r?ÌT7TìT7ÌTI news
T he C ourteous C ourt
Two recent U.S. Supreme Court rulings demonstrate the justices'
compassion and earn accolades from queer activists by Bob Roehr
sharply divided U.S. Supreme
bian, Straight Education Network, calls the
Court ruled that school adminis-
decision “a message that school officials can’t
trators may be held liable for
afford to ignore.”
/
%
ignoring sexual harassment
But he laments that “more often than not,
when schools create safe school plans, they
A,
J i * among students.
often fail to remember that these policies need
In a 5-4 decision, the court said that, under a
to include LG BT students.”
1972 federal law known as Title IX, schools can
One school administrator told The Washing
be forced to pay damages for responding with
ton Post he couldn’t imagine a situation in which
deliberate indifference to a students severe and
repeated complaints about harassment would go
pervasive sexual harassment by another student.
The ruling in Davis vs. Monroe County Board of ignored by school officials.
“But I hear of those situations every single
Education was issued May 24.
Justice Sandra Day O ’Connor, writing for day,” Carey says. “He can’t imagine that, and yet
gay students can’t imagine the school respond
the majority, limited liability to cases in which
ing in a positive way when they are being
administrators act “with deliberate indifference
to known acts of harass- m
ment” and where the g
harassment “is so severe, m
pervasive and objectively “
offensive that it effectively “
bars the victim’s access to an
educational opportunity or
benefit.”
Justice
Anthony
Kennedy wrote a scathing
dissent for the minority,
arguing that adolescent
behavior is an accepted part
of the school environment
and that the intent of Title
IX was never to inject the
federal government into the
local classroom.
The National School
Boards Association had
filed a brief in opposition to
Davis but embraced the
decision as a reasonable
standard.
Spokeswoman
Anne
Rea Carey
Bryant says if schools imple
ment tough and clear sexual harassment poli harassed. So there is some dissonance between
the perception of some school administrators
cies, they will be less vulnerable to lawsuits.
Beatrice Dohm, legal director for the Lamb and the reality of gay youth in schools.”
Minter adds: “The biggest stumbling block is
da Legal Defense and Education Fund, was
getting schools past their denial about this issue.
pleased by the decision.
She notes a similarity between sexual harass It’s astonishing how difficult it is to get that mes
sage home.”
ment and sexual orientation harassment: “The
Carey, meanwhile, urges the gay community
line starts to blur in the context of schools.
“to take advantage of this historic opportunity
What we have is all kinds of very crude sexual
and work in partnership with school systems to
and sexualized behavior and words. So it is rare
make sure that they do the right thing.”
that you have anti-gay harassment that you
couldn’t genuinely say is sexual harassment.”
he high court also ruled that workers with
Shannon Minter anxiously awaited the deci
disabilities do not lose the workplace pro
sion, and was concerned by the questions the
tection
of the Americans with Disabilities Act if
justices asked during oral arguments, fearing
they would “come down on the wrong side of they apply for Social Security Disability Insur
ance.
this." However, the attorney with the National
The 9-0 decision in Cleveland vs. Policy Man
Center for Lesbian Rights was “absolutely
agement
Systems also came on May 24-
thrilled” by the outcome.
Justice Stephen Breyer wrote that the laws
“I’m jumping up and down with joy,” says
“can comfortably exist side by side.” He noted
Rea Carey, executive director of the National
that it is common for people to simultaneously
Youth Advocacy Coalition. “It is an incredibly
pursue two different legal approaches to an issue.
powerful decision for any student in school. The
“This ruling spares people with disabilities
Supreme Court is saying that schools need to
from having to make the impossible choice
start listening to students.”
Minter says the May 24 ruling “sends a mes between food and work,” says Catherine
Hanssens, a Lambda Legal Defense and Educa
sage that the Supreme Court does care” about
tion
Fund attorney. (The organization filed a
harassed students.
“It is incredibly encouraging to see that Jus brief with the court arguing this position.)
She says the decision will be particularly use
tice O ’Connor really understood what was at
ful
for people with HIV who may seek to leave
stake,” says Minter, who is preparing a Califor
nia-based class action suit by a handful of les and re-enter the workplace depending on their
bian and gay students who claim they have suf health status.
fered anti-gay harassment.
Jim Anderson, spokesman for the Gay, Les
i
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