School district faces backlash for requiring students to participate in LGBT 'coming out' exercise

Michie · Feb 5, 2025

District violated state law on parental notification, attorneys say

A California school district is facing backlash after a teacher allegedly forced students to role-play in an LGBT “coming out” exercise inspired by a nationally recognized activist group.

Attorneys for parents in the Vista Unified School District (VUSD) in San Diego say the district violated their legal rights in a gender ideology activity during a freshman class at Rancho Buena Vista High School (RBVHS), where students were reportedly required to participate in a role-playing exercise called "Coming Out Stars."

The activity, adapted from the LGBT activist group The Trevor Project, instructed students to imagine “each of you is now gay or lesbian, and you are about to begin your coming out process.”

Continued below.

School district faces backlash for requiring students to participate in LGBT 'coming out' exercise

A California school district is facing backlash after a teacher allegedly forced students to role-play in an LGBT coming out exercise inspired by a nationally recognized activist group

www.christianpost.com

iarwain · Feb 5, 2025

Figures California would be involved in nutty stuff like this. They call the program "Coming Out Stars". See, they want to portray LGBTQ people as "stars". I've said all along the left wing agenda is to promote and recruit a new generation of LGBTQs. They offer rewards for being non-heterosexual/non-binary.

PloverWing · Feb 5, 2025

I agree that this isn't a good exercise for a general class of high school students, for two reasons. 1) High school students are a captive audience, and they and their parents don't seem to have consented to the exercise beforehand. 2) The exercise isn't going to be useful unless the participants are already somewhat supportive of LGBTQ people.

The exercise (linked in the original post, https://www.thetrevorproject.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/75ea657f061737b608_6pm6ivozp.pdf , isn't about praising gay people as stars or giving them stars as a reward. The exercise is about building empathy for what gay people go through. The participant writes the names of various people and communities that are important to them (a friend, a family member, co-workers, etc.) on the five arms of a star, and then imagines what it's like to have that arm of the star ripped away because that person has rejected you. Again, the intent is to build empathy.

I don't know whether the exercise is a good one, as I've never participated in it. If a participant goes into the exercise feeling that gay people ought to be rejected from their communities, I doubt that a thought experiment with paper stars is going to change that. So, I think this is an exercise best used with people who want to understand their friends better; it's not something to spring on an unwilling audience.

RileyG · Feb 7, 2025

iarwain said:
Figures California would be involved in nutty stuff like this. They call the program "Coming Out Stars". See, they want to portray LGBTQ people as "stars". I've said all along the left wing agenda is to promote and recruit a new generation of LGBTQs. They offer rewards for being non-heterosexual/non-binary.

It’s nuts

Hazelelponi · Feb 7, 2025

PloverWing said:
I agree that this isn't a good exercise for a general class of high school students, for two reasons. 1) High school students are a captive audience, and they and their parents don't seem to have consented to the exercise beforehand. 2) The exercise isn't going to be useful unless the participants are already somewhat supportive of LGBTQ people.

The exercise (linked in the original post, https://www.thetrevorproject.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/75ea657f061737b608_6pm6ivozp.pdf , isn't about praising gay people as stars or giving them stars as a reward. The exercise is about building empathy for what gay people go through. The participant writes the names of various people and communities that are important to them (a friend, a family member, co-workers, etc.) on the five arms of a star, and then imagines what it's like to have that arm of the star ripped away because that person has rejected you. Again, the intent is to build empathy.

I don't know whether the exercise is a good one, as I've never participated in it. If a participant goes into the exercise feeling that gay people ought to be rejected from their communities, I doubt that a thought experiment with paper stars is going to change that. So, I think this is an exercise best used with people who want to understand their friends better; it's not something to spring on an unwilling audience.

We don't put people through exercises on what it's like to be rejected by friends and family when we come out as Christians. What it's like to lose your job over making Facebook posts that support the tenants of our faith, what it's like to lose scholarships, one's livelihood.

If we don't force people to go through exercises for what it's like to have our deeply held faith in real life then no one else should do it with their sex life.

PloverWing · Feb 7, 2025

Hazelelponi said:
We don't put people through exercises on what it's like to be rejected by friends and family when we come out as Christians.

I thought of that parallel, actually. I agree that a forced exercise isn't the solution to helping others understand what it means to be rejected by friends and family.

RamiC · Feb 8, 2025

PloverWing said:
So, I think this is an exercise best used with people who want to understand their friends better; it's not something to spring on an unwilling audience.

Your summary seems accurate enough, but if people want to understand their friends better, they can pray and listen when their friends speak.

There just is no need for this "exercise", it looks divisive, potentially hazardous, and otherwise worthless to me.

RamiC · Feb 8, 2025

Hazelelponi said:
In America at most don't they just say they can't condone the behavior? Most American or even British families really aren't going to completely cut off their LGBT family member.

Unless parents were included in the exercise it does not even touch the subject anyway.

I had a thing at school where I was told to tell my Dad what to do and what he should believe. I just downright said "No", fully aware that whatever trouble I got into at school fot it, there would be back up at home. Unless in some nation's law or education policy schoolteachers are supposed to educate parents, this should not be a thing they attempt to do.

stevevw · Feb 10, 2025

Michie said:
District violated state law on parental notification, attorneys say

A California school district is facing backlash after a teacher allegedly forced students to role-play in an LGBT “coming out” exercise inspired by a nationally recognized activist group.

Attorneys for parents in the Vista Unified School District (VUSD) in San Diego say the district violated their legal rights in a gender ideology activity during a freshman class at Rancho Buena Vista High School (RBVHS), where students were reportedly required to participate in a role-playing exercise called "Coming Out Stars."

The activity, adapted from the LGBT activist group The Trevor Project, instructed students to imagine “each of you is now gay or lesbian, and you are about to begin your coming out process.”

Continued below.

School district faces backlash for requiring students to participate in LGBT 'coming out' exercise

A California school district is facing backlash after a teacher allegedly forced students to role-play in an LGBT coming out exercise inspired by a nationally recognized activist group

www.christianpost.com

Hey I have a good idea. Why don't they have a coming out as Christains role play. Its only fair. What about a Muslim or Jewish coming out. They could have students cite bible verses and praise God. That will be fun.

THis really is indoctrination because if we swapped this for a Christain role play and had other books and signs all promoting Christain beliefs around the school like they do with LGBTIQ+ then people would complain it was pushing God and the bible.

RileyG · Feb 10, 2025

stevevw said:
Hey I have a good idea. Why don't they have a coming out as Christains role play. Its only fair. What about a Muslim or Jewish coming out. They could have students cite bible verses and praise God. That will be fun.

THis really is indoctrination because if we swapped this for a Christain role play and had other books and signs all promoting Christain beliefs around the school like they do with LGBTIQ+ then people would complain it was pushing God and the bible.

Well said.

LGBT+ can be taught at home. Not in schools.

stevevw · Feb 10, 2025

RileyG said:
Well said.

LGBT+ can be taught at home. Not in schools.

Whilst I agree I don't think LGBTQI+ can be ignored either. Its just that how we acknowledge this issue is the very issue. If we take the T trans and went by the Trans ideology then this would be seen as wrong by a growing number of people including national health regulators who are now pulling back on trans affirmative treatment.

So what do we do now. There are a number of comorbid problems with the trans community such as high mental health problems, trauma, ect. So we have to do something. It seems the best way forward is what most health professionals are now doing which is offering support through therapy and understanding. Like we do for all such issues. But not some radical ideology that will make things worse.

RileyG · Feb 11, 2025

stevevw said:
Whilst I agree I don't think LGBTQI+ can be ignored either. Its just that how we acknowledge this issue is the very issue. If we take the T trans and went by the Trans ideology then this would be seen as wrong by a growing number of people including national health regulators who are now pulling back on trans affirmative treatment.

So what do we do now. There are a number of comorbid problems with the trans community such as high mental health problems, trauma, ect. So we have to do something. It seems the best way forward is what most health professionals are now doing which is offering support through therapy and understanding. Like we do for all such issues. But not some radical ideology that will make things worse.

I don’t know. I think we will eventually look at the trans issue the way we see lobotomies today, ie not medical nor good.

School district faces backlash for requiring students to participate in LGBT 'coming out' exercise

Michie

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