Sunday, January 31, 2010

In Wheatland, they're tired of banner-talk

Wheatland residents are tired as hell and they're not going to take it any more.

Michael Van Cassell writes in today's Casper Star-Tribune:

In doughnut shops, breakfast joints and at the local high school, everyone knows about "the banner."

It's the talk of the town, and they're ready for it to end.


Readers of Wyoming newspapers and blogs (and listeners on KOCA-FM in Laramie) know all about the banning of the "No Place for Hate" banners in Wheatland.

Platte County Schools Superintendent Stuart Nelson is tired as hell about the whole fooferaw over the banner. He apparently has talked to every single person in Wheatland (all 3,300 of them) and every one of them supports the banning of the banners.

...the only negative comments he has heard about the board's decision are from out-of-towners, special-interest groups and former residents.

He said all the local parents he's spoken with have supported the board's decision.


Outside agitators!

Nelson told the school's principal to take down the "No Place for Hate" banners after he received calls from five parents. That's five parents out of how many? Apparently the Christian Right rules the roost in Wheatland.

Give credit to the students who continue to post "No Place for Hate" signs on their lockers and are lobbying the school board to reconsider their decision. One of the students interviewed in the CST article was wearing a "No Place for Hate" button.

What did Nelson learn from all this?

The board had not approved the banner. Nelson said he believes the board will filter programs more now.


What filter will the board be using? Four out of seven school board members used the anti-gay filter the last time around. I'll bet that filter still has plenty of good use in it.

1 comment:

Ben said...

I'd like to hear from ANY of the school board on what the process was, and what their process was in making whichever decision they made. I'd like to hear more from the teachers at WHS, and the principal, none of whom apparently heard any dissent from parents or students in the five months the banners had been up at WHS. I'd like to hear from the ACLU about what, if anything, they intend to do to protect the rights of WHS students...the gay and the straight and any inbetween. Great reporting from the local papers, especially Wheaterville and the editor at the Record Times who really took a risk speaking out against the banning of the banners.

If the "gay agenda" is to stop hate, let's have a little more of it.