In his examination of AB 9—or the Safe Place to Learn Act signed last October by Governor Jerry Brown to help LGBT students fend off bullies after a national outcry occurred following the suicide of many bullied LGBT youth—Phillip Zonkel of Out in the 562 discovered that multiple Long Beach-area school districts flat-out ignored the law’s requirement for districts to update their anti-harrassment policies to include sexual orientation and gender identity/expression.
“Seth’s Law,” as AB 9 came to be known after 13-year-old Tehachapi resident Seth Walsh committed suicide, didn’t seem to ring a bell with Bellflower, Downey, Paramount, or the Norwalk-La Mirada school districts—even after LBUSD updated their policies to conform to the law on July 3.
According to Zonkel, some districts even claimed there were “unaware” of the mandate. This will not be good news come November, when the State will engage in a nine-month audit of school to make sure the law has been implemented.
To read the first piece of Zonkel’s in-depth examination, click here.
To read the second piece, largely examining the personal torment experienced by some LGBT youth, click here.