Marci Anderson and Tom Heidemann, both of whom support the “neutrality policy” won, as did Scott Wenzel, who opposes the policy.
The Minnesota Family Council argued that the district is being targeted by national liberal groups because of its policy that limits discussion of LGBT issues.
Franken spoke of several recent suicides of LGBT students around the country, including Justin Aaberg who attended the Anoka-Hennepin School District.
Following years of controversy about bullying in her district, U.S. Rep. Michele Bachmann responded to an online petition.
The federal Department of Education and the Department of Justice have also launched investigations into the district after the suicide deaths of nine students in the past two years, several of whom were known to identify as LGBT.
Bachmann was the target of a flash mob and of pointed questions on her opposition to gay marriage by Tonight Show host Jay Leno.
Investigations of the bullying of LGBT kids is the biggest growth area in the Department of Justice’s civil rights division.
Three members of he Anoka-Hennepin School Board are up for reelection in 2011, and challengers have filed to run in two of those seats. The school district has seen a contentious last two years, including a major push to revamp a policy that limits discussions of LGBT issues in schools, which was followed by another lawsuit filed by students alleging an unsafe school environment. Most candidates say, however, that the LGBT controversy is only part of their decision to run.
Today’s battle over how to address LGBT issues in Minnesota’s largest school district is nothing new. For the past 20 years, conservative Christian parents in the Anoka-Hennepin School District have been working to make their beliefs — from creationism to the negative effects of R-rated movies and the “Goosebumps” books on children — have impact in district schools. Their tactics have included the banning of books and films, changes to school curriculum and the forced resignation of an LGBT teacher.
The Anoka-Hennepin School District and lawyers for six students who sued the district over bullying began talks this week in an attempt to reach a settlement. While those talks were underway, the Parents Action League submitted a petition to the school board urging it not to budge on a policy that limits discussion of LGBT issues in the schools. And PAL came under scrutiny by other parents who questioned the group’s ties to the Minnesota Family Council.
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