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Educational Priorities: Third-Grader Organizes Gay Marriage Rally

ABC 7 News: (H/T reader VK)

A Denver third-grader will be front and center at the Colorado State Capitol Saturday pushing for same sex marriage in the state.

Ethan McNamee arranged the rally as an independent class project.

He was concerned about the issue after hearing about anti-gay remarks on the playground and then learning about a same sex couple in his neighborhood that couldn’t get married.

“Everybody is different in a good way,” he said.

Ethan believes that if two people love each other that is the only issue to be considered.

Ethan took it upon himself to arrange the rally and line up the guest speakers. He admitted it was more work then he thought it would be, but adds it was fun.

Administrators at Montclair Elementary have been sensitive to the controversial issue. Parents were notified about Ethan’s project and only students who wanted to get involved participated.

A handful of kids helped Ethan make signs on Friday afternoon.

Ethan’s teacher, Kyle Kimmal, said he was careful to not impose his views on Ethan. He also told Ethan that his stand could anger some classmates and parents and that he should be prepared for protestors at the state capitol.

Theres’ more. From the comments on the article comes this unbelievable drivel:

I don’t understand the thought that Ethan is too young to do this project. I am a fourth grade teacher and I WISH my students would show this much passion for anything. But unfortunately most of them grow up in households where their parents don’t talk to them about much of anything. Or they are placed in front of the tv to develop their beliefs. I would agree that MOST third grade students are not at a level to comprehend this injustice. Most of them can’t get past, “It’s not fair, you cut in front of me.” However, there is such a thing as Gifted and Talented students. These students need to have an outlet for their gifts or it can cause much worse damage. Ethan’s project was an independent study, meaning he chose it on his own. I would imagine that he has already been identified as Gifted and Talented and is therefore able to create his own projects rather than sit through lessons he understands. A program like this is designed to let kids go as high as they can, not to tack on extra work. I am sure Ethan receives all of the playing time he needs. An independent study is in place of another lesson, not in addition to.

Also, I agree with the people that ask if this would be an argument if he was doing a report on Martin Luther King Jr. and wanted to reenact his I Have a Dream speech. Or what if a student reenacted the suffrogates movement? Or if they were doing a play about the Revolutionary War? Is it different because that’s history and now we can see clearly now what the “American” way was…equal rights for all? Well, this seems to be this generations equal rights battle…wouldn’t you feel silly if one day he is the MLK Jr. of Gay Rights and you thought he was too young to take on this project, that he was too young to have formed an opinion. People may change their opinion as they get older, but it is nevertheless an opinion. I have worked with children for a number of years, and sometimes their opinion makes a lot more sense than that of most adults I know. Don’t teach students in school that America was based on making everyone equal and then tell them they are too young to believe in it because that by equal rights for everyone you only mean straight people, or white people, or men, or Christians. That is hypocrisy, and that is NOT what our country was founded on.

I believe everyone has a right to their opinion, and as long as your argument does not personally attack someone else, you have every right to express it and I have no negative feelings toward that. But just like you have the right to express your opinion, so does this third grader in the activity that he took on, on his own. He demonstrates real leadership, dedication, and gumption which are all characteristics I find lacking too often in people much older than him. So don’t stifle, encourage regardless if the opinion is the same as yours or not, that’s what leads us to better tomorrows.

Reader VK noted that:

It seems that educational priorities have changed drastically. Understanding issues takes a back seat to organizing protests. Shouldn’t someone be telling kids that they need to do some homework before they set out to change the world? It is really an insult to serious adults who are trying to grapple with this issue.

Ah, the world we live in.

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