Dear Blob,
I like to meet my gay BFF, Mitch, in Echo Park at La Esquinita, a secret-but-now-I'm-telling extraordinary taco shack near Dodger Stadium. It's a mom 'n' pop 'n' daughter operation with a blue roof, charming patio and outstanding unfried fish tacos. $1.50 gets me and maybe you, a giant fish taco with chips, guacamole, 2 salsas to choose from and a hefty fish serving enfolded in two tender tortillas. If I'm feeling extra hungry I'll get 2; Mitch usually gets 3 chicken and beef tacos and we discuss taking over Hollywood & the Downfall of Evil. La Esquinita rules. Please don't tell anyone, but do go there and enjoy.
A few months ago while shopping at my local Japanese grocery I took a photo of a package of Japanese cookies called Cream Collons, posted it to facebook and tagged my best gay friends in it. They were amused.
Last week my BFF, Mitch Stein, was fired from his water-polo coaching job at his daughter's high school, for being gay. An anonymous parent sent the principal and superintendent of Charter Oak High School in West Covina, CA an angry letter demanding Coach Stein be fired and included:
1. a photo of Mitch and some drag queens
2. Mitch eating a corndog
3. my Cream Collon Cookies photo.
Within a couple hours of his firing, four gay lawyers offered their services for free and dozens of parents of water-polo players wrote letters demanding that the best coach they've ever had, be re-hired.
The Principal and Superintendent insist Mitch was not fired for being gay, pointing out they have several other gay teachers. Mitch points out the other gay teachers are the Good kind of Gay: Quiet. Mitch is anything but a Quiet Gay. Aside from his desire to get back on the pool deck and coach, he's hoping this situation will secure him a spot as Grand Marshal of Gay Pride Long Beach.
I am beyond appalled that humans who consider themselves educators of children are promoting discrimination and homophobia. My tax dollars are going to a public school system that is celebrating and modeling Hate. The kids of Charter Oak High School are being taught homophobia and I'm angry! I'm sickened and sad for the Gay Kids of America and outraged that so-called child-advocates consider it ok to choose Hate over Human Sexuality.
I have some questions for Principal Kathleen Wiard and Superintendent Terry Stanfill of Charter Oak High School in West Covina:
1. How will you fight discrimination and homophobia in your school?
2. What message does the firing of Coach Stein send to the Gay Students? To the straight students?
To me their actions say Hate is Cool! it's ok to fire someone for being loudly, openly gay; and if you are a gay student, you better keep quiet or risk future jobs and professional opportunities.
3. Why do you, Principal & Superintendent, think Coach Stein thinks you fired him because he is gay?
Apparently the Principal & Superintendent and Anonymous Mormon parent prefer hate over human sexuality. Why are humans so afraid of human sexuality? Perhaps because it puts us on the same level as animals and humans want to think we are more than animals. We aren't. Not yet.
I would far prefer my theoretical child to learn about human sexuality of all kinds than hate.
Please pass this blog on Readers. Making the principal & superintendent's shamefully hateful act public, is part of the Downfall of Evil.
Love The Ukulady
ps: Mitch, saavy heeb he is, had even gotten the water-polo team a $500/month sponsor.
pps: This principal and superintendent will never work in Hollywood with this kind of attitude. I hope they have really bad hair, outfits and home decor forever, as no gay should ever give them any fashion or decorating advice.
ppps: Stereotypes are stereotypes for a reason. I love advice and hot tips from my gays. We all have our strengths: I've got a fiscally-saavy-heeb gene; Ukulad, from the South, is leisurely-slow; Cameron blows away feng-shui furniture arrangers.
pppps: The burritos at La Esquinita are also delicious and huge and ridiculously cheap!
1. How did the parent access the images of Mitch unless they or his students were friends? 2. Was Mitch "out" at school? 3. What reason did the school give for firing Mitch (if it wasn't for being gay?) 4. Did the author if this piece feel bad about tagging Mitch to the collon image because there is mention of it?
1. Mitch is not friends with students or the Parent: You can access photos with some FB Finagling: Update: The Anonymous Parent turns out to be a former classmate's of Mitch's who Gay Bashed him in High School. 2. Mitch is always out, however it is not his Raison d'Etre at school. At school, his role is as Parent. Many water-polo parents didn't know he was gay, as he doesn't make a huge showing of it on the pool deck, focusing on being a water-polo coach and a dad. 3. The school has not responded to why they fired Mitch, other than saying he had inappropriate photos on FB. 4. I do not feel badly about tagging Mitch in the Cream Collons, nor is he upset, nor were any of my gay pals who were tagged in the photo. I am outraged that a school feels justified for firing someone because of photos suggesting a gay lifestyle; Mitch's lawyer does not want the photos public yet, but I've seen all of them and none justify firing.