in the interest of limiting excessive individual attention (except for noted academic awards/accomplishments, volunteering, and/or military/emergency service) where I agree with the school's decision.

 

[NotInRHouse]

So if he came out as being saved by Jesus at the graduation you would be equally condemning? How is it an agenda to let people know you are in a speech about yourself?

 

[RUsSKii]

So if he came out as being saved by Jesus at the graduation you would be equally condemning? How is it an agenda to let people know you are in a speech about yourself?

Where did I say anything about condemnation? I simply consider it equally inappropriate and disruptive to an academic graduation ceremony for someone to come out in a speech as being saved by Jesus, as well as gay. Refusing to acknowledge that by insisting on planning to disclose those revelations publicly at this particularly inappropriate time is having an agenda. Feel free to direct your hysterical accusations elsewhere.

 

[NJBorn]

It is oblivious that you did not read his speak. It was not look at me I am gay! it was look at all of us were are unique. he speaks of hugging Liberals and conservatives and gays. I am sure you are one of those but lets not bring that up it might disturb people as well. He was referring to tolerance and acceptance of our diversity, but alas your homophobia just screams in your bigoted statement, with out reading the context. Take the time to read before you scream

Do you read what you write? "but alas your homophobia just screams in your bigoted statement" if you got that from my sentence? you have some serious issues.

Its threads like this that make me realize why I cant wait to get out of NJ.