See also:  Standard-Times Misleads . . . Again

"Where have any facts come up from Dr. Devine's 'investigation' to refute any of the allegations that were in [Massachusetts News]? We haven't heard one bit of evidence. They listed everything in detail that happened. All we got [from the school authorities] was that it was ... written by a right-wing nut who had an agenda. But nobody wanted to deal with the facts that were in the article, which scares me because nobody really wants to address the truth." - Parent of two, Glen Parker, publicly confronting school officials.

By Ed Oliver
October 2000

Approximately one hundred people gathered in Acushnet's Elementary School on Thursday, August 24, to watch School Superintendent Howard Devine, Principal John Tavares and the school committee circle the wagons and field tough questions about the teaching of homosexuality in the middle school. 

The meeting resulted from an article in Massachusetts News about a workshop at the controversial Fistgate conference that was conducted by a teacher from Acushnet, which advised homosexual teachers on how to get pro-homosexual instruction into Massachusetts middle schools.

The revelations in the article resulted in two special, school committee meetings and the removal of homosexuality from the tolerance unit in the middle school. The teacher, Christine Hoyle, was not present at any of the meetings to talk with parents.

The principal of Ford Middle School, John Tavares, announced in a written statement that he had decided to remove the homosexual topic from the curriculum on July 25, after he was contacted by this paper about the matter and he had conducted his own investigation. He added that his decision was conveyed to the superintendent on that date. Tavares said he gathered information from the reporter from Massachusetts News, the public school teacher who was the source for the article, the teacher from his school who gave the workshop, as well as his general knowledge of the unit.

Tavares said he also spoke with a second person that attended the Fistgate workshop, but he did not reveal if he received that reference from Ms. Hoyle. That person told Tavares that Hoyle's workshop was misrepresented, but the principal gave no examples of anything that was misrepresented in the Massachusetts News article.

Acushnet residents left the meeting with a conflicting message that the topic of homosexuality will be removed from the curriculum and will not return, yet the Massachusetts News article was without merit. 

Many Questions
At the school committee meeting, questions from the audience came from both sides of the issue. Principal Tavares stood firm after a few college-age girls and a "gay parent" challenged him about removing homosexuality from the curriculum. "I feel I've made the correct decision and I don't apologize for it," said Tavares, who added that the topic of homosexuality would not be reinstated.

The gay man complained that heterosexual topics could get graphic too, to which the audience began telling him that is why they don't want any sex topics in school.

One man wanted a guarantee that speakers would never again come into the school and speak graphically about sex to children - an incident that many were not aware of before the Massachusetts News article. Tavares assured him it would not happen again. 

A woman asked the school board if children were ever questioned about their reaction to the state-approved homosexual speaker who was barred from returning because of his inappropriate speech. She was told no, and that the whole issue was a "major distraction for the school system in preparing for the opening of school."

"I really don't care about the major distraction. I care about the children and their minds," she retorted.

Another resident with two children in the schools, Glen Parker, demanded to know why the superintendent spoke to the press before he ever spoke to parents. "As far as I'm concerned, I haven't gotten any answers," he said, adding that he was at the last meeting and was told, "I don't know," three times by Devine. "Now you are basically telling us that this curriculum is being eliminated, you're waving good-bye, and that's the end of it. It's not the end of it. There are certain policies that parents are very concerned about."

Parker continued by pointing out that Superintendent Devine said at both meetings that no graphic language was used in Hoyle's classroom, yet he said something different to the press. Parker said he spoke to several kids who were in Hoyle's class, who told him about inappropriate language that was used. He asked what kind of follow-up was done by administrators after they knew about the language use and after administrators knew "what the agenda of the teacher had to be, by looking at the workshop that she had been involved in at Tufts University. There's no other way I can explain it other than to say if it looks like a duck and walks like a duck, it must be a duck. I have nothing against Ms. Hoyle personally, but if she's promoting something that's offensive to me and the way I'm bringing up my children, then I have a right to know about it."

When Parker again criticized Devine for going to the press before consulting with parents, a committee member interrupted and asked Parker what difference would it have made to talk to parents first and how would such a discussion have changed any facts since Devine was only dealing with facts.

"I can't believe I'm hearing this from the school committee" an astonished Parker responded. "What difference would it make to talk to the parents?" he asked to applause. "It would have made a huge difference to me. It would have said that Dr. Devine cares more about me and my children than any newspaper."

Devine and the committee member said they were concerned that if they did not comment to the Standard-Times, they would give credibility to the allegations in the Massachusetts News article. 

Parker asked, "Where have any facts come up from Dr. Devine's 'investigation' to refute any of the allegations that were in that newspaper? We haven't heard one bit of evidence. They listed everything in detail that happened. All we got was that it was an article that was written by a right-wing nut who had an agenda. But nobody wanted to deal with the facts that were in the article, which scares me because nobody really wants to address the truth."

Parker was interrupted when he asked if Hoyle was going to be allowed to continue teaching the holocaust course. When he phrased it a different way, he was told that the same three teachers would continue to teach the course.

After the meeting ended, a man whose line of questioning was previously cut short about the gay agenda, approached Devine with a copy of the list of workshops which were held at Fistgate, a list which Massachusetts News mails out with the tape of Fistgate. "Am I out in left field, or is this not a blueprint for getting homosexuality into the schools?" he demanded of the superintendent. "Look at the names of these workshops, Diesel Dykes and Lipstick lesbians? Getting gay and lesbian issues into elementary schools?" Devine quickly averted his eyes from the list waved in front of him.

Another parent was observed in a heated discussion with Superintendent Devine after the meeting. When challenged by Devine on a particular point, the parent whipped out a tape of Fistgate from his back pocket, which Massachusetts News mails upon request, and said, "I have the tape."

Videotape Causes Concern
The parents were also told that the pro-homosexual videotape made by students, which Hoyle played for her workshop at Fistgate, could not be shown to the parents for legal reasons. A copy of a permission-slip letter sent by Hoyle on March 15 to parents of children who made the video was made available for inspection with names redacted. The slip confirms that school administrators from across the state viewed the video at a joint conference in 1998. Hoyle made clear in the letter to parents that her intention was to show the video to students and teachers at Fistgate as an example of what a "diversity unit" like the one at Ford Middle School can produce. The permission slip reads: 

"Dear Parent/Guardian: You may remember that two years ago, I asked permission to use your child's video that she did as part of our diversity unit, at an exhibit at the Massachusetts Association of School Committees/Massachusetts Association of School Superintendents Joint Conference. I am doing a presentation that will include this unit again on Saturday, March 25, 2000, and hope to continue to lead more workshops in the future. With your permission, I would very much like to show educators, professionals, and students the video that your daughter is in, as an example of student work that can be done in units such as the diversity unit..."

In that video, according to a public school teacher who viewed it, student narrators mentioned that there is nothing wrong with homosexuality and it is just one way to express sexual love. The children also say that ancient Greek poets encouraged homosexuality and considered it normal for an adolescent boy to have an older wiser man as his lover. While Ford Middle School seventh graders were researching the subject, Ms. Hoyle, a self-described lesbian according to the source, apparently did not instruct the children to research either the dangers of homosexual sex or laws against statutory rape and pedophilia.

It said that the debate had been about teaching "tolerance" toward homosexuals.

But, if that were true, there would have been no disagreement from anyone. Everyone is for "tolerance."

What was being taught in the middle school was not "tolerance," but an approval of homosexuality.

If the reporter, John Doherty, had read what occurred at the school he would have known that the 13-year-old girls who prepared the video said that the purpose of their report was to show there is nothing wrong with being a homosexual. They cited ancient Greek poets who considered it normal for an adolescent boy to have an older, wiser man as his lover. There was nothing in the instruction to refute that belief, even though such conduct is considered by our society to be pedophilia, for which men can, and do, go to jail.

In addition, there are great health risks involved with any casual sex. None of that was considered by the 13-year-olds although the homosexual community in the Boston area agrees that it is having serious problems with sexually transmitted disease, as well as with the use of illegal drugs at gay bars.

The Standard-Times had presented inaccurate material again.