Speakers spar over school club

With references to pedophilia and predators, Alfred Kinsey and Adolph Hitler, local Republicans and educators had a spirited exchange Friday morning about a new Gay-Straight Alliance student club in Coeur d’Alene.

The North Idaho Pachyderm Club invited Lake City High School’s principal and the advisers for the student club to speak at its monthly meeting.

From the perspective of the school, the Gay-Straight Alliance offers a safe and tolerant atmosphere for homosexual students. The club met all guidelines required by the school and does not pose substantial disruption to the educational process – the only legal basis upon which the school could prevent or disband a student club, Principal John Brumley said.

Many in the audience, including some who are not members of the Republican group, said homosexuality is an immoral and detrimental lifestyle and that schools should not promote or encourage it.

If the community were to block school levies until the club disbanded, would that constitute a disruption to the educational process, Phil Thompson asked the speakers. After the meeting, Thompson added, “I’m not promoting that stance right now,” referring to the community action, “but it’s a viable stance.”

Mark Woolcott, an English teacher and adviser for the student group, said one of the tenets of the federal No Child Left Behind law is to address at-risk students. Gay, lesbian and bisexual students are an at-risk population, Woolcott said, because they face verbal and physical harassment. He cited national statistics that these students are 28 percent more likely to drop out of school because of that abuse, and two to three times more likely to attempt suicide.

“If this was any other minority group, would that be allowed?” Woolcott said.

Alfred Kinsey, the famous researcher of human sexuality, suggested that one in 10 people is not strictly heterosexual, Woolcott said. Statistically, that means about 150 students at the high school are gay, lesbian or bisexual, he added, making it the largest minority group within the school.

The Rev. Paul Van Noy of the Candlelight Christian Fellowship church in Hayden countered that homosexuals, in his view, are more prone to suicide because they are miserable with their lifestyle. The student club is making students feel more comfortable with a lifestyle that is detrimental to them, Van Noy said, drawing applause with his remarks. The creation of the club is akin to giving students drugs, he added.

Mike Oliver, with the Constitution Party of Idaho, went a step further. “You’re creating a breeding ground for pedophilia,” Oliver said, also garnering applause. He accused school officials of confusing children in their charge and being like Hitler’s followers by citing the need to obey law and precedent.

“This is horrendous,” he said. “This is horrendous.”

Brumley said he and Woolcott did not attend the meeting intending to change anyone’s mind on homosexuality. What they did hope to do was clarify the club’s mission and legal issues surrounding it. They also dispelled a rumor that the club was planning a trip to a gay pride parade.

Just as North Idaho residents battled intolerance espoused by the Aryan Nations, it also should protect the human dignity of these students, Brumley said. “No one, regardless of their lifestyle, should be mistreated, harassed, abused.”

U.S. Army Maj. Mark Altman echoed those sentiments. He was given a warm welcome at the beginning of the event, having just returned from serving in Iraq. During the debate, Altman added to Woolcott’s list of facts that the latest scientific research shows a biological basis for homosexuality.

Brumley replied that would be a tough argument to make at the podium, because audience members think people choose to be homosexual.

Altman conceded, adding that at least while the issue is in debate, people should err on the side of tolerance and understanding.