Kimberly Shappley's five year old trans daughter Kai starts school on August 22, and Shappley appeared at the PISD school board meeting on Tuesday to appeal once again to PISD trustees.
The subject wasn't on their board meeting agenda, but Shappley was trying once again to get the district in Houston's booming southern suburbs to wake up and start treating transgender kids not as people to gleefully demonize but with the dignity and respect they deserve just like every other kid that is in the boundaries of their school district.
The subject wasn't on their board meeting agenda, but Shappley was trying once again to get the district in Houston's booming southern suburbs to wake up and start treating transgender kids not as people to gleefully demonize but with the dignity and respect they deserve just like every other kid that is in the boundaries of their school district.
Looks like unfortunately at first glance that plea fell on deaf ears, and they are following the lead of their transphobic superintendent Dr. James Kelly.Kelly back in May made a transphobic comment criticizing the Dear Colleague letter that alarmed Shappley, the Houston area trans community and allies living in PISD and the Houston area.
Shappley has been told by PISD officials that when Kai begins kindergarten in a few weeks, that she will have to either use the boys bathroom or one in the nurses office. It is a policy that runs counter to the DOE/DOJ Dear Colleague letter, that encourages districts to allow trans students to use the bathrooms that match their outward gender presentation .
It also violates Kai's civil and human rights.
Shappley said as she addressed the PISD board on Tuesday that the PISD policies create an intolerant atmosphere that promotes bullying and could put her daughter's life at risk.
"You are increasing the risk of suicide among these children. "I am the mom of a little girl who I want to live." Shappley said to the board. "I'm fighting for her happiness. I'm fighting for her freedom."
Since the topic wasn't on the PISD board meeting agenda, the trustees declined to address Shappley's comments either at Tuesday's board meeting or in the media.
But it's increasingly clear that the Pearland ISD, despite their rhetoric that they care about the welfare of all their students, doesn't care about the happiness, lives, freedom and welfare of its transgender students.
They are hell bent on being trans human rights oppressors and unfortunately are willing to continue violating Title VII and Title IX at the behest of bad advice from our indicted Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton. PISD probably won't care about the human rights of Kai and other trans kids in their district until they lose a federal human rights lawsuit.
And that's sad because PISD should be embracing Kai and doing what they can to educate her. Instead they are taking the path of gleefully oppressing Kai and greasing the skids for her cisgender classmates and adults who should know better at her elementary school to bully her.
No comments:
Post a Comment