Show Your Support for Endangered South Carolina GSA

More than 250 members have joined the Irmo High School GSA Facebook group. But the newly formed South Carolina club may not be able to function by the time school starts again in the fall.

When the club began this spring, Principal Eddie Walker announced that he would resign at the end of the 2008-2009 school year because his religious beliefs conflicted with its formation. While the school is prevented from discriminating against the GSA because of the 1984 Equal Access Act, the school district is now trying to impose stricter regulations on all activities that are not directly connected to academic subjects.

If the policies pass, students would have to get permission from their parents or guardians to join and they wouldn’t be allowed to put up posters, have a group picture in the yearbook, or raise money on school grounds, among other things.

The school board is going to further consider adopting these new rules on Monday, June 23rd. To let them know your thoughts, check out this post from the ACLU and send board members an email.

Read more about Walker’s resignation and the resulting controversy here.

Read GLSEN Executive Director Kevin Jennings’ response to Walker’s comments here.

Read an essay by an alum of Irmo about its history of intolerance here.