From: GLSTNAlert@aol.com Date: Wed, 20 Nov 1996 17:27:32 -0500 Subject: GLSTN SALUTES JAMIE NABOZNY AND LAMBDA GLSTN NEWS RELEASE FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE November 20, 1996 GLSTN 122 West 26th St., Ste. 1100 New York, NY 10001 Tel: 212.727.0135 Fax: 212.727.0254 Web: http://www.glstn.org/ Email: glstn@glstn.org For More Information Contact: Deidre Cuffee-Gray, Media Coordinator or Kevin Jennings, Executive Director: 212-727-0135 GLSTN SALUTES JAMIE NABOZNY AND LAMBDA LEGAL DEFENSE ON VICTORY IN FIRST-EVER FEDERAL CASE ON ANTI-GAY ABUSE IN SCHOOLS HAILED AS "MOST IMPORTANT DECISION SINCE BROWN V. BOARD OF EDUCATION" (New York, NY) The Gay, Lesbian, and Straight Teachers Network (GLSTN) today congratulated Jamie Nabozny and Lambda Legal Defense, plaintiff and counsel, on their victory in Nabozny v. Podelsny et al, the first-ever federal case on anti-gay violence in schools. A Wisconsin jury found Nabozny's Ashland, Wisconsin school system and its administrators guilty of failing to protect Nabozny from harassment on Tuesday, establishing a first-ever precedent on the rights of lesbian and gay students in K-12 schools. GLSTN is the only national organization specifically focused on winning equal educational rights for such students. "Jamie's victory is an incredible moment in our history," said Kevin Jennings, GLSTN's Executive Director and a former high school history teacher. "Basically, this is the most important court ruling on education since Brown v. the Board of Education in 1954, when racial segregation was outlawed," said Jennings. "The courts have sent a similar message with this verdict. They've said that students who are lesbian or gay are entitled to equal protection and equal opportunity from their schools." Jennings added, "Now, students and teachers fighting for equity will have the courts on their side. Things will quite literally never be the same." Jennings lauded Nabozny and Lambda for their leadership. "Jamie's courage, coupled with the legal brilliance of the Lambda team, have made history," said Jennings. "These are folks who will be remembered forever for their contribution to bettering the lives of lesbian and gay young people." Jennings added that GLSTN's network of over forty chapters will be hard at work in coming months to make sure the Nabozny ruling has teeth. "In the end, these kinds of rulings will only have an impact if there is someone on the local level who is holding their schools accountable for their behavior, just as Jamie and Lambda held Ashland accountable," said Jennings. "That's our plan for the next phase: to let school officials know that we're watching, and we'll be making sure they live up to their legal responsibilities to protect all students." --30-- With over forty chapters, and a membership of over four thousand teachers, parents, and concerned citizens, GLSTN is the largest national organization working to insure that schools are places where all people are respected and valued, regardless of sexual orientation. ======================================================== GLSTNAlert is a GLSTN news bulletin service of the The Gay, Lesbian, and Straight Teachers Network (GLSTN). ======================================================== To Unsubscribe from GLSTNAlert simply send an email to GLSTNAlert@aol.com with the words "Unsubscribe GLSTNAlert" in the subject line (no quotes and note the lack of space in GLSTNAlert). ======================================================== To Subscribe to GLSTNAlert simply send an email to GLSTNAlert@aol.com with the words "Subscribe GLSTNAlert" in the subject line (no quotes and note the lack of space in GLSTNAlert). Also: please write your name in the message portion of your email. ========================================================