Don't Ask Don't Tell Activist: I Was Harassed After Starting A Gay Straight Alliance

In October 2003, the state of California passed sweeping anti-bullying and harassment legislation that would be mandated in every public school, called the Bullying Prevention for School Safety and Crime Reduction Act.

But now, a California educator and LGBT activist is coming forward to say that this legislation is not being enforced, and that she suffered from homophobia and discrimination while working at two separate school districts. She released this on Friday on her blog, The Dyke Herald.

Corporal Evelyn Thomas was a member of the Army National Guard and the U.S. Marine Corps who served at Camp Pendleton for four years. She was honorably discharged in 1991 after a fellow Marine found a letter in her locker from another woman. Thomas, now an activist who made headlines earlier this year in a high-profile protest of Don't Ask Don't Tell at the White House, is also the founder of a faith-based LGBT military service organization called The Sanctuary Project.

Hoping to teach tolerance to a new generation, Thomas also became a high school history teacher, working with school districts in San Diego and nearby Oceanside -- which serves students from Camp Pendleton. It was while she was teaching at Oceanside during 2007-2008 that she encountered what she identified as a hostile work environment as she created, then advised, a Gay Straight Alliance club.

In her charges to the school district, which Thomas released to Change.org, she alleges that a rock was thrown through her classroom window, notes were left on her desk and chalkboard that read "Congratulations, UR Gay," her car was egged and colleagues shunned her. She had to fight to have the club's full name, "Gay Straight Alliance," read over the morning announcements, she said. The student president of the club was called a "fruitcake" in class by a teacher, and another student wrote a column in the school paper calling the idea of the club "garbage" and that the club shouldn't be tolerated.

“The classroom and other educational venues are not safe environments for LGBT people," she said in her release.

After hiring a third-party investigator to review Thomas' claims, the school did not rule in her favor. Thomas argues that the investigation was invalid. She was laid off shortly after her claim. Oceanside High School considers the case closed and cannot comment on personnel matters, an Oceanside spokesman told Change.org this week.

Thomas is no longer at the school, but there is a Gay Straight Alliance club in existence at the school, with 10 members, the spokesman said.

Thomas is making public her 2008 claim now because she says more recently, in October 2010, she encountered more discrimination. This happened while she was working in a professional development program at the San Diego County Office of Education called the "American Hits Program," she said. During a program session discussing the Westboro Baptist Church, a fellow history teacher made the comment that students cannot handle "that fags eat poop,” she told Change.org. Thomas sought immediately to correct the colleague and the facilitator about the homophobic statement. The facilitator in reply to Thomas allegedly said that she must of “misunderstood that it was a joke." Everyone laughed, Thomas said.

Thomas immediately sought out to speak with the Program Director and about the homophobic comment and to speak to other members of the group. After that encounter she was informed that she was no longer eligible for the program and was removed, she said. An "American Hits" representative did not respond to a request to comment from Change.org.

The 2003 California law, SB 719, requires public schools in California to implement school safety and anti-bullying and harassment procedures that would also cover lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and non gender conforming students. It also required school administrators to create safe spaces with oversight requiring yearly teacher trainings and school compliance to the policy.

Thomas has devoted her life to service for both her country and to education. In both, she has been subject to discrimination and harassment, she says. What is she working for now? It's simple, she says. "My goal is teach in the Oceanside Unified School District as an openly person of the LGBT community who is valued for my ability to guide our youth through academia and an as a role model for students to become caring human beings in this world." The state of California has had a policy on the books for the past seven years, yet educators like Thomas still say they have experienced bullying and harassment. If educators are unsafe in their own classroom, how can students be truly in a safe space?

Thomas is leading the charge to strengthen this California law and make California school districts accountable for the learning environments they create. She is going public with her experiences, asking other educators to share their stories and challenging California legislators to fully enforce SB 719 in schools. You can add your support by asking the California Department of Education to commit to making sure SB 719 is truly implemented into all California schools.

Photo credit: MoNewsHorizon via Flickr