Really flummoxed by something

[teenagebambam]

I am a college performance teacher. I was directing a show and found out that, during one of the performances, two students were in the audience, having a conversation on Twitter, about the show and the performers.

One of the students (an African American female, which may be pertinent later) made what I considered a derogatory statement about one of the performers' sexuality ( the performer is a gay male).

Aside from taking issue with the fact of Twittering during the performance, I took issue with the nature of the comments, which were made about someone who is this girl's colleague and, at least outwardly, friend. I tried to explain that it was tantamount to insulting someone's gender, or race. I talked until I was blue in the face. While she eventually admitted that Twittering during the performance was wrong, she adamantly refused to back down, apologize, or even acknowledge that her comments might be offensive.

I'm really, just not sure what to make of it. This is not a school or department where there has been any hint of homophobia (I am openly gay, my partner also teaches there, the new choir teacher is openly gay, and HIS partner is teaching some classes, there are many out gay students- I could go on and on)

I guess I chalk this up to this one student being willfully unenlightened?

[eilen]

1. She posted something publicly insulting because of a student's

sexual orientation?

I think that student can make a complaint to the Office of Equality or to the Administration for a violation of antidiscrimination policy


Students have the right not to be discriminated against by any agent or organization of Syracuse University for reasons of age, creed, ethnic or national origin, gender, disability, marital status, political or social affiliation, race, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, or gender expression. In their individual roles as members of student organizations, students have the responsibility not to discriminate against others.

Or violation of code of student conduct:

"Harassment, whether physical or verbal, oral or written, which is beyond the bounds of protected free speech, directed at a specific individual(s), easily construed as "fighting words," and likely to cause an immediate breach of the peace."

These are policies at Syracuse University. Students and likely faculty there can report an incident to the Office of Judicial Affairs.
https://publicdocs.maxient.com/incidentreport.php?SyracuseUniv

I can think of some incidents in which some derogatory/mocking comments were posted about some professors on Facebook and the students were disciplined.
http://thefire.org/article/6855.html
http://www.syracuse.com/news/index.ssf/2010/02/facebook_page_denounces_north.html

Although these were cases in which students were targeting teachers, I think the premise of the issue remains the same.
Your students, no matter what their orientation, race, or gender have a right to feel safe in the learning environment and not subject to publicly posted derogatory comments during instruction time.

[teenagebambam]

2. I hadn't thought about the legal ramifications

until recently. Had I thought of it at the time, I might have come down harder on the student and made her quake in her boots a little more.

The student who was the target of the comments doesn't seem to be offended in the least (which is also troubling, in a different sort of way)

However, in the meantime, the school newspaper has somehow gotten hold of the story (not from me)and is using it as the basis of an article on the "impact of social networking". I and my colleagues who are being interviewed for the story are using it as an opportunity to stress the possible legal ramifications of what one says in print.

[MorningGlow]

3. Lots of stories like this lately

One click to disaster: Ever moaned about work on Facebook? Or joked about your boss? It could end in a P45...

When teacher Sonya McNally posted a throwaway comment about her rowdy 12-year-old pupils on Facebook, little did she realise it would come back to haunt her.

The message, in reply to a colleague’s niggle about children at her school, seemed innocuous enough: ‘By the way, 8G1 are just as bad as 8G2. LOL (laugh out loud),’ she joked sympathetically.

Within a few weeks, however, 37-year-old Sonya’s world had been turned upside down. She was suspended from her job at Humberston Comprehensive School after another member of staff reported her, and the comment started a chain of events that culminated in the Information Technology teacher being sacked from the job she loved.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-1372994/Moaning-joking-Facebook-work-end-P45.html

Students should learn that there is no such thing as privacy on a social networking site, and what you post definitely can bite you in the ass.

Still, it's completely disturbing that she didn't see the problem insulting her fellow student (and, as you said, her colleague in a performing arts program, where everyone should support one another), Twitter or not...

[OneGrassRoot]

4. Did the performer in question take offense?

I ask that because, as you know, my daughter is in theatre and most of her best friends are openly gay young men.

The things they say to one another on FB and Twitter and such are things I find offensive, but it's how they banter with one another.

You mentioned that the Twitter-er is at least outwardly a friend of the performer in question. Do you think it's one of those situations where those within a group can say things to one another that outsiders (including teachers) would find offensive, but within the group it isn't?

I know that's a touchy subject...fearing that others reading such posts and tweets may take offense, even if the performer in question didn't. Not sure how to handle that, since these kids DO take offense when an outsider -- someone not in their group -- posts things that are blatantly homophobic.

:shrug:

[teenagebambam]

5. No, he didn't....

...which is another issue entirely.

But knowing both kids pretty well (the offender is my voice student, so I see her at least an hour a week one-on-one) and the offendee is my partner's voice student, and our dog/house-sitter) I know that the offender has a history of saying less-than-generous things about her colleagues - it's just that usually it's not done in such a public way. I really DON'T think she meant to be disparaging about his sexuality, but rather about his performance skills - it's just bothersome that she refuses to accept the possibility that her comments could be interpreted that way.

[OneGrassRoot]

6. No doubt....

Gotcha. I missed the boat about her slamming his performance skills. NOT cool.

And, as you said, it's also not okay to be tweeting or FBing in the middle of it.

:(

[rosesaylavee]

7. Willfully unenlightened is what this is.

Given what little experience I have had with anti-prejudice/bigotry trainings, I think unless this becomes a legal matter, the best course of action is to just move on. She may 'hear' it at some later date as well as the young man who was the focus of the remarks. Some people - and I include myself as it's amazing what reflections of my background and experience have passed unexamined from my mouth since I started working on this stuff 15 years ago - some people just aren't ready to accept their own bigoted opinions. I don't care if they are members of a socially entitled or socially maligned group - not one group has the corner on bigotry.

Some of the best information and experiences I have discovered in this area were related to working with the National Coalition Building Institutes - they are international and have several state chapters here in the US. The founder has worked with the Israeli/Palestinian conflict, the LA riots and locally here, their program is preferred in Skokie over the Jewish Defense League's programs.

You need to find some healing in all this... I hear your pain in your words ... you and your partner are setting a wonderful example I am sure. But know that you are only two against a societal backdrop that is communicating a lot of hateful noise. They are babies yet. If you run into them when they get over 30 and they are still uninformed about all this, then start to worry.

Hugs to you my friend!

[teenagebambam]

8. Thanks

I'm sort of in awe of the offendee's attitude towards all this: It's "I AM gay and effeminate, why would I be offended at someone calling me that?" Maybe it's a generational thing?

Anyway, I had pretty much put it past me, and then the newspaper started calling wanting an interview. SOMEBODY'S talking about it and it wasn't me!

[OneGrassRoot]

9. Wow, you have yourself one of those proverbial teachable moments...

I have no doubt you'll handle this brilliantly. There's something powerful afoot with this.

:yourock:

:hug:

[SCarrington Smith]

10. The student was certainly insensitive

While derogatory comments are always wrong, but can be somewhat tolerated from very young children, at the age I assume she is, they are not acceptable. Whether she was trying to undermine his skills as an actor, or she was really closed minded enough to spew unkind comments about the guy's sexuality, her approach is wrong on all fronts. That said, you can't unfortunately control someone else's mind or behavior at all times, but you can determine what will affect you and to what degree. My mom used to always tell me and my sister that the people who really get under one's skin are the real teachers, and they have the ability to bring to the surface feelings we might not have dealt with completely. I used to always respond that it is not true, but if I look back at different situations in my own life when someone has had the power to really ruffle my feathers and trigger an emotional flow, many of those times the issues that were raised were somewhat of a sore within myself I didn't want to look at. The student who didn't take offense to it is to be admired -- regardless of what comes at him externally, he is comfortable enough within himself that he doesn't allow it to bother him. Kudos to him! :-)