When the word “gay” entered adolescent vernacular as a synonym for “stupid” or “ill-advised,” I equated it to using the word “retarded” in the same context. It bothered me. There was an incident this past winter with two of my friends, one gay and the other straight. One friend called a situation “gay,” and our friend quickly corrected his faux pas.
One friend thought that because the word was already “accepted” in our daily vocabulary, his using the word was not an indication of bigotry or homophobia. However well-intentioned his comment, this passive homophobia reflects a larger trend in much of the United States.
Homophobia in the South is not veiled. I’ve heard of gay teachers hiding their identity for years for fear of being publicly humiliated by their students. It’s happened at my school, and the fact that other teachers don’t respond to these “teachable moments” says more about out educational system than our low test scores. Administrators should speak up and address these problems rather than sweeping them under the rug until we forget about it.
But the other day, young Mr. Pepper decided to address this problem head on. I had my Spanish tests graded, and luckily a large percentage of them were over a B. I saw two of my students wandering in the library, and I decided to play a little prank on them. As two of my best students (both have over a 95%, and both got 100% on this test), I thought it would be funny to pretend that they had not earned a good grade on my test.
I approached them both and asked, with stern teacher eyes, “What do you think you can do next time to prepare for my test?” Flustered, they both spat out, “Study the map, Mr. Pepper! Uh…make flashcards for our vocabulary.” I smiled and handed them their tests, and they both sighed when they say the A+ circled in red on the answer sheet.
“Mr. Pepper,” responded one girl. “Man, that was gay.”
I paused, flabbergasted that a student would dare make that mistake to a teacher. Obviously, it didn’t phase her, probably because other teachers don’t react to it.
“I’m sorry, what was that?” I gave her an opportunity to recognize the error of her ways.
“That’s just gay, Mr. Pepper. Don’t trip us out like that.”
I said in a stern yet understanding tone that although the word “gay” has multiple meanings, she had used it in the wrong context. “It’s offensive to use the word ‘gay’ in a context that means ‘stupid’ or ‘dumb.’”
The student inquired, “That offends you, Mr. Pepper?”
Yes, I told her, it should be offensive to everyone, because it takes a person’s identity and transforms it into a pejorative.
“Is it because you’re gay, Mr. Pepper?”
This little senior high schooler is now interrogating me about my personal identity. I quickly responded, “No, but that doesn’t really matter.”
The rumors spread to other kids. Now, my fate hangs in a homophobic high school limbo where the word “f-g” and “homo” are thrown around as often as the N-word. Teachable moments can turn into nightmares if you don’t have a plan of attack.
imapepper87
What would your plan of attack have been, if you’d had one? I’m facing the same situation and it’s becoming something my kids bring up daily.