Non-binary kids

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If this is important to your non-binary kid (it is to mine)—gender-neutral bathrooms are very scarce. Someone here tried to cite the fact that they exist in kindergarten to me (as evidence that my older kid doesn’t need anything other than that, I guess?) but bottom line is: they’re not here yet. Nurses’ office will be offered as the “fix.” Kid is nonbinary, not sick.

Welcome—even though facilities are slow to catch up.

All new builds in MCPS are now required to have gender neutral bathrooms. Poolesville HS has one on each floor in their new building.

This is great news! We’re nowhere near one, alas. They should retrofit.

[Anonymous]

I know that Viers Mill ES in Silver Spring is having a gender-neutral bathroom built this summer. I wonder if it is a county initiative to do this in all schools? Does anyone know?

OP- I do think you will be fine in any area of the county. Personally, I would stay away from Poolesvile and Damascus but that might just be my bias of living here my whole life and knowing those two communities as a little more insular- in truth they're both probably fine.

I hope you have an easy move!

[Anonymous]

My child was told by another that they were going to hell. In an elementary school in silver spring that has an active rainbow club. We contain multitudes.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I'm the PP who had kids at EMS, TPMS, AEHS, and MBHS, and just wanted to note that my nonbinary kid only ever encountered bullying from US-born kids, so I'm a little leery of this narrative about immigrants.

While it might be true that some of the families in MCPS (particularly in the eastern part of the county) come from religious backgrounds, the kids are usually pretty good at code-shifting. At home, they are diligent and Orthodox or Catholic or whatever, but at school they are just the same mix of theater kids, math kids, jocks, and science nerds as anyone else.

DP here. Each time my nonbinary elementary child was bullied it was by evangelical Latina girls.

[Anonymous]

MCPS elementary teacher here. The county is huge and diverse. That’s great for a lot of reasons, and it also means no matter which school you’re in there are going to be a diversity of beliefs and opinions, some which aren’t so accepting. The good news is there’s a district policy that requires access to a bathroom of your child’s choice and to use their chosen name if different from the name on their birth certificate, as well as correct pronouns. If you are having issues in your school, you can always advocate with this in mind!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My child was told by another that they were going to hell. In an elementary school in silver spring that has an active rainbow club. We contain multitudes.

Silver spring has a big population of people who attend Evangelical pentecostal or Orthodox churches. I'm sure if you stick around you'll see the big Halloween debate every year about how we have a huge population of students who do not celebrate Halloween because it goes against their faith traditions.

I am truly sorry that your child had to experience that I've had to experience something similar happened to me because of my ethnic and religious background and it just gut-wrenching and awful.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I know that Viers Mill ES in Silver Spring is having a gender-neutral bathroom built this summer. I wonder if it is a county initiative to do this in all schools? Does anyone know?

OP- I do think you will be fine in any area of the county. Personally, I would stay away from Poolesvile and Damascus but that might just be my bias of living here my whole life and knowing those two communities as a little more insular- in truth they're both probably fine.

I hope you have an easy move!

DC graduated recently from Poolesville HS. Lots of friends with different gender and sexuality identities changing around multiple times over their four years. The high school is 2/3 magnet from across upcounty. It very well may be different in elementary and middle school - I can’t speak to those contexts.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I'm the PP who had kids at EMS, TPMS, AEHS, and MBHS, and just wanted to note that my nonbinary kid only ever encountered bullying from US-born kids, so I'm a little leery of this narrative about immigrants.

While it might be true that some of the families in MCPS (particularly in the eastern part of the county) come from religious backgrounds, the kids are usually pretty good at code-shifting. At home, they are diligent and Orthodox or Catholic or whatever, but at school they are just the same mix of theater kids, math kids, jocks, and science nerds as anyone else.

DP

MoCo has been sooooo diverse for so many years that it’s accurate to say we have students who were born here but their parents or grandparents weren’t.

There is a big community of Latinos from conservative Christian sects (not catholic or other mainstream Christian denominations).

There is a big community of conservative Muslims.

And the black community has long-standing, well-documented issues with accepting the lgbtq community. (I mean, being on the down low is a phrase coined by that community).

Bullying happens everywhere, but I find the current generation of students far more open and accepting. Having said that, there are limits…and anyone who goes out of their way to be wildly different and is unnecessarily aggressive aboit it will likely prompt attention.

If it’s just pronouns, nbd. If it’s wearing cat ears and meowing during class (which we’ve observed in two mcps schools by non-binary students), that’s different.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm the PP who had kids at EMS, TPMS, AEHS, and MBHS, and just wanted to note that my nonbinary kid only ever encountered bullying from US-born kids, so I'm a little leery of this narrative about immigrants.

While it might be true that some of the families in MCPS (particularly in the eastern part of the county) come from religious backgrounds, the kids are usually pretty good at code-shifting. At home, they are diligent and Orthodox or Catholic or whatever, but at school they are just the same mix of theater kids, math kids, jocks, and science nerds as anyone else.

DP here. Each time my nonbinary elementary child was bullied it was by evangelical Latina girls.

And that’s a growing population in MoCo.

[Anonymous]

Thanks for removing the posts doxing my non-binary daughter that worked their way into this, once again showing the limitations of tolerance in the Takoma park community. I don't know what was said after I spoke up, nor do I want to know, but I'm reminded once more of how my family once moved here as happy, engaged people who always worked with our community for positive change... And how living among you has made me at least the most misanthropic person in Takoma Park.

[Anonymous]

Also, please stop picking on the poor immigrant kids who might have used the wrong pronouns with your enby.

[Anonymous]

Sorry, that should have read "non, non-binary" daughter. Because she's never been nonbinary, or a furry, or whatever other "weird" thing you think she is. Again, Im boggled you brogth us into this at all