Mother of suicide victim speaks out on bullying at Anoka-Hennepin

By Andy Birkey
Tuesday, September 14, 2010 at 3:34 pm

Justin Aaberg

Tammy Aaberg, who lost her son Justin to suicide in July, told WCCO that the climate at Anoka-Hennepin School District needed to change. Aaberg says that anti-gay bullying had a hand in Justin’s suicide. Last month the Minnesota Independent reported that as many as three LGBT teens committed suicide in the district in the last year. Aaberg says there’s an anti-gay culture in the district that must change.

“These kids, they just hate themselves. They literally feel like they want to die. So many kids are telling me this,” Aaberg told WCCO in an emotional interview.

Starting this year, the school district says it will be conducting anti-bullying trainings that include LGBT content for both staff and students.

But Aaberg and some teachers in the district told WCCO that it doesn’t go far enough. The district has a “neutrality policy” on sexual orientation that precludes teachers from talking about homosexuality (though it doesn’t seem to affect discussions of heterosexuality).

“It’s very difficult. We have a community that has widely varying opinions, and so to respect all families, as the policy says, we ask teachers to remain neutral,” said District Spokeswoman Mary Olson.

And the district is under pressure from anti-LGBT advocates who want stricter measures in place to prevent teachers and students from discussing LGBT issues in a positive light, including the possibility of having “ex-gay” therapy on campus.

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Comments

12 Comments

Progressively Queer
Comment posted September 14, 2010 @ 4:22 pm

It’s sad that we need more Judy Shepards, more Mary Griffins, and now more Tammy Aabergs in order to see the destructiveness of hate in LGBTQ lives.


Mike
Comment posted September 14, 2010 @ 4:31 pm

First my deepest condolences to Ms Aaberg;what a tragedy to lose a wonderful child like Justin- especially when it need not have happened. She also has my profound respect for addressing this issue in such a forthright manner.I don’t understand these people that think by ignoring or demonizing gays that suddenly they’ll disappear. It’s not like being gay is contagious; it’s merely a sexual orientation just like being heterosexual. These anti gay sorts are responsible for the torment that Justin suffered & for the continuing suffering of gays everywhere. How much more will we, a civil society tolerate?


Craig Forster
Comment posted September 19, 2010 @ 12:13 am

Enough is Enough. When are we ADULTS going to TAKE a Stand And Start Holding these Schools ACCOUNTABLE?

Come On folks I am ready to fight.! These Bullies and their Parents and Churches need to be held accountable.

These are our kids commitng suicide.
I am ready to fight back. Are you ?


Will Rodgers
Comment posted September 22, 2010 @ 5:42 pm

Get real people you can’t blame the schools or the church’s. Blame the parents of those kids and you cast blame at those individuals that ridiculed this child.

I was bullied in school as well and was at times suicidal myself. Life is not easy as a teenager you younger child, that’s a known fact. Kids will make fun of you for things that aren’t even true in some cases like this it could have because he was a homosexual. Kids can be cruel but it’s up to the parents to correct that. The school has no real authority other than to send the kids to another school that are bullying others.


Lane
Comment posted September 24, 2010 @ 1:08 pm

Only if it were that simple, Will. So many churches preach intolerance; such messages become internalized in those who attend and who don’t recognize it for what it is. Some schools are better than others at dealing with bullying which is anti-social behavior. To deal with bullying demands that all parts of the picture be looked at in the bright day of light, and that includes churches, parents, schools, community, bullies and victims.

You are right that life is not easy for any young child, but that young child deserves to be safe and to feel safe while s/he is growing up no matter what. No ifs, ands or buts about it.

Besides your last statement doesn’t make sense.


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[...] drag queen buddy at a bar – and their decision to adopt a son, DJ, and start a family together. In Minnesota and Indiana, a pair of 15-year-old boys have in recent months taken their own lives as the result [...]


Bette
Comment posted October 9, 2010 @ 6:27 am

The point I would like to make on this subject is that there should be laws against bullying. Bullying does far more damage that lasts a lot
longer than physical violence does and we have laws against physical violence.


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Pingback posted October 14, 2010 @ 4:12 pm

[...] are shocked by the recent spike in gay teen suicides across the nation.  Here at home, 15-year-old Anoka resident Justin Aaberg took his own life in July, a desperate act his mother believes was motivated by unchecked bullying at her son’s school.  [...]


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Pingback posted July 9, 2011 @ 12:19 pm

[...] month, five youth’s suicides because of bullying have been heavily publicized by the media: 15 year old Justin Aaberg, 15 year old Billy Lucas, 19 year old Raymond Chase, 13 year old Asher Brown, and 19 year old Tyler [...]


Power Beats
Comment posted October 21, 2011 @ 8:46 pm

Headset is according to their drive (transducer) and the type of it to wear to the classification of the way.
Moving coil type
Moving coil in-ear headphones are the most common, the most common headphones, it’s drive unit is basically a small moving coil speakers, the permanent magnetic field in the voice coil of driving and connected to the diaphragm of the vibration. Moving coil headphones for high efficiency, mostly on the headset for the output driver and reliable and durable.
Magnetic type such as
The driver of the magnetic headphones, similar to narrow the plane of the speaker, and it will be embedded in the plane of the voice coil frivolous diaphragm, like printed circuit board the same average distribution of the driving force. Magnets in the diaphragm of the focus on one or both (push-pull), diaphragm in the formation of the magnetic field vibration. Magnets diaphragm no headphones and electrostatic headset diaphragm that light, but there are also big vibration area and similar sound quality, it as moving coil headphones for high efficiency, and it is not easy to drive.
Electrostatic type
Electrostatic headphones have light and thin film vibration, the high voltage dc polarization, polarization the electricity required by ac conversion, also has a battery power supply. Diaphragm hanging on by two fixed metal plate (stator) to form the electrostatic field, when the audio signal to load the stator, electrostatic field changes, the driver diaphragm vibration. Single stator is also can drive the diaphragm, but double the stator the push-pull form less distortion. Electrostatic headset must use special amplifier will audio signals are converted to hundreds of v voltage signal and use transformer connected to the power amplifier output terminal of the electrostatic headset can also drive. Electrostatic headset expensive, not easy to drive, the reach of level is also not moving coil in-ear headphones, but its response speed and could put all sorts of tiny details of heavy, very low distortion.
In a body
In a body headphones also called fixed electrostatic headphones, it’s diaphragm is itself or by the diaphragm of the polarization of the launch of the polarization material static electric field polarization, does not need special equipment with polarization voltage. In a body of static headset most of the headset features, but in very experience gradually to polarization, need to change, its life about 5 to 10 years.
Wireless headset and cordless headset
They consist of two parts, signal emitter and with receiving signal and amplification device headset (usually moving coil type). Transmitters and signal source is linked together, also can be in the former stage before the transmitter access or headphone amplifiers to improve quality and adjust the tone.
Wireless headset generally refers to the infrared transmission signal headset system, cordless headset is refers to using radio waves of transmitting signals headset system. The working frequency of infrared headset from several KHz to a few MHz, effective distance about 10 meters, headphones to the visible range; Radio headset working frequency VHF 130 MHz to 200 MHz, UHF 450 MHz to 900 MHz, most cordless headphones work in UHF, but transmission range of 100 meters, can around obstructions. Two vice or more wireless/cordless headset deputy may be disturbed each other, so choose when they had better choose to have DuoGe work of the frequency of varieties, for cordless headphones, working in UHF than in the interference on VHF may be small. The two kinds of background noise headphones are, more high-grade models have adopted the technology reduces the noise. Also note that the wireless/cordless headset battery life, generally should not be less than 8 hours.


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