An unhealthy obsession with sex
I'm not sure why Lexington, of all the wealthy, progressive, suburban towns around Boston, has become such a flashpoint in the culture war over gay families.
In Newton, a few miles south of Lexington, an activist named Brian Camenker has been fighting a losing war against any mention of homosexuality or gay families in the school system since the early '90s. For Camenker, the battle has resulted in public humiliation and bankruptcy, and no progress for his cause in the ultra-progressive Newton schools. Other anti-gay groups have distanced themselves from Camenker's organization due to its "rude" and aggressive tactics, solidly placing him on the fringe of the movement.
But Camenker seems to have found an ally in Lexington's David Parker, who was arrested last year after refusing to leave a Lexington elementary school following a meeting with its principal. Parker wanted the school to guarantee not only that no teacher-led discussions about gay families occur, but that they would further have "an automatic opt out for our child when such discussions arise spontaneously to be enforced by those in authoritative control"
Parker's meeting, conveniently, was photographed: splashed across Camenker's site are pictures of Parker in handcuffs, Parker being led into the police station, Parker through the window of the principal's office.
Prior to the meeting which led to the arrest, Parker had addressed the Lexington school board, and tried to explain the deep root of his objection to Lexington's in-school discussions of same-sex families:
In my memory, life in elementary school didn't include much thought about sex. Maybe it's different for kids these days, but somehow, I have a hard time imagining a five year old figuring out the "implied... sexual intimacy" of a pair of gay moms unless an unhealthily obsessed parent explained it in detail.
To people like Camenker and Parker, I'd pose one question: does every mention of heterosexual families imply sexual intimacy as well?
In Newton, a few miles south of Lexington, an activist named Brian Camenker has been fighting a losing war against any mention of homosexuality or gay families in the school system since the early '90s. For Camenker, the battle has resulted in public humiliation and bankruptcy, and no progress for his cause in the ultra-progressive Newton schools. Other anti-gay groups have distanced themselves from Camenker's organization due to its "rude" and aggressive tactics, solidly placing him on the fringe of the movement.
But Camenker seems to have found an ally in Lexington's David Parker, who was arrested last year after refusing to leave a Lexington elementary school following a meeting with its principal. Parker wanted the school to guarantee not only that no teacher-led discussions about gay families occur, but that they would further have "an automatic opt out for our child when such discussions arise spontaneously to be enforced by those in authoritative control"
Parker's meeting, conveniently, was photographed: splashed across Camenker's site are pictures of Parker in handcuffs, Parker being led into the police station, Parker through the window of the principal's office.
Prior to the meeting which led to the arrest, Parker had addressed the Lexington school board, and tried to explain the deep root of his objection to Lexington's in-school discussions of same-sex families:
Let's not be naive about the implied human sexuality aspect of same-sex unions. Let's be honest with ourselves. When we accept same-sex union, we accept its implied. . .sexual intimacy. These concepts are indeed inextricably linked.Today, the one year anniversary of Parker's arrest, he joins another set of parents in filing a lawsuit against Lexington schools. The suit alleges that discussions of gay families violate the Massachusetts law which allows parents to opt their children out of sex-ed class.
In my memory, life in elementary school didn't include much thought about sex. Maybe it's different for kids these days, but somehow, I have a hard time imagining a five year old figuring out the "implied... sexual intimacy" of a pair of gay moms unless an unhealthily obsessed parent explained it in detail.
To people like Camenker and Parker, I'd pose one question: does every mention of heterosexual families imply sexual intimacy as well?
posted by $!# at 4/27/2006 06:14:00 AM
2 Comments:
We had a similar brouhaha in Australia a few years back when the children's TV show Play School featured a lesbian couple.
The couple were portrayed accompanying their daughter to the playground like any other set of parents would, but the way the conservatives down here responded you could be forgiven for thinking the pair of them were re-creating that scene in Requiem for a Dream.
The funny thing is... I thought lesbians stopped having sex after they got married.
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