A 'sticky situation'

EDITOR'S NOTE: To see a video clip from Thursday's meeting of the Board of Education, see the Herald Tribune's Facebook page.

<span>Already a hot-button issue nationwide, the topic of LGBT acceptance has arisen in Chester.</span>

<span>Ashley Wagner, a student at Chester High School, made a presentation to the Chester District 139 Board of Education on Thursday regarding Diversity Alliance.</span>

<span>DA, which Wagner founded, is intended to be a support group for lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgendered students.</span>

<span>"We are not here to recruit people to be gay," Wagner said. "I would no more like to try and make people gay than I would like them to try and make me straight.</span>

<span>"To be simple about it, I would just like to have a group where kids who are struggling with their sexuality or need to talk to someone or have a social group with students they know won't judge them on their orientation."</span>

<span>Also speaking to the board were Mike Fogerson - senior pastor of the First Baptist Church of Chester - his son, Lake, and Rebecca Hanna, who spoke in favor of the proposed group.</span>

<span>"I have lots of gay friends, I have lots of lesbian friends; I have lots of friends who are all different and I love them all to death," Hanna said. "I think this group would be a nice addition to CHS for those students that feel like they don't have anybody to talk to or peers they can go to and feel comfortable with.</span>

<span>"When I was in high school, there used to be signs in teachers' doorways - the gay/lesbian alliance sign - and if you needed to talk to somebody, you would talk to that teacher because of that sign on the door."</span>

<span>The Fogersons' input centered mostly on an alleged bullying incident that reportedly occurred on Aug. 24 during homeroom at CHS. On the day in question, a petition was being passed around for students to sign to show they supported the new group.</span>

<span>Lake Fogerson refused to sign it and told the board he received hate speech as a result.</span>

<span>"I refused to sign this position and was called a 'fag-hater' and a 'homophobe' by my classmates," he said, reading from a prepared statement. "My parents and I already talked to (CHS principal) Dr. (Sarah) Gass about specific students who did use hate speech to demean me and my views.</span>

<span>"Bullying against anyone, black, white, gay, straight, is never appropriate and is inexcusable."</span>

<span>Wagner said she was unaware of any bullying or problems with the petition to start DA.</span>

<span>"It was regrettable and was not done by myself or any student who is affiliated with the petition," she said. "I don't tolerate bullying in any form because of your sexual orientation or religious beliefs.</span>

<span>"To my knowledge, I thought I was going about things in the proper way and I was not aware I was not following procedure. I apologize for that if I did anything wrong."</span>

<span>Lake Fogerson said the students who started the petition had put their fellow classmates "who do not support their lifestyle choice squarely in the crosshairs of intolerance."</span>

<span>"My core values prevent me from hating anyone," he said. "My traditional values have made me a target. My personal values put me at risk of name-calling, bullying and a victim of intolerance."</span>

<span>Mike Fogerson said he and his wife were shocked upon hearing of the incident and gave several reasons to that reaction - including that it was presented during homeroom "in a place where education and instruction should of had the rule of the day."</span>

<span>"As Lake's parents, his mother and I were not notified that an issue...of the matter of homosexuality or transgenderism was going to be presented to him by other students," he said. "Had we been notified, Lake would have been opted out of that particular class."</span>

<span>Mike Fogerson later asked that the board, when considering approval of DA, take into consideration two concerns.</span>

<span>"Intolerance and bullying is not permitted or to be shown to any student, even to those who embrace the traditional view of marriage, biblical sexuality (and) birth-assigned gender," he said. "Intolerance in no way, bullying in no way, will be accepted and discipline will be given swiftly."</span>

<span>His second concern was that due to maturity and sensitivity issues of the proposed group, "and potential for emotional and spiritual injury," that participants receive prior parental approval.</span>

<span>"As educators and administrators, these are your students," Fogerson said. "To us, these are our sons and our daughters. Diversity by definition means 'division.' Two different types, separation.</span>

<span>"An antonym for diversity is 'union.' Shouting about what separates us and divides us is seldom as powerful as growing together in unity."</span>

<span>The board took no action on the proposal, with President Mitch Hammel calling it a "sticky situation."</span>

<span>"We'll take the matter into consideration and go from there," he said.</span>

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