IN MEMORY OF LAWRENCE KING - A CHALLENGE

This past weekend marked the second anniversary of the murder of teenage student Lawrence King. He was killed at his own school after being bullied and harassed for being openly and unashamedly Gay amongst his peers for some time. Clearly, he was offered no effective support or protection despite all the red flags that were evident before his life was ended. All young people have a right to safety and effective support in our schools and high schools. Lawrence's death is tragic and completely unacceptable. It also presents us with an opportunity to examine what is wrong in our own LGBT communities as well as what is lacking in terms of safety precautions in our schools. It is easy to point fingers at the failings in our school systems to address homophobia effectively.

However, there is another issue that is not so easy to discuss and acknowledge amongst ourselves. I am speaking specifically about the sexism and homophobia that exist within our own LGBT communities that allow young people like Lawrence King to get thrown to the wolves. Right after his murder, the editorials started popping up everywhere suggesting that part of what caused Lawrence King to get killed was perhaps our own LGBT community's trend to support LGBT visibility. The implications that these editorials were making was that young Lawrence had perhaps made himself more of a "target" by being "out" and flamboyantly Gay amongst his peers at school. This way of thinking suggests that LGBTQ youth like Lawrence are often victimized by our own community's support of everyone's right to be out and proud at any age. A great majority of these comments were written and published by and for members of our own LGBT communities.

My response to these comments is that LGBTQ youth like Lawrence King will continue to be bullied and killed as long as we preserve such homophobic and sexist thinking within our own communities. Students who are picked on for being "different" have always been tormented and brutalized. It didn't take Gay Liberation to single them out, and there will always be those young people and adults who cannot or choose not to "blend" with their peers or the mainstream. Protection, the right to safety, and the right to respect at school or in the workplace should not be contingent on which young men are the most "butch" acting and which young women appear the most "feminine." This type of rationalization for the killing of young people like Lawrence King is a slap in the face to countless Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender youth who do not, or cannot, adjust their appearances or behaviors to fit heterosexist stereotypes of conventional masculine and feminine "norms." Until we confront the hatred of all things "feminine" that allow our own communities to disown Drag Queens, Transgender people, or others who dare to be different, the killings will not stop.

I was appalled by the editorials that followed Lawrence King's murder that suggested that he had been encouraged to be a target by believing that he had the right to be as different as he chose to be at school. This message is a throwback to embracing closeted behavior as a remedy for homophobic attacks. That would produce another kind of death. It is the death that comes from denying the true spirit of any individual to flourish and grow naturally without being shamed or denied the love that every individual deserves.

So, in honor of the spirit that young individuals like Lawrence King revealed, I challenge our own communities to stop shaming those who dare to be different. It's about saving lives, and it's about time.
Joe Mannetti


In Honor of Lawrence King,
Joe Mannetti

GSA Network News
February 17, 2010

Greetings!

In this edition of GSA Network News, we share words and pictures from the candlelight vigil honoring Lawrence King on February 12. We are so thankful for the youth leaders who organized the event, and for all GSA activists who are fighting to make our schools safer.

We also announce our upcoming events for GSA youth across the state. Enjoy!

In solidarity,
GSA Network

NETWORK NEWS HIGHLIGHT:
Youth Keep Lawrence King's Memory Alive

On February 12, 2010, the second anniversary of the shooting of Lawrence King, over 40 GSA activists and allies from throughout Southern California gathered at Los Angeles City Hall to hold a candlelight vigil in memory of Lawrence King and share their stories of harassment and bullying, as well as to call for an end to the violence in our schools. The vigil was organized by Isaiah Baiseri (Glendora High), Glenna Colerider-Krugh (South Pasadena High), Charisse Delk (Arrow High), JT Mendoza (Santa Susana High), Marissa Minnick (Torrey Pines High), Giuliana Pe Benito (Westlake Hig), Pablo Ramirez (Lincoln High), and A. Robin (Granada Hills High), all members of GSA Network's Southern California Youth Council. The vigil featured youth speakers as well as teacher allies.

We asked some youth who attended why they were at the vigil and what Lawrence King meant to them. This is what they shared:

"With sass and charisma, Lawrence King stood taller than many LGBTQ individuals have ever done so in the generations that have gone by. We gathered to mourn, to pay tribute, to lend our hearts to brothers and sisters, but most importantly, to stress an awareness that the LGBTQ community stands together, united and strong with hope and pride."
- King Chan, Reid High

"I am here to listen to the story of Lawrence's life. He touched so many people.
- Branne Demongigny, Whitcomb High

"I'm here because I support the LGBT Community 100%! I was so sad about Lawrence's death. He will never be forgotten."
- Sonia Rivera, Lincoln High

"I came to bring awareness about harassment and violence and to increase my knowledge about this increasingly powerful and strong community."
- Tiffany Tan, Lincoln High

"Tonight, we were all as one, joining together to express who we truly are with no hate and discrimination. We promoted acceptance for everyone tonight."
- Faith Tabayoyong, Hoover High

"I came in remembrance of a brave human being, and because all of these amazing youth inspire me."
- Diana Bui, community member

"Lawrence's death was wrong. No one deserves to die for being who they were born to be. That is what tonight is about."
- Billie Barragan, Hawthorne Math and Science Academy

"Why does it take someone's death to make the world lift a finger against the violence in our schools that we live through everyday?"
- Manuel Cuevas, Belmont High

"The Vigil allowed me to look back at Lawrence King's struggles and realize that even though his death sparked some change, we still have a long way to go."
- Marissa Minnick, Torrey Pines High
LAWRENCE KING