Sexual activity bill killed

A bill allowing local school boards the right to prohibit students from using school facilities for groups or clubs promoting sexual activity was killed on Feb. 17 in the Education and Health Virginia Senate committee in a 9-6 vote.

According to the bill, public schools may not "encourage or promote sexual activity by unmarried minor students" through prohibiting the use of facilities.

Weatherholtz said he came up with the idea of the bill after some members of the Harrisonburg community sent him letters and e-mails protesting the formation of the Gay-Straight Alliance club at Harrisonburg High School last October.

The bill that recently passed in the House and was presented to the Senate was not the original version.

At first, the bill stated school clubs or other groups were not allowed to use school facilities or distribute literature if they "focused on supporting, assisting or justifying any lifestyle involving sexual behavior." Weatherholtz said that this change occurred to make the bill more clear.

"We wanted to make the bill constitutional and make most people happy about it," he said. "Now, it’s a little bit more palatable."

Weatherholtz also said he received many threats and hate mail in response to his bill, and has never attended a GSA meeting for personal reasons.

Harmony, JMU’s Gay, Lesbian, Transgender, Queer and Allies organization, was involved in the effort to oppose the bill’s passing.

"We actually had a group of students and officers go down to Richmond when these bills were being discussed in committee, simply to let the legislators know what we’re actually about," said senior Patrick Egan, executive director of Harmony. "[With] The executive board, we’ve all gotten letters and e-mails out to the various legislators. We have encouraged our members to do the same.

"There are a whole lot of consequences that [Weatherholtz is] not taking into consideration," Egan said.

"The GSA of my high school quite possibly saved my life. Had I not found it when I did, I very likely would have attempted suicide at some point."

HHS principal Irene Reynolds verified Egan’s statement.

"The Gay-Straight alliance was a support group to students [who were] interested in doing service projects," Reynolds said. "In addition to that, it was a group of hard-working kids very active in the community."

Reynolds said the bill did not drastically affect the school’s policies.

"We didn’t really concern ourselves with the bill," she said. "It clearly went against federal law."