The Piedmont Highlander

The Student News Site of Piedmont High School

The Piedmont Highlander

The Piedmont Highlander

Acceptance: we think we are further along than we are

It happens. Although high schools in liberal parts of America have promoted the acceptance of openly gay and transgender students, hate crimes are still inflicted on students around the country for being who they are.

On November 5 in Berkeley, California, an Oakland High School student decided to lite an agender student from Maybeck High School on fire in an AC Transit bus. Sasha Fleischman, the victim, suffered third degree burns and was hospitalized.

Immediately, a strong reaction from supporters of Fleischman enveloped the Bay Area. Donators from change.org raised money to pay for Fleishman’s hospital bills. Maybeck High students and teachers wore skirts in support of Fleischman, who was wearing a skirt when he was burned while asleep on a bus ride home.

But it still happens. It happened less than 30 miles away. And although we may think our small community is immune to the type of hate crimes that are inflicted upon individuals, even the smallest acts of discrimination can produce ramifications.

Discriminatory words have been so deeply ingrained into our everyday vocabulary that we have lost sight of the actual meaning of the words.

Using ‘gay’ as an adjective has transformed into an offensive synonym for something being ‘weird’. If someone wants to insult another, one of the first words that comes to mind should not be ‘faggot’ or ‘homo’. However, in society today sometimes it is.

Just because people say it does not mean it is right. For words as harmful as the ones invading teenagers’ vocabulary today, this statement speaks true. We should not be connotating choice of sexuality with a negative meaning. Even if we say something without the intention of hurting others, it is important to recognize the meaning and value behind the words we use.

Without realizing it, our words may create a hostile environment. It is not enough to say we are accepting, we must emulate it through our actions and conduct.

While what we say and do may not directly impact us, we have to recognize the effects it has on other people. We do not know how some of these harmful words will affect the person who just walked by in the hallway, or the person standing next to you in the lunch-line. But we know are part of a community and it is our job to ensure it is a safe and accepting environment for everyone.

 

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