FIRST LGBT+ (A blog by and about LGBT+ people in FIRST)

[indieFan]

Originally Posted by Liam Fay

I unfortunately can't give you a perfect answer, but I can say that a LGBT+ FIRST blog would certainly open it up for discussion and give people who might have a better solution a voice.

Why would a thread on CD not serve the same purpose?

[Liam Fay]

Originally Posted by indieFan

Why would a thread on CD not serve the same purpose?

It could! But threads on CD come and go, and it would just make sense to have a website dedicated to the discussion of all of these topics.

[sean-from-5113]

Originally Posted by Mr_Moko

My friend (and co-founder of the blog) had to be stuck in his own room because he's trans and his school/the parents of his team saw him as a liability.

Imagine hearing all your friends giggling in their hotel rooms while you are alone and lying awake. No one on the team wanted me to room by myself, my mentors didn't want me by myself, but at the end of the day, the school administration decided for me. I wasn't told about my rooming situation until the day of.

[TheModMaster8]

Originally Posted by ajdoming

Unfortunately, there are many people for which "family is forever" doesn't apply. As young people likely to spend the next several years moving around and interacting with thousands of people I would discourage an attitude that 'friendship is fleeting'. If you cultivate and maintain your close friendships they can easily be lifelong and as fulfilling as familial relationships.

I know this, it is truly sad. I'm also not saying that you shouldn't try and make fiends, ("in friendships will normally fail given enough time") what I am saying though, is that most (Meaning if you have 10 friends, most likely you will have no more then 1-2 out of the 10 in 1-10 years)that you are still in contact with. and if you have a healthy relationship with your children/parents/siblings you will have that friendship forever.

[indieFan]

Originally Posted by Liam Fay

It could! But threads on CD come and go, and it would just make sense to have a website dedicated to the discussion of all of these topics.

Then explain to me how a blog works. I was under the impression that they are not designed for discussion.

[Mr_Moko]

Originally Posted by indieFan

Then explain to me how a blog works. I was under the impression that they are not designed for discussion.

You are correct when you say blogs are not the best when it comes to discussion. The blog is a way to share with the community.
For discussion on the other hand, we currently have a Discord server in the works to see how that can help interaction with other staff members and just anyone interested in communicating with one another!

[cadandcookies]

Originally Posted by Mr_Moko

You are correct when you say blogs are not the best when it comes to discussion. The blog is a way to share with the community.
For discussion on the other hand, we currently have a Discord server in the works to see how that can help interaction with other staff members and just anyone interested in communicating with one another!

A blog is also valuable in that it demands nothing except the attention of the reader. It can take time for people to become confident enough to actually share their experiences with others. Seeing other people share their similar experiences can provide validation to one's own experiences.

You don't need to present a complete "fix" all at once-- one blog that talks about LGBT+ experiences in FIRST is better than the zero blogs we had yesterday, even if it isn't a perfect blog and even if some people dislike or resent the fact that it exists.

For all of you out there questioning the need or purpose of this blog, I'd ask you to take a step back. It exists because some people felt strongly enough to make it exist. Trust them a little bit and see what they have to say-- we can all learn from the wildly diverse experiences of others.

[indieFan]

I am going to bow out of this thread now as I have been told privately that, "You are coming across as nitpicking for no reason." My intention was never to nitpick, but to question and challenge respectfully.

[Alan Anderson]

Originally Posted by indieFan

Why would a thread on CD not serve the same purpose?

Mostly because of people who jump in to question the whole concept and try to convince others that it is not a useful topic of discussion.

[Road Rash]

Originally Posted by sean-from-5113

Imagine hearing all your friends giggling in their hotel rooms while you are alone and lying awake. No one on the team wanted me to room by myself, my mentors didn't want me by myself, but at the end of the day, the school administration decided for me. I wasn't told about my rooming situation until the day of.

That's very sad. Unfortunately for you, administrators will often base their decisions out of the fear of the unknown. Unless your lucky to have an administrator willing to take a stand, they will often take the safe route. It's better to isolate the member than to take the potential heat from some angry parents, for example.

I'm not claiming to know what exactly went down in your particular situation, but it seems that the whole situation could've been avoided. If you have friends on the teams with parents willing to fight for you, perhaps they can bring the issue to school administration on your behalf.

[MysterE]

Originally Posted by sean-from-5113

Imagine hearing all your friends giggling in their hotel rooms while you are alone and lying awake. No one on the team wanted me to room by myself, my mentors didn't want me by myself, but at the end of the day, the school administration decided for me. I wasn't told about my rooming situation until the day of.

This - this, my friends, is the reason that these issues have to be discussed. I remember when I received a call from a parent who had a student that was trying to understand their sexuality.

"Is it ok that they stay in a room with someone of their same gender - especially if they are attracted to them?"

This question, asked by a parent trying to understand their own child, is only the beginning.

I have had students on my team from a large spectrum of the LGBT+ community, from the student seeking to understand their gender to students who had been gay for years. There is one thing that they have in common - they all have experienced some form of discrimination, bullying, or prejudice. They have had to suffer under ignorance and fear. They have had to hear their lifestyle choice used as an obscenity or as a description of something that is 'stupid' or 'wrong'.

FIRST is NOT just about robotics. It is about the growth of leaders - of Gracious Professionals that understand how to deal with differences with grace and with a lack of ignorance. It is to expand on the idea that everyone should have a superhero in STEM; someone that they can look to and say "There is someone who is like me and is successful." It is not an organization that avoids issues but one that should run to them because the best innovation happens when there is clarity, transparency, and understanding.

Whether it is by blog or by talking among our own teams, I think it is incumbent on FIRST teams as incubators of innovation and designers of leaders to help create people who can adapt to social changes with understanding and skill.

After all, when any student is isolated because of a difference - because of race, gender, social beliefs, or ideological concepts - we all lose.

Thanks.
Daniel.

[FrankJ]

Originally Posted by Alan Anderson

Mostly because of people who jump in to question the whole concept and try to convince others that it is not a useful topic of discussion.

Judging by the length of the thread, I would say that it is a useful discussion topic. Or at the very least a popular one.

[nrgy_blast]

Originally Posted by Mr_Moko

Putting them I'm a room with the gender they identify as would be much better.

My friend (and co-founder of the blog) had to be stuck in his own room because he's trans and his school/the parents of his team saw him as a liability.
This is extremely unfair to separate people just because of their gender, is it not?

No, it's not unfair. My team treats students just as we would junior coworkers in a professional environment. That means avoiding any potential interpersonal issues before they arise, if at all possible. This includes intentionally rooming guys/girls in separate rooms, keeping students that don't get along very well separated, and addressing any other potential issue with the least amount of conflict possible. FRC isn't here for social/sexual experimentation - it's here to begin developing our next generation of professionals and leaders.

[Liam Fay]

Originally Posted by nrgy_blast

No, it's not unfair. My team treats students just as we would junior coworkers in a professional environment. That means avoiding any potential interpersonal issues before they arise, if at all possible. This includes intentionally rooming guys/girls in separate rooms, keeping students that don't get along very well separated, and addressing any other potential issue with the least amount of conflict possible. FRC isn't here for social/sexual experimentation - it's here to begin developing our next generation of professionals and leaders.

And these trans students aren't "experimenting". They're simply trying to express who they are.

[Chris is me]

Originally Posted by nrgy_blast

FRC isn't here for social/sexual experimentation - it's here to begin developing our next generation of professionals and leaders.

What does placing people in rooms according to their identified gender have to do with sexual experimentation? Transgender students are not "social experiments" - they merely have a gender that does not match the one assigned to them at birth.

Ultimately, the entire practice of assigning rooms by gender is heteronormative and cisnormative, and it is difficult to get around these issues within the policies of many schools.