New Jersey High Court Takes On Gay Harassment in School
The New Jersey Supreme Court has heard arguments on a public school’s duty to its gay students who are bullied.
A New Jersey public school student was allegedly was harassed by 18 students who called him a “fag” and a “homo” at in intermediate public. Also, another incident resulted in the boy being whipped and taunted in the boys’ locker room.
The school made the students apologize to the boy each time an incident was reported and the attackers were counseled by school administrators.
Within days of entering high school, however, the boy was reportedly physically assaulted twice out of school, once walking home from school and once downtown during his lunch period. Although the incidents occurred off school grounds, the high school suspended those involved.
The question for the high court to decide is if the school did enough.
One of the justices called the school’s response “lethargic” and questioned if officials would have reacted the same way if the charge had been harassing based on race. Another Justice agreed and said that words being used against the child were “weapons” used to humiliate and degrade the student’s self-esteem.
“They (school officials) were not educating peers to accept difference among students,” said Albin.
If the New Jersey marriage case is any indication about how the justices feel about gay rights, the decision should be another landmark decision.