Gay? Disabled? Has the NJ legislature got a bill for you
A bill is probably going to be signed by Governor Phil Murphy that would require middle and high school New Jersey students to “adopt instructional materials that accurately portray political, economic, and social contributions of persons with disabilities and lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people.”
I guess this means Stephen Hawking (ALS) has never been discussed in science class, Franklin Delano Roosevelt (paralyzed from polio) skipped over in history, and Beethoven (deaf) washed out of music.
And of course no mention in history of Alexander the Great (totally gay), Abraham Lincoln (probably gay), Sally Ride (gay), Michelangelo (gay) … there are a lot of famous gay people. I could fill up 20 columns doing this.
So already, we’ve got problems. It’s not like we’re not covering the lives of gay and/or disabled people.
But I’ve got more problems. Let’s explore, shall we?
PROBLEM #1: Lumping gay and disabled people into the same bill. It’s like mandating coursework on “native Americans” along with “guys who for some reason insist on driving with their right arm draped over the top of the passenger seat.” If I were gay or disabled, I’d be rather displeased.
PROBLEM #2: Kids today couldn’t care less. Seriously. It’s not like it was when I was in high school. Back then. the idea of “gay” was not something generally discussed. Today? Not like that. Being gay, or knowing a gay person, is about as weird as insisting to continue to root for the Mets. Actually, not true: Continuing to be a Mets fan is a lot weirder.
And I’ve seen more kids go out of their way to help and be kind to disabled kids - trust me on this one, as I have a disabled kid - then I ever have of kids being asshats about it. Come to think of it, I’ve never seen a kid be an asshat about it since I’ve been a parent. Thirty years ago? Sure. But not today.
These are good things. Gay people and disabled people and Mets fans and guys that drape their arms over the passenger seat are all pretty much in the same boat, especially in the eyes of the younger generation.
PROBLEM #3: By the time we’re done, every class is a protected class and before you know it I’ll be successfully suing the state to include instruction on “large nosed Jewish writers.”
PROBLEM #4: I don’t selfidentify as a “large-nosed Jewish writer.” I also don’t self-identify as “large-nosed,” “Jewish,” or “writer.” For that matter, I don’t self-identify as a “heterosexual” or an “able-bodied person.” I mean, I don’t really self-identify at all outside of “Um, I’m Jeff,” and I’ll bet the vast majority of people feel the same way I do. And while it’s all well and good there have been famous disabled people, and famous gay people, I’d bet most of them would much rather be remembered for what they accomplished, not for whatever label someone thrust upon them.
PROBLEM #5: By doing stuff like this, we’re making everyone the “other.” You want to do some classwork on disabled rights? Have at it. Gay rights? Go nuts. But to start pulling people apart into different groupings does no one any favors. Stephen Hawking was Stephen Hawking because he was brilliant; having ALS had nothing to do with it. Alexander the Great was … well, he was “great” because he was an all-powerful king, not because he liked to bump uglies with Joe over there. Having ALS and being gay didn’t make these people who they were; they were just part of who they were.
Listen: I’m all for inclusion. It’s cool to learn about all different types of people. But when it comes to public school curriculum, the last thing we need to do is separate people into groups based on whether or not they were gay or disabled, unless being gay or disabled was germane to who they were in the first place.