Anti-gay? Teenage Boys Forced To Hold Hands In Public As Punishment For Fighting At School An Arizona principal is facing backlash from the community after two teenage boys were given the option to sit in chairs in public holding hands as “punishment” for a school fight. Many felt that the disciplinary action was anti-gay. via THG Earlier this week, the two students at Westwood High School in Mesa, Ariz., who have not been named, were faced with two options after getting into a fight: -Suspension from school -Sitting in chairs in the courtyard and holding hands for 15 minutes during lunch They opted for the latter, and were ridiculed by their peers. “Kids were laughing at them and calling them names, asking, ‘Are you gay?’” student Brittney Smyers told ABC affiliate KNXV, while photos began to circulate online. On one Facebook posting, users commented that the public punishment was not appropriate, as it positions the teens as targets for taunting and name-calling. Others said the punishment was anti-gay, as it implies two males holding hands is embarrassing. Helen Hollands, director of communication and marketing for Mesa Public Schools, said the school’s principal, Tim Richard, who is in his first year at Westwood, had the idea. “He’s done some great things there,” Hollands said. “He’s focused highly on maintaining a standard where [ideally] no students are failing a class.” While this punishment probably did what it was intended to do, we think that there were surely other, more effective and socially conscious consequences for fighting during school that the principal could have used. Do you think the punishment was appropriate?
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You Gone Learn Today: High School Principal Under Fire For Making Teenage Boys Hold Hands In Public As “Punishment” For Getting Slappy Happy At School
