NEWSSTUDENT SAFETY

[Editor's Note: Guest blogger Kit-Bacon Gressitt and her group created the Change.org petition "Act Against Hate at Cal State University San Marcos." You can find more of her writing at http://www.excusemeimwriting.com/]

Imagine opening what appears to be a college newspaper and finding a picture of yourself superimposed into a pornographic photo, with a description of sexual acts. Imagine how that would make you feel as you walk through campus, not knowing who was behind the anonymous tabloid, uncertain if the person looking at you across the classroom was the one who photoshopped your face into a scene of naked women.

This is what one student at Cal State University San Marcos is going through, and she is suffering this abuse due to two things:

The country's leading safe schools organization on Friday criticized a "neutrality" policy at Minnesota's largest school district that prevents faculty from addressing LGBT issues with students.

Policies like the "neutrality" policy at the Anoka-Hennepin School District "have a chilling effect on LGBT students," said Dr. Eliza Byard, Executive Director of the Gay, Lesbian & Straight Education Network in an interview with Change.org.

"Research has shown that teachers in states that have anti-LGBT policies are less likely to respond to the harassment of LGBT students, and students are more likely to report hearing negative remarks," Byard said.

Controversy over the Minnesota district's rule instructing teachers and staff to take a "neutral" stance on matters of sexuality came to a head last week, when a federal lawsuit was filed by the Southern Poverty Law Center, the National Center for Lesbian Rights and Faegre & Benson, LLP.

At one time, the bill to allow Texas college students to carry a concealed weapon on campus seemed inevitable. Senator Jeff Wentworth, who authored the bill, had the governor's support and more than half the Texas House sponsored the bill. At one point, he called it a "slam dunk."

But now, many are saying the measure has been shot down. Just yesterday, Wentworth was supposed to bring the measure up for a vote on the Senate floor. But without the votes to suspend the rules to do so, he didn't even try. And he wouldn't say if he would try again.

"I'm hopeful this is a bump in the road," Wentworth said, to the Statesman. "I don't have a very clear crystal ball."

Just last week, Wentworth had the votes he needed. But an unexpected change of heart came from two Texas legislators - Senators Eddie Lucio and Mario Gallegos. Gallegos said he originally supported the bill, but heard from so many constituents that were against it that he changed his mind.

Every morning across the country, Muslim students tell their parents they're scared to go to school -- because they'll be beaten and taunted for practicing Islam. Politicians flog fears of "the other" to drum up votes and campaign donations. Peaceful American citizens are branded as "terrorists" because of their skin color or their faith.

But on Friday, a student movement against blind Islamophobia scored a major victory -- UCLA's Islamic Studies program will re-open this fall after being frozen since 2007.

Last fall, students rallied, demonstrated, and attracted more than 5,400 signatures from the international Change.org community who called on the UCLA administration to bring back the program. These activists, led by student Ilona Gerbakher, argued that the fate of UCLA's program was a matter of national importance.  As we at Change.org blogged about - and publicized - their campaign, students kept the petition updated and finely-targeted, marshalling national support to show UCLA administrators that this was far larger than a campus issue.  

Texas Senator Mario Gallegos of Houston has changed his mind about the proposed law to allow concealed weapons on the state's college campuses.

""I'm really torn with this issue. I believe in the right to carry," Gallegos told the Associated Press. "But I also listen to my community colleges and universities. I've been bombarded in the last 24 hours."

Gallegos, along with two other Texas Senators who seem to have changed their mind about the bill, just delayed a vote on the measure from happening. But the fight isn't over. Senator Jeff Wentworth, who introduced SB 354, is determined to find other supporters and bring the measure up for a vote again early next week.

Students who don't want guns on their campuses aren't keeping quiet while the Texas legislature attempts to pass a bill allowing concealed weapons at college and universities. Over 150 students, faculty and survivors of violence showed up last Wednesday at a hearing on SB 354, outnumbering the proponents of the law five to one.

John Woods was one of those who came and spoke. His girlfriend, Maxine Turner, was killed in the 2007 Virginia Tech shooting, and since that tragedy, Woods has become an activist against guns on campus.

"My feeling is we have a Second Amendment in this country for a reason, but as the Supreme Court has said very clearly, that doesn't mean that you can take your gun with you anywhere you want," said Woods, to the state committee on criminal justice.

Last year's shooting at the University of Texas at Austin, where a 19-year-old opened fire on students before killing himself, has gotten students riled up. Scott Lewis, part of a group called Students for Concealed Carry on Campus, says he and his classmates aren't safe.

"We're basically fish in a barrel," said Lewis. "This is about changing the odds."

Fish in a barrel? Sitting in class? University of Texas at Austin grad student Aron Weinberg says concealed weapons won't make students any safer, but rather, will only bring more danger onto college campuses. Weinberg started a petition at Change.org against the new law which has been passed out of committee in the Texas House, allowing concealed carry on campus.

Pam Carolan chose the Children's School in Moorestown, New Jersey for her daughter because of its rural setting and vast outdoor play area. So when her daughter heard that the state of New Jersey was making the school cut down all tree branches below 7 feet on their property, she was visibly upset.

"Upon reading [it], my daughter, now age 9, burst out opposing cutting of any trees or branches there," wrote Carolan. "She said that the trees made it fun and also provided shade when it was warm outside."

Carolan is just one of the hundreds of parents and teachers who have signed KaBOOM!'s petition on Change.org in support of saving the trees -- leaves, branches and all -- at the Children's School. But is public support of the school encouraging the state to be flexible, or only entrenching their position?

Your voice counts.

If you've ever doubted that, you should have been in Columbus, Ohio today as 165,000 signatures were delivered to Ohio Govenor John Kasich on behalf of Akron mom Kelley Williams-Bolar, jailed last month for sending her children to a safer school. Convicted of a felony, her career is now in jeopardy. The petition urges Kasich to pardon Williams-Bolar so that she can work as a teacher.

As of today, more than 86,000 have signed the petition on Change.org; we were joined by our allies at ColorofChange.org and MomsRising.org in collecting more than 165,000 signatures calling for justice for Williams-Bolar.

Wow. 165,000 signatures, calling for a pardon for Williams-Bolar. That's 9,606 pages and approximately 40 pounds, delivered to Kasich's 30th-floor office and into the hands of Brad Reynolds, Gov. Kasich's Director of Constituent Affairs, earlier today. If you signed the petition on Change.org, know that your voice was heard.

Lyn Stone picked up the newspaper and her heart sank.

There it was, in black and white: high school students in Vestal, N.Y. had just taken part in  'Kick a Jew Day,' a mean-spirited "holiday" meant to embarrass and hurt their Jewish peers.

Stone, 74, who is of Jewish descent, thought things had changed in N.Y. When she moved there more than 30 years ago, her three young sons were singled out with anti-semitic taunts.

"They did it with a smile, but it still hurt and we were made quite aware that we were different," she remembers. But times changed. As the years passed, her family was accepted by the community and moved on with their lives.

So when Stone found out that more than a dozen students at Vestal High School in upstate N.Y., near Stone's home, were being disciplined for taking part in 'Kick A Jew Day' in December, she decided to take a stand. Stone's petition on Change.org asks Mark LaRoach, superintendent of Vestal's school district, to address this ugly problem head-on with curriculum stressing tolerance and respect.