Student speaks out against CoDE over Day of Silence

Snoqualmie Valley Record
March 19, 2008

By: Sarah Desroche

"I'm currently a student at Mount Si High School and I'm not quite sure what the Coalition to Defend Education, or CoDE, is talking about when they say that teachers are supposedly "touting personal agendas in class" or have "stated their opinion on controversial subjects."


"Last year I chose not to participate in Day of Silence and was never harassed by anyone that day. I don't ever remember classes being disrupted. I do agree, however, with Mrs. McCormick on that Day of Silence isn't supposed to be political at all. I see Day of Silence as a day of respect to all the students at Mount Si who are gay, or lesbian, or bisexual, or transgendered who are afraid to say that they are gay because of what other students might do or say, rather than a day of the school's gay community commanding attention to themselves."


Read the entire letter

New Public Service Announcement in Honour of Lawrence King

By Natalie Kalow
Executive Producer
Published Mar 13, 2008

In what seems to be the straw that broke the camel’s back, the homophobic attack that lead to Lawrence King’s death has sparked more action from celebrities in the US.

The 15-year-old was shot in the head at the E.O. Green School in Oxnard, California on February 12 - reportedly for being a homosexual.

Just days after her partner Ellen DeGeneres tearfully honored the gay teen on her show, actress Portia De Rossi has recently signed up to pay tribute to King in a new public service announcement TV ad.

De Rossi appears in a new PSA, which debuted on America's gay TV network Logo on Monday. De Rossi says during the announcement, "Imagine if wearing make-up and a dress could get you killed. For 15-year-old Lawrence King, that's just what happened."

She joins other celebrities on the 60 second PSA, such as Grey's Anatomy star T.R. Knight, Janet Jackson, Andre 3000 and Ashanti.

Hutcherson's Watchmen on the Walls named as a Hate Group

Active U.S. Hate Groups

The Southern Poverty Law Center counted 888 active hate groups in the United States in 2007. Only organizations and their chapters known to be active during 2007 are included.

All hate groups have beliefs or practices that attack or malign an entire class of people, typically for their immutable characteristics.

This list was compiled using hate group publications and websites, citizen and law enforcement reports, field sources and news reports.

Hate group activities can include criminal acts, marches, rallies, speeches, meetings, leafleting or publishing. Websites appearing to be merely the work of a single individual, rather than the publication of a group, are not included in this list. Listing here does not imply a group advocates or engages in violence or other criminal activity.

The Southern Law Poverty Center has added Ken Hutcherson's Watchmen on The Walls cult to their list of "Hate Groups"

That is quite a distinguished honor for Hutch! He shares his spotlight with the likes of the Aryan Nation, the Ku Klux Klan, skinheads and of course the Neo-Nazi's

CoDE should be proud to have such a high profile member on it's roster.

Here is the list of identified Hate Groups in Washington State...Beware of these nuts!

Watchmen on the Walls
Volksfront
United Realms of America Knights of the Ku Klux Klan
St. Michael's Parish/Mount St. Michael
Sigrdrifa White Nationalist
Seattle Creators Assembly
Northwest Hammerskins
National Vanguard
National Socilaists of Washington State
National Socialist Movement - NSM
National Knights of the Ku Klux Klan
Kinsman Redeemer Ministries
Hypatia Publishing
Eastern Washington Skinheads
Aryan Nations
American National Socialist Workers' Party

The Black Knight always triumphs, I'm invincible!

You're a looney!

WARRIOR RANT

Friday, 14 March 2008


It's Pastor Hutch calling and it's time to be praying again...I will not be satisfied with any compromise with regard to the Day of Silence in schools. My desire is that there be no Day of Silence recognition during the school day. This activity can take place before or after school just like Christian activities. They already have a Day of Respect, why do they need a Day of Silence?

---

Look Pastor Hutch! You have failed to impose your bigoted views on our schools. And you will continue to fail for one very simple reason. The LAW is on the side of our LGBT youth and their allies. The LAW is against narrow minded bigots like yourself that try to impose your medieval beliefs on sane and reasonable people.

You and your CoDE cohorts are fighting a losing battle to suppress the rights of free expression our students are guaranteed under the constitution. If you are not happy with this reality, perhaps you and your cohorts should seek a theocracy that is more to your liking than our secular democracy.

In my view, you embody the concept of the evil in men. You have the audacity to say that "God hates soft men". I think Jesus might take offense to that statement, not that you are familiar with his teachings! Your entire being revolves around the dark side.

You are what's wrong with this planet. The hate and bigotry you exude smells as bad as your failed football career did! You hurt people you don't even know every day.

I urge you and your cohorts at CoDE to cease this reprehensible activity before the courts MAKE you cease it!

-MSP

P.S. Since God hasn't answered your prayers in the past on this matter, perhaps you should take it as a sign that God wants equality for the LGBT students instead of the discrimination that you seek.

Ken Hutcherson threatens local high school librarian for defending the school's "Sex Club"

Snoqualmie Valley Record

March 12, 2008

The Snoqualmie Valley School District Board of Directors heard more about the perception of bias at Mount Si High School at its March 6 regular meeting.

Mount Si librarian Elaine Harger said she had received an e-mail from Rev. Ken Hutcherson that referred to Mount Si's Gay-Straight Alliance as a "sex club" and asked if Harger wanted to be added to the list of Mount Si teachers he was pushing to have fired."What had I done to justify that he would try to get me fired from my job? This is intimidation, pure and simple," said Harger.

Complete Story

UPDATED Election Results

Special Election
KING COUNTY
3/11/2008 11:22:32 PM
Election Night Final
March 11, 2008

SCHOOL DISTRICTS
SNOQUALMIE VALLEY SCHOOL DISTRICT NO. 410

Ballots Cast/Registered Voters:
6578/19965 - 32.95%

Poll Precincts Counted/Total Poll Precincts:
46/46 - 100.00%

Prop. No. 1 - General Obligation Bonds - $189,600,000

UPDATED 3/17/2008 6:00:58 PM

APPROVED
4435 - 58.46%

REJECTED
3152 - 41.54%

After two unsuccessful attempts to pass the levy last year, the district appeared to have failed Tuesday to meet the supermajority requirements of 60 percent approval and a minimum turnout of 3,477 voters.

Now 117 votes short of passing, some absentee's are still out...

District - SNOQUALMIE VALLEY SCH DST 410
Total Absentee Ballots Issued - 12185
Absentee Ballots Received* Today - 0
Cumulative Absentee Ballots Received* To Date - 6349
% Absentee Ballots Received* - 52.11

King County will update results at 4:30 p 3/17/08

Hutcherson and the Legacy of MLK

It appears as if Ken Hutcherson's crusade against his daughter's school continues. As we noted previously, Hutcherson was invited to speak at his daughter's high school on Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, which did not sit too well with some staff because of his anti-gay views. The school apologized for the controversy but Hutcherson was having none of it and demanded that the teachers involved lose their jobs.

And that was the last we had heard of it until Hutcherson showed up on the Wallbuilders Live radio program today to discuss his on-going feud with the school, which has now broadened to include attempts to shut down the school's Gay-Straight Alliance and end the school's participation in The Day of Silence.

On and on Hutcherson and host Rick Green went, complaining about supposed double standards and anti-Christian bigotry, leading Hutcherson to declare that the teachers at the school who oppose his anti-gay views and activism ought to thank their lucky stars that he has found Christ and is no longer violent:

"What it shows is the power of God to control his son. Before I became a Christian, if a white guy looked at me wrong, he was beat up. That's the reason I went out for football, so I could hurt white people legally there in Alabama. I was a much better baseball player than football, but you hit someone with the baseball while they're running to first base, people didn't like that. But you could hit them on the football field and knock them out and they patted you on the back."

But those days are past - supposedly:

"If they don't fire these teachers, I'm going to sue 'em and I'm going to ask them for their dreams. And then they're going to mess around and laugh and I'm going to take their tongue out."

Considering that Hutcherson is the sort to threaten to tear out tongues and rip the arm off of any man who dares to hold the door open for him and "beat him with the wet end," it is a bit of a mystery as to why anyone would think he would be a good choice to discuss Martin Luther King and his legacy of non-violence.

Original Story

For the Bible Tells Me So

Rep. Dick Gephardt and family


Can the love between two people ever be an abomination? Is the chasm separating gays and lesbians and Christianity too wide to cross? Is the Bible an excuse to hate?

Through the experiences of five very normal, very Christian, very American families -- including those of former House Majority Leader Richard Gephardt and Episcopal Bishop Gene Robinson -- we discover how insightful people of faith handle the realization of having a gay child. Informed by such respected voices as Bishop Desmond Tutu, Harvard's Peter Gomes, Orthodox Rabbi Steve Greenberg and Reverend Jimmy Creech, FOR THE BIBLE TELLS ME SO offers healing, clarity and understanding to anyone caught in the crosshairs of scripture and sexual identity.



2007 Sundance Film Festival
NOMINEE, GRAND JURY PRIZE

Seattle International Film Festival
AUDIENCE AWARD FOR BEST DOCUMENTARY

Full Frame Documentary Film Festival
KATHLEEN BRYAN EDWARDS AWARD FOR HUMAN RIGHTS

Provincetown International Film Festival
HBO AUDIENCE AWARD FOR BEST DOCUMENTARY

Outfest Los Angeles
AUDIENCE AWARD FOR BEST DOCUMENTARY

Milwaukee International Film Festival
AUDIENCE AWARD FOR BEST DOCUMENTARY
BEST DIRECTOR FOR DOCUMENTARY

Image Out: The Rochester Gay and Lesbian Film Festival
AUDIENCE AWARD FOR BEST DOCUMENTARY

Reel Pride: Fresno Gay and Lesbian Film Festival
AUDIENCE AWARD FOR BEST DOCUMENTARY

Tampa international Gay and Lesbian Film Festival
GRAND JURY PRIZE FOR BEST DOCUMENTARY

View the trailer...



The GSA should screen this film.

Would you Endorse the School Bond?

We encourage all community members to support our local school bond measure next Tuesday. Be sure to get out and VOTE.



If you would like to add your endorsement of the bond measure, visit the VVFE Site

Bond detail:
Construct and Equip a Second High School
Construct and Equip a New Elementary School
Purchase and develop land (preferably in North Bend area)
Essential Repairs and Renovations to existing schools and transportation facility
Add Temporary Capacity to Mount Si High School

Bond Amount – $189.6 million.

Send VVFE your endorsement by clicking here: School Bond Endorsement Please include your name and address. Thank you!

Principal Randy Taylor offers complete support to the GSA and the DoS

The School Board meeting went very well last night. Principal Randy Taylor delivered a report to the board relating to the Day of Silence. Taylor embraced the DoS as a positive and important learning experience and vowed to support the GSA in having a safe and well informed event.

We can sleep well tonight.

Great thanks to all of our neighbors, near and far, who cared enough to stand with our LGBT students including, but certainly not limited to;

Tara Borelli of Lambda Legal who came all the way from Los Angeles!
Our GSA friends from Auburn
PFLAG
The American Civil Liberties Union
GLSEN

And many more I am no doubt forgetting.