LGBTQ+ Teachers Rights: It's Giving 1960s
Many of us are focused on the rights and protections of LGBTQ+ students, particularly in states like Florida, where bills such as the Parental Rights in Education Act are oppressing LGBTQ+ youth in schools.
However, we cannot forget to discuss the impact of these harmful attacks on LGBTQ+ teachers and school staff. For decades, LGBTQ educators in US schools have been vilified and discriminated against by administration and parents alike. Recently, parents gathered at a Caddo Parish School Board meeting to bully Blaine Banghart, a music teacher at University Elementary School in Shreveport, who uses MX. and identifies as nonbinary1.
Why? Because Banghard dared to exist in this world as an LGBTQ educator. While no action was taken on the matter by the school board, the story itself is telling – as is the United States historically poor treatment of LGBTQ+ workers.
Take the decades of the 1940s - 1960s as a prime example of human rights violations and bigotry toward LGBTQ+ employees. This period was coined as the Lavender Scare, a counterpart to the Red Scare, a time when worries over Communism and national security were high due to World War II and the proceeding Cold War.
Senators Kenneth Wherry (pictured at left) and J. Lister Hill conducted the first congressional investigation into homosexuality in the federal workforce. (U.S. Senate Historical Office). Courtesy National Archives.
During the Lavender Scare, it was normal for federal employees to be interrogated about their sexuality as the US sought to eliminate LGBTQ+ employees. Supporters of these attacks claimed the existence of LGBTQ people in government was a national security risk because, at the time, being gay was a mental illness.
It wasn’t until 1973 that the American Psychiatric Association (APA) agreed to remove homosexuality from the DSM, a handbook used by medical professionals to diagnose mental illnesses. However, it took until 1987 for homosexuality to get completely removed from the DSM2.
Another justification for the firing of LGBTQ+ federal employees was that being gay (or any other non-cishet identity) was just as immoral as Communism…I have no further explanation on that that is worth your time. Cause nothing about this is valid or justified. Not then, not now.
But it happened and is still happening nonetheless. So, during interrogations, employees were bombarded with invasive and personal questions like whether they had ever been in a same-sex relationship. This mass attack on LGBTQ workers caused thousands of gay employees to be fired or forced to resign.
The Lavender Scare was amplified again in 1953 when President Eisenhower issued an Executive Order that disqualified anyone with a “sexual perversion” from federal employment. This rule mainly impacted employees whose gender expression differed from conventional stereotypes. It led to about 10,000 federal employees losing their jobs.
While teachers are considered state employees rather than federal employees, this unfair treatment was just as common at the state level. The Florida State government, in particular, was heinous toward LGBTQ+ teachers during the Lavender Scare.
The most relentless attacks in Florida were carried out by the Johns Committee. Created by the Florida legislature in 1956, the Florida Legislative Investigation Committee (popularly called the Johns Committee) investigated “troublemakers” in State Colleges, civil rights groups, and suspected communist organizations.
Senator Johns discussing plans to screen out homosexuals - Tallahassee, Florida. 1963-04-17. State Archives of Florida, Florida Memory.
In the 1960s, the committee turned to eradicating LGBTQ+ teachers and students from in-state universities. They largely succeed for a few years. By 1963, the Johns Committee had revoked “scores of teachers’ certificates with multiple cases pending and files on another hundred suspects.”3
Education is meant to be a tool to open minds, teach essential knowledge and skills, and empower students to succeed. Instead, politicians and extremists are bullying teachers and students for existing. They impose oppressive rules that discriminate based on gender identity and sexual orientation. And while we may be past the Lavender Scare of the 1940s and 1960s, these bullies still are allowed to discriminate against LGBTQ teachers in the majority of US states.
Currently, only 22 states and the District of Columbia have laws explicitly prohibiting workplace discrimination based on gender identity and sexual orientation. Even in states where they are protected, enforcers often turn their backs on the protections enshrined in our laws. In consequence, LGBTQ+ teachers still experience discrimination everywhere in 2023.
One-third of educators in a recent study covered by GLSEN4 stated that “their jobs were at risk if they were out to administrators." Over 50% felt that their jobs would be in jeopardy if they were out to the student body, and about a quarter reported being harassed at the school at which they work.
If anti-LGBTQ laws continue to pass nationwide and discrimination continues to go largely unchecked in schools, LGBTQ+ educators will never see the end of inequality. That’s why, as advocates for equality, we have to help stop this trend of rampant oppression by creating awareness of what is happening to LGBTQ+ educators. Sharing this blog with your friends, family, and co-workers is a great start to spreading information on the subject. The more aware and knowledgeable people are on this issue, the more likely they are to take a stand.
We can also pass along resources to LGBTQ+ teachers to help them understand their rights, find safe spaces, and advocate for themselves. You can find our resources for educators here. We also encourage educators to join GLSEN’s Educator Network, which will allow you to receive resources, research, information on LGBTQ events, tips on implementing inclusive curriculums, and more. You can sign up for the email network here.*
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*Disclaimer: Advocates for LGBTQ Equality is not affiliated in any way with GLSEN or its programs and has no formal relationship with GLSEN. We receive no compensation or incur any tangible benefit if you join GLSEN’s Educator Network or click the sign-up click. This is a personal recommendation from the author of this blog post, Carys Mullins. Clicking on the link provided to join the network will take you to a third-party site provided by GLSEN, is voluntary, and will not automatically sign you up for the network. Advocates for LGBTQ Equality, LLC. is not liable for any event or incident that occurs from your usage of a third-party website.
