I was alerted by this news story that I stumbled across that there is a new children's book out there. It's called Wild Elephant by Janice Graham. It's a book to teach parents how to influence their kid's sexuality. There are chapters to inform the parents how to influence their kids sexuality and there are chapters to read to your kids when they are 10 years old.
I'm breathing deeply as I write this.
As you may suspect, Janice Graham is the Christian mother of a young man who is gay. Apparently, this has created a disconnect for Janice between her love of her son and her religious bias. She is attempting to bridge this gap by encouraging Christian parents to engage in crossing boundaries into their children's psyche and begin tinkering around with their nascent sexuality.
No word on the suffering I can only guess this rejection is causing for her son.
The article I read was fairly balanced in it's reporting. It led with a description of the book and it's goal. Then they interviewed a child psychologist who felt the book was a bad idea. Unfortunately though, he advanced the theory that a child can grow up to make a lifestyle choice. I think this is a place where we still need to do a lot of work. This idea that being glbt is a choice is something that is being peddled by the fundamentalists, and lots of straight people who have no clue how difficult it is to come out in a climate that is full of unchallenged gay bashing think it is reasonable to assume that being gay is a choice. And you know, if it is a choice then this whole thing about civil rights just doesn't ring true.
Just last night I talked to the mother of questioning young man who told that no matter what a person chooses about their sexuality they should have rights. Now I know she is stretching and growing, and I know psychologically emerging from the brainwashing that we all receive about teh gay is a process. But I have personal experience in this area and I have talked to a lot of people and the only choice I see going on is whether we are going to be brave and honest enough to live our life openly because choosing whether we are attracted to opposite sex people or same sex people is not something that is open to people.
The next bit of the article quoted a gay man who suggested that it sounded like brainwashing and that it was inappropriate to be talking to kids about their sexuality. A voice of reason, and I'm glad that the article found this man to quote.
Then they closed with a quote presumably from a Christian woman who worries that our world is too focused on making it acceptable for homosexuality.
This is what the enlightened world is fighting. And why are we fighting? Because well meaning if ignorant people like this are raising children who will eventually realize that the reason they have never fit in is because they are gay. These kids will have to deal with coming out and part of that will be at least the temporary rejection by their family. With luck, the family will slowly realize that they have been influenced if not brainwashed by their religion to demonize and dehumanize a group of people that they know nothing about. They will slowly learn what the truth is, that glbt folk are just like everyone else and not (surprisingly!) possessed by the devil.
I'm writing to ask everyone to ENGAGE in this fight. Talk to people about the fact that being glbt isn't a choice. Do you live in a public school district? (Hint: YES!) Contact them and ask what their anti-bullying policy is. If they don't have one you can gather a few templates of policies from online and work with either the district administration or the PTA to implement a policy in your district. The Southern Poverty Law Center advocates this involvement by all of us, whether we have kids in the district or not.
Incidentally, this wrong headed and dangerous book is being published by Tidal Wave Books. According to the article, Walmart is selling the book in their stores in the Intermountain West.