1o — OUT IN THE MOUNTAINS —- JUNE Ybung 1999 “lleroes” j Sh0wT heir Pride I Event Celebrates GLBTQA Youth WITH FILES FROM CAROLYN ASHBY all it a warm-up for Pride; ‘ call it a public affirmation of self-esteem; call it a chance to be out en masse on Burlington’s Church Street. Just make sure you call it a success. Youth Pride ‘99, held on May 8 at City Hall in Burlington, fea- tured a public speakout, a march up Church Street, and a prom for to speakers running the gamut from shy togregarious, from overwhelmed out-of-state visi- tors to emcee Palmer Legare, who has been featured in Time magazine for his work as a GLBTQ youth activist. One. young woman talked about coming out, pointing out that “just going about the busi- ness of being who we are [is a radical act] because there are people out there who say we 25 young people participated in a march from City Hall to the top of the Church Street Marketplace and back. Walking behind a banner that read “Youth for Pride and Pride for Youth,” they waved Outright Vermont signs and a rainbow flag as they chanted such gems as “Two, four, six, eight; don’t assume your kids are straight!” Pedestrians, sidewalk cafe din- ers, and even folks hanging out “Two, four, six, eight; don ’t assume your klds are straight gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgen- dered, questioning youth and their allies. V More than a dozen youth stepped up to the microphone on the steps of City Hall to share experiences and reflections on being GLBTQA, out, and proud. - An enthusiastic crowd of more than 75 friends, family members, and passers-by stopped to listen -hoto Barbara 3‘: don’t exist.” A UVM student shared some of his poetry about coming out and being out. Another speaker shared some of her experiences as the daughter of a lesbian couple, “I can’t think of a better way to be raised or a better way to be loved than by two mothers. To me, they’ve raised the most beautiful family.” After the speakout, more than Top: Loud and Proud - More than two dozen youth narched up and down Church Street in Burlington to show their pride. Middle: Spectators cheered on friends and family during the speakout. Bottom: They walked not-so-softly and carried big sticks with rainbow flags and pink triangles attached. ,9) of upper-level windows cheered the contingent along its route. Later that evening, more than 100 youth and adults returned to Contois Auditorium at City Hall for “Heroes & Villains,” the first ever Burlington Youth Pride Prom. A blue-sequined Superman worked the door, greeting a crowd decked out in everything from casual wear to gowns and tuxes to full cos- tume. Among the crowd partak- ing of the punch, portraits, prizes, and pulsing rhythms were Ken and Barbie, Tank Girl, vampires galore, Liberace and Elton John (who, one observer noted, looked very much like a pair of before-and-after Elton Johns). photo Barbara Dozetos The Youth Pride ‘99 event was a project of the Youth Program Committee of Outright Vermont. ,Founded in 1989, Outright was the first statewide organization for gay youth in the country. Its fulltime staff of three and its volunteer corps work to support GLBTQ youth and their communities through outreach and education. V MMUHS Receives Complaint of Discrimination continued from front page not the case. They insisted that they were prepared for the origi- nally scheduled event and that the tests and break were acknowledged and considered before the Awareness Week dates were set. “The kids are trying to bring enlightenment and healing to the school and he’s trying to shut it down,” said Ms. Harrison. Awareness Week was resched- uled to begin‘ on May 20. Yolanda, a Burlington-based transgendered perfonner, has been asked to make a presentation. Eldridge says Corsaniti con- tacted her to ask if she would rec- ommend Yolanda as a presenter for the school’s event. “I told him that I would whole-heartedly rec- ommend him as an HIV/AIDS educator and as a performer who genuinely cares about the GLBTQ youth.” The substitution did not satisfy Harrison. “Yolanda’s great, but Outright is specifically equipped to deal with high school-age kids,” she said. She has confronted Conley directly about the issues involved and said she came away with the impression that the only discrimi- nation he is concerned about is that against the Christian depro- grammer. “When I told him that kids are being called ‘faggot’ every day in his school, he went stony silent. He wasn’t horrified or upset by this.” Mother and son both point out that the havoc seems to have ‘come not from the majority of the school or community, but from a select few individuals. They report a great deal of support from students, faculty, and resi- dents of the area, evident in the standing-room-only crowd in attendance at the May 3 meeting. Tut Parmley, a particularly vocal member of the Chittenden East school board, has received public rebuke for his ov ertly homopho- bic statements to the press. Some prominent members of the com- munity have gone so far as to ask for his resignation from the board. Abram Harrison expressed frustration in attempting to teach the very people whose job it is to teach him. “Imagine how ridicu- lous it feels to have to actually convince those in charge of our education that sexuality is indeed an important topic to be addressed and homosexuality is in fact an accepted lifestyle.” At the May 3 meeting, the school administration did agree to a suggestion of sensitivity train- ing made by Sandra Limoge, a former Outright Vennont board member. No official announce- ment has been made since that time.V Editors Note: As we went to press on May 24, we learned that Outright Vermont had that day received an invitation to partici- pate in the schools Awareness Week on May 27th.