There was John, who happened to use a wheelchair and had meager control of his motor skills.
Only later did I learn that he was brilliant, despite his condition.
No one reached out to help him. Many derided him and pantomimed — caricatured is closer to the mark — his movements and mannerisms.
I wonder what became of Tom and John and so many others who faced similar challenges and were ridiculed for them. I hope the unrelenting abuse they were subjected to didn’t scar them too deeply or hamper them psychologically.
Surely, there were gay and lesbian students in our midst. But back in the early 1980s, none of them even thought of going public with their sexual orientation, which made it a non-issue on campus.
Times have changed.
The ACLU this week sued the Newport-Mesa Unified School District and Corona del Mar High School, claiming that “homophobic slurs are routinely used with impunity” and students were harassed and called names for voicing opposition to Proposition 8, California’s anti-gay marriage ballot.
The suit centers on a plaintiff who, to protect her, goes by the name “Mary” in legal circles.
The lawsuit claims three male students posted a video on the social network site Facebook allegedly discussing raping Mary in the back of a pickup truck and killing her.
The lawsuit comes on the heels of a controversy surrounding the school play “Rent.” Drama teacher Ron Martin claimed that Principal Fal Asrani canceled the production over portrayals of homosexuality.
So then, what exactly is the school’s, and district’s, obligation?
