Tag Archives: gay issues

Today’s Deseret News, reports that Provo, Utah School officials have developed a policy allowing gay student clubs to be able to meet. The means that the newly formed Gay-Straight Alliance at Provo High School will continue to hold meetings for students after school at the school.

A smart move on the part of officials. About 20 people, according to the article, in a public comment session, representing conservative views and groups, voiced opposition to the group.

Most school board members said they opposed the idea of a Gay-Straight Alliance, but they passed the policy because they felt there needed to be a written districtwide policy regarding noncurricular school clubs. They also said they did not think many of the people who spoke for and against the policy had actually read it.It is available on the district’s Web site, Policy.

The new club met last month with about 30 in attendance and, according to the article, about 15 have returned the required signed permission forms to be able to attend the after school club.

Even as Provo High School’s Gay-straight club meets for the first time, there is already talk of it being short-lived because of some impending obstacles and resistance.

Provo is the city at the hear of the nation’s reddest county in the U.S. – Utah County. The same county in which every attempt was made by conservatives to keep Michael Moore from giving a talk last year at Utah Valley State College (including threats to withdraw funding from donors to the college).

The principal of Provo High School would not permit a Deseret News reporter to attend the meeting and turned away that reporter when they showed up to cover the meeting of the club.

The students had told the Deseret Morning News it could attend the first meeting; however, when a reporter arrived, the principal demanded she leave or he would have office staff escort her out. He cited a new district policy relating to the media and students.

Although the club has the right to exist, there is talk of the Provo school board voting in November to ban all clubs just so this one cannot exist. There is also talk that this move is being influenced by politically active conservative groups.

This will be interesting to follow. Salt Lake County High Schools faced the same issue when the first gay-straight alliance club was formed at East High School in Salt Lake City. If memory serves me correctly, the ACLU became involved and the outcome was that this club had every right to exist as other clubs. High schools around that county now have gay-straight alliance clubs.

Shamelessly stolen from Ken Sain’s newswire link to the BladeWire.

Provo is the home of the Brigham Young University and is much more conservative than Salt Lake, more typically like the rest of the state.

Yet, a Gay-Straight Alliance Club was Approved At Provo High.

In today’s Deseret News there is an article on the club meeting today (Wednesday).

There is also an article on local gay rights activist Kay Kendell and her take on today’s gay youth.