The American Civil Liberties Union is not giving up on a Gay-Straight Alliance for the students of Carver Middle School.
The ACLU has filed a notice with a federal district court that they will continue the legal fight against the Lake County School Board, stemming from a December lawsuit on behalf of students trying to form the GSA. On Aug. 19, U.S. District Judge William Terrell Hodges dismissed the lawsuit. The ACLU had a Sept. 21 deadline to appeal.
“This effort is far from over,” stated ACLU of Florida LGBT rights staff attorney Daniel Tilley in a media release. “For years, these students have been trying to show the grown-ups at Lake County Schools that there is a bullying problem at Carver Middle School and that they have a solution. GSAs exist in schools all across Florida, and students at Carver have a right to establish one and have it be treated the same as any other student club. These young people are determined to have their club recognized and make their school a safer and more welcoming place, and we are determined to stand by them in that effort.”
This is the second lawsuit for a GSA at Carver Middle School. In 2012, then-14-year-oldBayli Silberstein requested permission to start a GSA at her school. After months of legal wrangling and school board meeting debates, a judge granted Silberstein permission to form the club for the remainder of her eighth grade year, which ended in the summer of 2013. That settlement has expired, Bayli has moved onto high school and now, the GSA no longer meets at Carver Middle School.
In the meantime, the Lake County School District is attempting to recoup around $7,000 in legal fees related to the case.
