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Oregon Rejects Anti-Gay Initiative

Oregon voters defeated an anti-gay initiative Nov. 7 which could have prohibited even mentioning homosexuality in public schools.

The “Student Protection Act” initiative would have banned instruction that “encourages, sanctions, or promotes” homosexuality, as defined by the state board of education. Schools found in violation of the ban could potentially have lost some or all of their state financing.

Although the measure got enough support to make it on the ballot, a spokesperson for the Oregon Department of Education said the agency hasn’t received complaints from parents about schools promoting homosexuality.

“It seems like a non-issue,” spokesman Larry Austin said. “We hear comments and complaints all the time about class size, school funding, and teacher quality. But our phones have been silent on this.”

The measure lost by a slim 47% to 53% margin.</p