My Comments to the Prince William County School Board

Good evening. Thank you to the Board for allowing me to speak tonight.

I live in Lake Ridge, and I have 3 children who attend the outstanding public school in our neighborhood. Rockledge Elementary School is a warm, caring environment that has nurtured my children’s well-being as well as their intellect. I am an extremely grateful mom.

I also happen to be a Baptist minister. My faith is rooted in following the ways of Jesus, who welcomed children and gave special care and attention to those who were vulnerable: the sick, women, and those, who for many different reasons, were social outcasts.

LGBTQ students are often treated as social outcasts in school. The Centers for Disease Control has verified that they are more likely than other students to be bullied or harassed. Those who are bullied or harassed at school are more likely to acquire excessive unexcused absences. They are more likely to experience depression and succumb to substance abuse. LGBTQ students who are harassed at school are more than twice as likely to commit suicide as those who aren’t.

Even some of the steps we take that we think are helpful prove to cause harassment. For example, schools oftentimes force transgender students to use separate bathrooms, like in the nurse’s office. While this sounds reasonable, doing this forces transgender students to “out” themselves, and there are reported cases of students being attacked because of it.

What I hear expressed tonight is fear for the safety of our daughters. It is important to know that there are places that have had bathroom protections for transgender persons for quite some time, and absolutely none of them has experienced a rise in the number of assaults in public bathrooms. Bathroom protections do not put anyone in greater danger. However they do put transgender people in less danger.

If we want to nurture the wellbeing, as well as the intellect, of our LGBTQ students, we need to update our discrimination policy to protect them from bullying & harassment. Some counties right around ours have already included LGBTQ students in their discrimination policies. None of them has expressed concerns or regrets about having done so. Protecting LGBTQ students does not put other students at greater risk. It simply means that those who are most vulnerable are equally safe as other students.

As a minister, I seek to follow the ways of Jesus. When he saw a woman being publicly humiliated and physically threatened, he protected her. Her accusers thought she deserved to be treated badly because of something she had done sexually. Jesus did not care about that. What he did care about was her. He stopped her accusers, sent them away shamed, and restored the woman’s dignity. I seek to follow the way of Jesus. This is why I want all students to be safe and nurtured at school just like my three kids are now. This is why I support updating our discrimination policy to include LGBTQ students. Thank you.