Apr 21, 2015 3 min read

Plenty of negative attention has been brought to McGuffey High School since some of its students apparently staged an “Anti-Gay Day” protest last Thursday. If there’s a silver lining to be had, it’s this: Discrimination and outright violence against gays and lesbians were once commonplace, everyday facts of life. Not all that long ago, being gay was all but a criminal offense here and in other parts of the developed world.

Now, gays and lesbians are accepted as friends, neighbors and co-workers. Discrimination and threats of violence against them bring swift condemnation and harsh denunciation from almost every quarter. The alleged actions of some McGuffey students – writing “anti-gay” on their hands and harassing other students – seem like crude throwbacks to another time and another place, and that helps explain why they received so much media coverage, both from local and regional outlets, as well as national ones. It’s attention that, we would like to believe, most people in the McGuffey community do not welcome.

The protest, which some reports said included up to 100 students, came after some students at McGuffey participated in a National Day of Silence, an annual event designed to spotlight the bullying of students who identify as gay, lesbian or transgender. Kathy Cameron, who leads the Washington County Gay Straight Alliance, described the event as “a very passive way of bringing attention to those who don’t have a voice.”

School officials are investigating some of the more sensational allegations that surfaced about “Anti-Gay Day,” including a “lynch list” having been concocted and a noose being placed on a flag at the school.

In order to still this tempest, McGuffey officials must reinforce, in no uncertain terms, all students are welcome within their schools, no matter their sexual orientation. That message must be sent to both students and parents. Bullying and intimidating other students should not be accepted. So far, officials said all the right things, with Superintendent Erica Kolat saying legal citations will be filed if need be, and the district will “ensure that all children can grow and learn in a safe, supportive environment free from discrimination.”

And though high school is an age where students who are “different” are often singled out, whether it’s the math nerds or those less gifted in athletics, parents need to set an example of tolerance for their children. Some may not understand or like homosexuality, or believe it doesn’t jibe with religious teachings, but students who identify as such have just as much right to an education, and to be treated respectfully, as their heterosexual counterparts.

It’s fair to say over the last several days, students at McGuffey High School learned lessons not typically delivered in the classroom.