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-two hour delay for school today! The Big Hill in front of our house (our street is called 'hidden valley') is clear. I'm curious what other roads are like. It seems like we got a few inches overnight but the forecast called for it to get kinda rainy at the end. anyway, I'm at home for now and although I'm not sure the delay was ultimately necessary based on my own particular street it's nice to know that's not my problem. And it is interesting to know how those decisions get made. It's not rocket science but transportation and exec office look at very specific forecasts and then do a judgement call and try to balance doing so early enough people can Make Arrangements and late enough for certainty.
- i need another term for 'how the sausage gets made' because that's gross.
- why didn't i park in the garage last night
- i watched a video on ADHD porpoising (or dolphining) and 'neato!' I think most of my friends have under-the-surface thoughts and we can usually make connections. For me if there's more than one step and I'm being totally nonsequitur I do try to explain the links but like, I don't know what's clear to other people. I kind of can tell if there's a big gap, but sometimes I don't know how to say HERE IS THE LINK BETWEEN THOSE TWO THINGS and I just expect people to get it. (My 3rd bullet - the link is only that I looked outside and noticed dan cleaning off my car for me.) (my 4th bullet, this one, is because the link between 1st & 2nd one is not necessarily obvious but you've got it, I'm sure.)
---
- I want to write about this work thing but in such a way that it never becomes a 'she wrote about it on the internet' problem. It is something I've been working on and enjoyed doing it, and appreciated my husband's outrage that I needed to do so.
Ok, I think I've got how to say it: i feel like we (gestures at you) are aligned on this matter.
Regardless of one's beliefs or position, one should never Take Down a Pride (or safe-space) poster. It's not polite, first of all, but there are concrete reasons that (ahem) trump political leanings or aversion to DEI.
First, Title IX as revised 2024 specifically includes gender identity and/or sexual orientation under the definition of gender.
Second, visible indicators of queer support (like safe space posters etc) are extremely helpful for teens who have valid reasons to fear for their physical and emotional safety.
Third, TAKING DOWN those indicators of a safe space literally indicates that this is not a safe space for them. These students are at risk of harm by themselves and others and you just told them you're not someone they can trust (and like removed someone else's visible sign of trust)
Fourth, while one might be tempted to say 'but what about straight pride? i feel uncomfortable that gay people are welcomed and straights are not? it's like discriminating against the straights' YOU know and I know that's baloney, but I found a very simple and nonthreatening blog by a sociology professor explaining, politely, that life is a straight pride parade and to get over oneself.... I could have used a Fancier Source but this was short & sweet.
Fifth, if one feels that it's not neutral enough and espousing a particular ideology (in other words, if you feel that rainbow posters are very liberal and woke), may I remind you that DEI is even military policy, and that the army specifically welcomes LGBT+ service members.
(I wanted to include - 'most religions also indicate that their god is the ultimate judge of behavior and that we should be kind to each other while on earth' - but I skipped that and i MIGHT be wrong. I only know about Christianity and happen to be most familiar with UCC.)
(I also wanted to include: we also live in the "live free or die" state, so please live & let live, and taking down a poster in this case is NOT indicating neutrality. libertarian hypocrites hating trans rights ANYWAY....)
And i had a page worth of sources & references and another page potential training. The dang old empathy paradox is challenging here because I don't want anyone whose worldview is that 'gays are immoral' to outright reject what we're telling them. I don't want them to feel punished. I want them to realize we're talking about student safety and the law, regardless of your beliefs or politics. So the training i recommended was to choose one of 4 things and I indicated which were most 'neutral in tone.' Again, a very conservative person is going to have their hackles up about being an Ally. So the four trainings I suggested were -
- a recorded webinar on the 2024 title ix updates for education journalists. The panelists are obviously lefty (National Women's Law Center etc) BUT it's focused on the law anyway so it kind of doesn't matter what their tone is.
- A recorded webinar about mental health & substance misuse in LGBT students and student safety, produced by national council for student safety (dot gov). SO neutral but also, so real: LGBT youth are way way more likely to struggle. I was hoping that focusing on safety and how 'not a joke' it is might get through.
- The Human Rights Campaign has a Welcoming Schools program; they offer a specific training on 'why is it important to be inclusive' and it's not long but you have to take a terminology introduction first. There is also one on 'creating a culture of belonging for trans kids' but.... that's the least neutral offering and assumes a base level of allyship.
---
I also have a Sitch where we want to reassign an employee from one dept to another, the future boss wants her, she wants to go, and current boss is in process of resigning and she doesn't know I know about that. So another 'how do I say this without revealing Anyone's Secrets' and I think I threaded that needle well enough.
I'm slacking now. But i stayed late doing shit for the Reluctant Ally Trainning so that's ok. I will look at work, then get dressed and drive there!
--Oh I also uploaded evaluation stuff for ty's college application. We keep pluggin away!
- i need another term for 'how the sausage gets made' because that's gross.
- why didn't i park in the garage last night
- i watched a video on ADHD porpoising (or dolphining) and 'neato!' I think most of my friends have under-the-surface thoughts and we can usually make connections. For me if there's more than one step and I'm being totally nonsequitur I do try to explain the links but like, I don't know what's clear to other people. I kind of can tell if there's a big gap, but sometimes I don't know how to say HERE IS THE LINK BETWEEN THOSE TWO THINGS and I just expect people to get it. (My 3rd bullet - the link is only that I looked outside and noticed dan cleaning off my car for me.) (my 4th bullet, this one, is because the link between 1st & 2nd one is not necessarily obvious but you've got it, I'm sure.)
---
- I want to write about this work thing but in such a way that it never becomes a 'she wrote about it on the internet' problem. It is something I've been working on and enjoyed doing it, and appreciated my husband's outrage that I needed to do so.
Ok, I think I've got how to say it: i feel like we (gestures at you) are aligned on this matter.
Regardless of one's beliefs or position, one should never Take Down a Pride (or safe-space) poster. It's not polite, first of all, but there are concrete reasons that (ahem) trump political leanings or aversion to DEI.
First, Title IX as revised 2024 specifically includes gender identity and/or sexual orientation under the definition of gender.
Second, visible indicators of queer support (like safe space posters etc) are extremely helpful for teens who have valid reasons to fear for their physical and emotional safety.
Third, TAKING DOWN those indicators of a safe space literally indicates that this is not a safe space for them. These students are at risk of harm by themselves and others and you just told them you're not someone they can trust (and like removed someone else's visible sign of trust)
Fourth, while one might be tempted to say 'but what about straight pride? i feel uncomfortable that gay people are welcomed and straights are not? it's like discriminating against the straights' YOU know and I know that's baloney, but I found a very simple and nonthreatening blog by a sociology professor explaining, politely, that life is a straight pride parade and to get over oneself.... I could have used a Fancier Source but this was short & sweet.
Fifth, if one feels that it's not neutral enough and espousing a particular ideology (in other words, if you feel that rainbow posters are very liberal and woke), may I remind you that DEI is even military policy, and that the army specifically welcomes LGBT+ service members.
(I wanted to include - 'most religions also indicate that their god is the ultimate judge of behavior and that we should be kind to each other while on earth' - but I skipped that and i MIGHT be wrong. I only know about Christianity and happen to be most familiar with UCC.)
(I also wanted to include: we also live in the "live free or die" state, so please live & let live, and taking down a poster in this case is NOT indicating neutrality. libertarian hypocrites hating trans rights ANYWAY....)
And i had a page worth of sources & references and another page potential training. The dang old empathy paradox is challenging here because I don't want anyone whose worldview is that 'gays are immoral' to outright reject what we're telling them. I don't want them to feel punished. I want them to realize we're talking about student safety and the law, regardless of your beliefs or politics. So the training i recommended was to choose one of 4 things and I indicated which were most 'neutral in tone.' Again, a very conservative person is going to have their hackles up about being an Ally. So the four trainings I suggested were -
- a recorded webinar on the 2024 title ix updates for education journalists. The panelists are obviously lefty (National Women's Law Center etc) BUT it's focused on the law anyway so it kind of doesn't matter what their tone is.
- A recorded webinar about mental health & substance misuse in LGBT students and student safety, produced by national council for student safety (dot gov). SO neutral but also, so real: LGBT youth are way way more likely to struggle. I was hoping that focusing on safety and how 'not a joke' it is might get through.
- The Human Rights Campaign has a Welcoming Schools program; they offer a specific training on 'why is it important to be inclusive' and it's not long but you have to take a terminology introduction first. There is also one on 'creating a culture of belonging for trans kids' but.... that's the least neutral offering and assumes a base level of allyship.
---
I also have a Sitch where we want to reassign an employee from one dept to another, the future boss wants her, she wants to go, and current boss is in process of resigning and she doesn't know I know about that. So another 'how do I say this without revealing Anyone's Secrets' and I think I threaded that needle well enough.
I'm slacking now. But i stayed late doing shit for the Reluctant Ally Trainning so that's ok. I will look at work, then get dressed and drive there!
--Oh I also uploaded evaluation stuff for ty's college application. We keep pluggin away!