Gay-Straight Alliance approved after student rally

Chanting “G-S-A! G-S-A!,” about 200 Valley Stream South High School students showed their support for a Gay-Straight Alliance chapter at an after-school rally on Jan. 20.

Students packed Jedwood Place, just off school grounds, calling on administrators to allow the creation of the organization. As reported in last week’s Herald, a group of seniors claimed that Principal Maureen Henry not only denied the club, but did not think there was a problem with gay students being bullied. The ralliers held hand-made signs with slogans such as “G.S.A. all the way,” “Being gay is not a choice but homophobia is,” and “Straight but I don’t discriminate.”

David Kilmnick, the chief executive officer of Long Island Gay and Lesbian Youth (LIGALY), called on school and district administrators to allow the club. Kilmnick said that seniors Joseph Kofler and Kelly Egan have been fighting for four months to start a Gay-Straight Alliance at the school. He commended the pair for their advocacy and said they are the kind of leaders that today’s youth need.

Additionally, Kilmnick called some of Henry’s remarks to students “discriminatory and offensive,” referring to conversations Kofler and Egan had with Henry about the need for the club.

Samantha Fredrickson, director of the Nassau Civil Liberties Union, said that a rally should not be necessary to convince school administrators that starting a Gay-Straight Alliance is “the right thing to do.” Fredrickson added that the school district could face legal challenges if it does not allow the club. “The courts have made it very clear that schools cannot reject a Gay-Straight Alliance club because they don’t like it,” she said.

However, school officials questioned the need for the demonstration, saying that the club had been approved. The first meeting was held that afternoon, while the rally was in progress, according to interim Superintendent Dr. Richard Marsh. He said that he spoke to Henry that evening, and she reported that about 80 students turned out for the meeting.

“I was really surprised they had the rally even though the club was approved,” Marsh said. “The club is up and running.”

But Kilmnick had a different take. He said that if the club was approved and a first meeting was held, the students would have been there.

Kofler said there was a gay and lesbian club that met that afternoon, but it wasn’t a Gay-Straight Alliance. However, Kofler and other club organizers met with Marsh this week and said that a Gay-Straight Alliance was officially approved and will begin meeting on Thursdays.

Michelle Feltington, a junior, was one of many students who joined the rally. Holding a sign that read “GSA makes schools safe,” Feltington said she supported creation of the club because students are entitled to free speech and free expression.

She said that the rally should show school administrators that the student body is behind the club. “I feel this will make a difference,” Feltington said.

Senior Luca Negrino said he was happy to come out and show his support. He is friends with Egan, one of the students leading the push to start the club. “I’m straight,” he said, “but we’re all human, so we should be out here supporting each other.”

The club, organizers said, will be open to all students, gay or straight. Gay-Straight Alliances are school clubs that welcome gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender students and their friends, allies and faculty, according to information from LIGALY. The organization has helped to establish more than 90 chapters at high schools across Long Island.

Kilmnick said that Kofler, Egan and other South High students who support the formation of a club have LIGALY’s full support. “They’re trying to do something positive,” he said. “It’s about creating education, awareness and support.”

Egan and Kofler said they were both very pleased, and surprised, that nearly 20 percent of the student body turned out for the rally. And many students who didn’t attend shouted words of encouragement as they walked or drove by on their way home from school. “It’s great that we have this support from our fellow peers,” Egan said.

Marsh said that Henry had supported a Gay-Straight Alliance two years ago, but only a few students had joined and it disbanded after they graduated. He said it is unusual for new clubs to start up in the middle of the year, which is why, this time around, Henry had suggested that the students join forces with the World of Differences Club, which has ideals that parallel those of the Gay-Straight Alliance.

“I understand that they wanted their own identity,” Marsh said of deciding to approve the Gay-Straight Alliance after a meeting with the principal. “I felt it’s important, and Ms. Henry agreed with me. Even though it’s in the middle of the year, which is unusual to start a club, I said let’s do it.”