Education

This entry traces the history of the LGBTQ civil rights movement in terms of education and, as such, employs the terms used to refer to the LGBTQ community during the time period in discussion. It begins by situating homosexuality within the context of the societal aims of education and then describes the impact of various movements on LGBTQ teachers and students. It ends by describing the current climate in today’s schools.

Because schooling has been seen as a way of preserving and passing on tradition, education has long been a site of cultural contestation. In addition, children are often viewed as being “innocent” and in need of protection. Public education in particular comes under scrutiny because it is supported by taxpayer money. Combined with a conflation ...