An elite school’s ban on gay partners is motivated by image, say activists. Iain Clacher reports.
A prestigious Brisbane private school allegedly told a gay student its policy banning same sex partners from the end-of-year formal would be “quietly changed” if he didn’t “cause too much trouble”.
The student, whose family does not want him to be named, said he had approached the Anglican Church Grammar School (“Churchie”) to request permission to take a same-sex partner to the formal.
"(They) said to me, 'if you start a political movement this is going to get blown out of proportion. If you go quietly about this and if you don't cause us too much trouble, we will just quietly change the rules so they're allowed and no one gets hurt'," the student told the Courier-Mail newspaper.
"At the start of 2006, there was no one at the school who was openly gay in Churchie but now there are dozens. You could say it's the changing times but it's been brought about by the efforts of a few brave individuals.”
He said the school, which was “generally accepting”, faced a possible boycott of the formal if same-sex couples were barred.
He also called on his fellow gay pupils to confront the school administration.
Headmaster Jonathan Hensman said he would consider taking the issue to the school council if any of the students approached him directly.
"We don't intend to change our practice. As well as being a social occasion, it's an education forum and to that end the school decides what is appropriate behaviour and what is not.
"Not all students take their girlfriends. Some take a female friend. It's about protocols and decorums," he said.
However, Tasmanian activist Rodney Croome described the school’s stance as “crud”.
“Because their pitch is to status-conscious, upwardly-mobile parents, elite private schools will do anything to avoid controversy, even if it means fostering a culture of lies and deceit in which same-sex relationships are tolerated only while they’re not public,” Croome said.
Parents and Friends of lesbians and Gays (PFLAG) spokesperson Shelley Argent told Queensland Pride she also suspected the school’s stance was motivated by concern for its image.
“Schools, especially private schools, get their money through being a little elitist and a lot of it has to do with image,” she said.
“They don’t wasn’t to address the issue of homosexuality. They know it’s there but they don’t want to deal with it.
“They need to realise that young gay people are coming out much earlier these days. I don’t think that’s a bad thing. Young people have confidence in themselves.”
Nonetheless, most gay students still stay quiet about their sexuality at high school to avoid bullying and ostracism, she said.
Queensland Anti-Discrimination Commissioner Susan Booth said it was unlawful for schools, whether public or private, to discriminate against gay students. She declined to comment directly on the case as it was a “potential complaint”.
However, the students said they would not be launching an anti-discrimination case against the school.
Anglican Archbishop of Brisbane Phillip Aspinall said that while the issue was best left to the school itself, gay students “should be treated with the utmost respect".
However, Open Doors Youth Service director Russell Flynn said LGBT students would not achieve “academic and personal potential” until the education system “embraced” them.
“We think this edict does much to reinforce to the young people that who they are is inherently unacceptable; and that can be very harmful,” Flynn said.
“Open Doors would hope that all schools would be more enlightened than this,” he said.
An elite school’s ban on gay partners is motivated by image, say activists. Iain Clacher reports. 
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