Mother Of Seth Walsh Speaks Out Against Anti-Gay Bullying

Wendy Walsh, the mother of Sean Walsh, the 13 year old openly gay Tehachapi, California student who committed suicide in September after enduring years of bullying and harassment has partnered with the American Civil Liberties Union to demand that the school district work with the ACLU to make changes and take steps to combat the harassment, physical threats, and ridicule they say students are still suffering based on their perceived or real sexual orientation, reports that Bakersfield Californian, adding that the United States Department of Education has launched an investigation into the school district. Neither Wendy Walsh nor the ACLU would confirm or deny whether a lawsuit is pending against the district. Elizabeth Gill, staff attorney for the ACLU, said “Our principal goal is to protect students from harassment. It’s pretty clear this is a huge problem for LGBT students in our schools.” Gill says that the ACLU spoke to students who reported that teachers and school administrators were well aware that Seth was being bullied and harassed and, in some instances, actively participated in the harassment, one student saying that a teacher called Seth “fruity” in front of an entire class. Mrs. Walsh, says Seth told her he was gay in the sixth grade, and subsequently was the target of vicious anti-gay torture, repeatedly called “fag,” “homo,” and worse, as well as being physically tormented. His grades, she said, fell from A’s and B’s in the fifth grade to failing in the sixth and seventh grade. Under California law, schools are required to take specific steps to protect students from harassment based on sexual orientation, and Richard Swanson, the superintendent of the 1,100 student Tehachapi Unified School District says that the district responded to Seth’s suffering, although he admits that the district fails to be specific about bullying as it relates to sexual orientation. The district has enrolled in a respected anti-bullying program developed at Clemson University however that program fails to address specific bullying based on sexual identity issues. “I don’t think we’ve addressed Seth’s issue in terms of sexuality directly,” Mr. Swanson acknowledges.

Mrs. Walsh has recorded a video about Seth, reading the suicide note he left, and speaking about her son’s much too short life.