An openly gay teacher who got a surprise show of support from some of his toughest students is sharing the story that made him “cry tears of pride.”
Kyle McGiverin, who is wrapping up his first year at Valleys Sr. Public School in Mississauga, Ont., told his students about his orientation earlier this year.
It was around the time the school marked Day of Pink, — an international day to raise awareness about homophobic and transphobic bullying.
McGiverin said he wanted to serve as a “positive queer role model” to his Grade 8 class.
But, it was last week that he got an idea of just how understanding his students already are.
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In a Reddit post last week, McGiverin explained how he always starts the morning with a “YouTube of the Day,” giving the kids a chance to view and discuss a video of their choosing.
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He said he had a bit of apprehension when one of his tougher students had chosen a music video to play.
In his Reddit post, McGiverin wrote:
“I have one group of boys that can be a bit of a pain in the neck. Never keep their hands to themselves, always talk out of turn, have gotten in fights, etc. There is one boy in this group (he will be known here as Harry) who is a little quieter than the others, but very popular. He’s a bit tough to get close to, and seems like the type to be resistant to new ideas and different people. He hangs out with another tough kid (let’s call him Mark), who is loud and boisterous and often rude.”
McGiverin explained he knew what kind of music Harry liked to listen to and the lyrics weren’t always classroom friendly.
But, Harry insisted Mr. Kyle, as the students call him, would really like it.
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The video turned out to be a hip hop song by Seattle-born artist Macklemore – known for his support of LGBT rights and same-sex marriage.
The song, titled “Same Love,” addresses homophobia in religion, society and even in the hip-hop scene:
If I was gay
I would think hip-hop hates me
Have you read the YouTube comments lately
“Man that’s gay”
Gets dropped on the daily
We’ve become so numb to what we’re saying
Our culture founded from oppression
Yet we don’t have acceptance for ’em
Watch the full music video for “Same Love”
McGiverin was quite touched by his student choosing the video, but what happened after he played it for the class moved him to tears.
“They did not see me cry, for the record,” he said laughing. Or as he wrote on Reddit, “I cried the proudest tears I have ever shed.”
He said the kids not only clapped, but when the music stopped, Mark — the really tough one – stood up and said “That was for you Mr. Kyle!”
“Harry and Mark… they might tick off every teacher they ever have, but today they gave this teacher a moment he’ll never forget,” he wrote online.
Reaction to McGiverin’s story
McGiverin remembers having a mixed experience growing up and realizing he’s gay.
“When I was that age, I didn’t really understand what ‘gay’ was. When I was in Grade 8, It was just a word kids threw around to insult each other.”
Because he had only heard “gay” in a negative context, he said realizing as a teenager you’re gay, made him feel like “he had a disease.”
He has tried to put that into context for his students, to get them to understand what someone in their age group might be going through.
He said while the kids inspired him, he’s also impressed with how supportive the school and Peel District School Board have been.
Aside from marking the Day of Pink, all secondary schools in the Peel District School Board have gay-straight alliances (GSAs).
In June 2012, Ontario legislature passed Bill 35, mandating schools to allow GSAs started up by students.
The decision came after students from Catholic schools were denied the option to form GSAs.
A Mississauga Catholic school that fought against the mandate eventually permitted a GSA — as long as there was no mention in the club’s name of the words gay-straight alliance, rainbows, LGBTQ or questioning, The Spec reported.
The Hamilton-Wentworth School Board also relented, putting the same naming restrictions on the clubs.
Earlier this year the Toronto Catholic School board rejected a motion to ban GSAs. By a vote of seven to four, with some trustees calling the motion to forbid the clubs “outdated.”
Toronto also hosted OutShine, Canada’s first national gay-straight alliance summit, in May, welcoming hundreds of students and teachers to a weekend of workshops and discussions.
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