This story ran last week on http://ABCNews.com as an accompaniment to the article about challenges to anti-bullying programs in West Virginia. It describes the hard-won battle by a group of citizens in Novato, California (near San Francisco) who refused to be intimidated by a vocal minority of conservative critics. Even after 18 months of debate and discussion - and multiple school board votes ruling in favor of using "That's a Family!" in the classroom - these critics continue to try to discourage educators from using the film because of its inclusion of gay- and lesbian-headed families.

The group, United for Safe Schools Novato, was recently honored with a Marin Community Foundation Neighborhood Award for making positive grassroots change in their community. In addition to the award, they received $5,000 to help them in their efforts to create safe schools!

Tolerance Film Overcomes Surprise Intolerance
Oct. 10 - Challenges to anti-bullying measures and programs in states such as Maine, Florida and Washington have mirrored those facing the Civil Rights Team Project in West Virginia. Recently, a film also criticized for allegedly promoting a gay agenda won a battle in Novato, Calif., when the local school board voted in August to show it to all fifth-graders on a pilot run for one year.

The makers of That's a Family, one of a series of tolerance films produced by Women's Educational Media in San Francisco, insisted the film was designed to show children - and help them accept - the different kind of families their classmates may belong to, including same-sex parents, single parents and families where grandparents act as parents. However, for 18 months, critics of the film in Novato argued that it was really a veiled promotion of homosexuality and that it violated parents' right to instill their own values into their children.

The opposition in Novato surprised the film's makers because it had played in 78 school districts in 41 states and was endorsed by the PTA. They said their critics mischaracterized the movie, equating its recognition of the changed times and the changing face of today's family with the promotion of a gay agenda.

"It reflects family diversity. It acknowledges the diversity in families as opposed to promoting certain lifestyles," said Debra Chasnoff, director and producer of That's a Family. "It's important to make that distinction. Somehow that manages to get twisted and turned around and people think we are promoting a gay agenda. Our philosophy is that we are letting young children speak for themselves and tell other children about their lives and their families and tell them what their lives are like."

Chasnoff said there is no sexual intimacy in the movie, and she encourages school officials to involve parents in studies and discussions following film viewings. Following its pilot run, she hopes school administrators will feel comfortable showing That's a Family to all grade levels.

Most of all the film's supporters hope the movie gives its young audience a better understanding of each other and makes them think twice about teasing and calling each other names.

"My hope is that when a child sees this, he will feel affirmed, that he and his family were acknowledged in this film, that they will feel better about his school, his community, more welcome and more safe," said Annan Paterson, co-chair of United for Safe Schools and a school psychologist in Novato. "When you have an empathy, an understanding of others, you are less likely to tease, to bully, to make fun of."

Chasnoff is completing work on another yet-to-be-titled film in her series that focuses primarily on bullying and name-calling. It will feature interviews with school bullies and bullying victims. Chasnoff is preparing herself for another possible backlash, especially since the film will tackle gay-bashing in schools.

"We are not shying away from the reality of children's lives," Chasnoff said. "We talk about the anti-gay names some of them are called on a daily basis. ... We're not eliminating that part of the truth. I wouldn't be surprised [if her new film encounters the same kind of opposition That's a Family did in Novato]. I hope they [critics] would see past that."

- Bryan Robinson
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Daniel Nevers
Director of Communications and Development
Women's Educational Media
2180 Bryant Street, Suite 203
San Francisco, CA 94110
415-641-4616 fax 415-641-4632
http://www.womedia.org

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