Kids' dress-up day draws Christian ire

[LiberalNation]

People blowing things way out of proportion. It was innocent fun.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080407/ap_on_re_us/cross_dressing_kids;_ylt=AqC0zvnaxvJ2pj8_cMgbGPVvz wcF

REEDSBURG, Wis. - An elementary-school event in which kids were encouraged to dress as members of the opposite gender drew the ire of a Christian radio group, whose angry broadcast prompted outraged calls to the district office.

Students at Pineview Elementary in Reedsburg had been dressing in costume all last week as part of an annual school tradition called Wacky Week. On Friday, students were encouraged to dress either as senior citizens or as members of the opposite sex.

A local resident informed the Voice of Christian Youth America on Friday. The Milwaukee-based radio network responded by interrupting its morning programming for a special broadcast that aired on nine radio stations throughout Wisconsin. The broadcast criticized the dress-up day and accused the district of promoting alternative lifestyles.

"We believe it's the wrong message to send to elementary students," said Jim Schneider, the network's program director. "Our station is one that promotes traditional family values. It concerns us when a school district strikes at the heart and core of the Biblical values. To promote this to elementary-school students is a great error."

Schneider co-hosts "Crosstalk," a nationally syndicated call-in Christian radio show.

After the program aired, both the school and Reedsburg School District office were flooded with calls complaining about the event.

The response surprised Principal Tammy Hayes, who said no one had raised any objections beforehand. She said a flier detailing Wacky Week had been sent home with children the prior week, and an announcement was also included in teacher newsletters.

The dress-up day was not an attempt to promote cross-dressing, homosexuality or alternative gender roles, district administrator Tom Benson said.

"The promotion of transgenderism — that was not our purpose," Benson told the Baraboo News Republic. "Our purpose was to have a Wacky Week, mixing in a bit of silliness with our reading, writing and arithmetic."

The theme for Friday's dress-up day came from students, Hayes said.

"It's different every year. They basically present the ideas, and they vote on what they would like from Monday through Friday," Hayes said. "... They did not mean anything by this day. They were trying to have fun and come up with a fun dress-up day."

[avatar4321]

I can't imagine why this would upset parents. I mean why shouldnt they just allow the school to promote confusion among children like this at their young age and then blame it on the children when they get caught.

Looks like this could have been solved pretty fast just by some common sense on behalf of the teachers.

[Nukeman]

I can't imagine why this would upset parents. I mean why shouldnt they just allow the school to promote confusion among children like this at their young age and then blame it on the children when they get caught.

Looks like this could have been solved pretty fast just by some common sense on behalf of the teachers.:lol::lol::lol::lmao::lmao::lmao:

I love it "teachers taking responsibly" when the shit hits the fan.......



Now that being said I do believe they are making a huge mountain out of a mole hill..... They didn't call it "transgender day" or "transvestite day". They were basically doing a opposite day and yes that included dressing as the opposite sex..

I remember being in high school and having the powderpuff football game, you know when the cheerleaders would become the football players and the football players would become the cheerleaders!!! A lot of thing that start out as fun become bastardized by the cynical in this country. Many look for the "evil" or bad in situations and don't allow kids to just have fun and be kids. Everything has to have sexual connotations or be moral wrong. Hell be todays standards most on here should not even be alive let alone normal......

[bullypulpit]

People blowing things way out of proportion. It was innocent fun.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080407/ap_on_re_us/cross_dressing_kids;_ylt=AqC0zvnaxvJ2pj8_cMgbGPVvz wcF

REEDSBURG, Wis. - An elementary-school event in which kids were encouraged to dress as members of the opposite gender drew the ire of a Christian radio group, whose angry broadcast prompted outraged calls to the district office.

Students at Pineview Elementary in Reedsburg had been dressing in costume all last week as part of an annual school tradition called Wacky Week. On Friday, students were encouraged to dress either as senior citizens or as members of the opposite sex.

A local resident informed the Voice of Christian Youth America on Friday. The Milwaukee-based radio network responded by interrupting its morning programming for a special broadcast that aired on nine radio stations throughout Wisconsin. The broadcast criticized the dress-up day and accused the district of promoting alternative lifestyles.

"We believe it's the wrong message to send to elementary students," said Jim Schneider, the network's program director. "Our station is one that promotes traditional family values. It concerns us when a school district strikes at the heart and core of the Biblical values. To promote this to elementary-school students is a great error."

Schneider co-hosts "Crosstalk," a nationally syndicated call-in Christian radio show.

After the program aired, both the school and Reedsburg School District office were flooded with calls complaining about the event.

The response surprised Principal Tammy Hayes, who said no one had raised any objections beforehand. She said a flier detailing Wacky Week had been sent home with children the prior week, and an announcement was also included in teacher newsletters.

The dress-up day was not an attempt to promote cross-dressing, homosexuality or alternative gender roles, district administrator Tom Benson said.

"The promotion of transgenderism — that was not our purpose," Benson told the Baraboo News Republic. "Our purpose was to have a Wacky Week, mixing in a bit of silliness with our reading, writing and arithmetic."

The theme for Friday's dress-up day came from students, Hayes said.

"It's different every year. They basically present the ideas, and they vote on what they would like from Monday through Friday," Hayes said. "... They did not mean anything by this day. They were trying to have fun and come up with a fun dress-up day."

Just another case of right wing-nuts with too much time on their hands.

[Hagbard Celine]

I can't imagine why this would upset parents. I mean why shouldnt they just allow the school to promote confusion among children like this at their young age and then blame it on the children when they get caught.

Looks like this could have been solved pretty fast just by some common sense on behalf of the teachers.

??? "Promoting confusion?" Give me a break man. It didn't have anything to do with sexual identity until the fun police (i.e. fundies) attached that meaning to it. They shouldn't take it out on innocent kids if they're uncomfortable in their own skin.

[Monkeybone]

though i call myself conservative, i have to go with that this is just for funnzies. and already mentioned, it ain't called ' Opposite sex dress day" or "transvestite day" (by Nuke). it is wacky day. non-normal day. so if anything, it should show that what they are doing isn't normal. shouldn't that be a win-win? c'mon now ppl. let ppl live.