A night well-spent
So tonight I spent a good portion of my Saturday night standing around outside a high school after hours with a flashlight.
Ok, it's not quite as weird as it sounds.. You see, tonight at Olympic High School in Concord, there was an "80s Timewarp" dance for local teens. It was a bit more than that, though. Officially, it was "a dance for LGBTQ and Ally youth ages 14 to 20". Unofficially, though, it was Gay Prom.
Why was I there? Well, they asked for help. Apparently, when they brought up these plans with the Concord Police Department, the police got nervous about safety. This was a fairly widely advertised event after all, and it's the sort of thing certain types of people out there might not take kindly to. A bunch of gay teens all in one place might be a bit of a target. (not that the cops apparently wanted to do anything to help keep people safe, mind you.. despite this place being only a block or so from the Police Station, I noted not a single cop anywhere in sight (not even a drive-by), but that's a different issue)
So anyway, the organizers put out a call for adult volunteers to be on hand to make sure nothing bad happened. I figured it sounded like a worthwhile cause, and if there's one thing I'm reasonably good at, it's standing around and looking authoritative. There were actually a fairly good number of volunteers, considering that the call went out only a couple of days beforehand. Some of us stood around outside, others stood around inside, we welcomed the kids in in the beginning, checked around periodically, and made sure they got safely wherever they were going (car, BART, etc) when the whole thing let out. We were even joined by a few Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence for a while, too (I'd never met any before.. nice folks, though several of them, despite being (cross-)dressed to the nines, were still remarkably intimidating-looking. I know I wouldn't have wanted to mess with them...)
I'm pleased to report that the dance was a success, and not a hint of trouble the whole night. I really don't think we needed to be there at all, but I do agree it was better safe than sorry.
So that's what I did with my Saturday night. Not the usual drill, but definitely worthwhile, and kinda a nice change of pace. It really reaffirmed my feelings on a bunch of these issues too, mostly for one reason: There's a bunch of people out there who are quick to denounce LGBTQ folks, including all of these kids, as horrible people (even sub-human), and harrass them, or worse, and yet looking at the kids I saw today at this dance gave me more hope for the future than I've gotten from anywhere else in a long time. These are the good kids. You can tell just by looking at them, and seeing how they interact with the people around them. Many of these teenagers have already taken more crap in their lives than anyone should have to, and despite all of that they're still genuinely nice human beings. If I have to choose between that sort of person and the sort who stands up behind a pulpit and condemns people and spreads paranoia as part of their daily routine, I know where I stand. These kids are the sort of people the world needs more of. The more of them we get, the better off we'll all be.
If I can be a part of encouraging that in whatever small way, sign me up.
Ok, it's not quite as weird as it sounds.. You see, tonight at Olympic High School in Concord, there was an "80s Timewarp" dance for local teens. It was a bit more than that, though. Officially, it was "a dance for LGBTQ and Ally youth ages 14 to 20". Unofficially, though, it was Gay Prom.
Why was I there? Well, they asked for help. Apparently, when they brought up these plans with the Concord Police Department, the police got nervous about safety. This was a fairly widely advertised event after all, and it's the sort of thing certain types of people out there might not take kindly to. A bunch of gay teens all in one place might be a bit of a target. (not that the cops apparently wanted to do anything to help keep people safe, mind you.. despite this place being only a block or so from the Police Station, I noted not a single cop anywhere in sight (not even a drive-by), but that's a different issue)
So anyway, the organizers put out a call for adult volunteers to be on hand to make sure nothing bad happened. I figured it sounded like a worthwhile cause, and if there's one thing I'm reasonably good at, it's standing around and looking authoritative. There were actually a fairly good number of volunteers, considering that the call went out only a couple of days beforehand. Some of us stood around outside, others stood around inside, we welcomed the kids in in the beginning, checked around periodically, and made sure they got safely wherever they were going (car, BART, etc) when the whole thing let out. We were even joined by a few Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence for a while, too (I'd never met any before.. nice folks, though several of them, despite being (cross-)dressed to the nines, were still remarkably intimidating-looking. I know I wouldn't have wanted to mess with them...)
I'm pleased to report that the dance was a success, and not a hint of trouble the whole night. I really don't think we needed to be there at all, but I do agree it was better safe than sorry.
So that's what I did with my Saturday night. Not the usual drill, but definitely worthwhile, and kinda a nice change of pace. It really reaffirmed my feelings on a bunch of these issues too, mostly for one reason: There's a bunch of people out there who are quick to denounce LGBTQ folks, including all of these kids, as horrible people (even sub-human), and harrass them, or worse, and yet looking at the kids I saw today at this dance gave me more hope for the future than I've gotten from anywhere else in a long time. These are the good kids. You can tell just by looking at them, and seeing how they interact with the people around them. Many of these teenagers have already taken more crap in their lives than anyone should have to, and despite all of that they're still genuinely nice human beings. If I have to choose between that sort of person and the sort who stands up behind a pulpit and condemns people and spreads paranoia as part of their daily routine, I know where I stand. These kids are the sort of people the world needs more of. The more of them we get, the better off we'll all be.
If I can be a part of encouraging that in whatever small way, sign me up.