Religion teacher at private school urges students to join pro-trans rallies.

Religion Teacher Encourages Students to Attend Pro-Transgender Protests

A religion teacher at St. Stephen’s and St. Agnes School, a private Episcopalian school in Virginia, sent an email to high school students encouraging them to attend pro-transgender protests and donate money to transgender organizations. The email was sent just four days after transgender shooter Audrey Hale murdered six people, including three children, at a Christian school in Nashville.

Pushing Students to Engage in Activism

In the message, which was not sent to parents, the teacher, Scott Singer, pushed students to “recognize and affirm trans youth.” Parents of students at the school complained that Singer’s email pressured students to engage in activism. “What do you think these kids are going to feel they have to do to get good grades, a letter of recommendation? This is coercive,” a parent of a St. Stephen’s student who requested anonymity told the Washington Free Beacon.

Defending the Message

A school spokeswoman defended Singer, saying his message “fits within our mission.” “Our school community encourages teachers to share information with students that is educational, timely, and relevant to the lives of young people,” Jen Desautels, director of communications for St. Stephen’s, told the Free Beacon. “This fits within our mission of preparing students to be active members of a vibrant and complex society. We generally defer from highlighting any particular organization to avoid the possibility of a reference being seen as an endorsement.”

Controversial Moves by St. Stephen’s

The email is not the first controversial move by St. Stephen’s. In March, the school sent a book list to parents of fourth-graders that included the novel Melissa, which tells of a fourth-grade boy named George who believes he is a girl. The characters in the book discuss genitalia and includes graphic lines such as “what she has between her legs was nobody’s business but hers and her boyfriend.”

A school administrator justified the assignment to parents in the name of “DEIB,” or diversity, equity, inclusion, and a fourth term: belonging. “I worked with teachers to identify books for this unit that provide both mirrors and windows into diverse identities and experiences,” St. Stephen’s librarian Julie Esanu, who refers to herself as a “DEIB advocate,” wrote in her email announcing the book list.

What Can We Do?

Despite the controversy, Singer’s message raises an important question: what can we do to support marginalized communities? Here are a few ideas:

• Attend protests and marches
• Volunteer for transgender organizations
• Pay attention to your own language and biases
• Donate money to organizations supporting trans folk

Let’s all work together to create a more inclusive and accepting society.