Education News | Page 9 unique history of marginalization , their ability to " see with both eyes ," and " to live in two worlds " and to act as intermediaries and go-betweens between two racialized solitudes , all of this was a huge inspiration to me . It made my " issues " seem trivial in comparison .
Jacq : I came out to my family and classmates when I was 11 years old — over 20 years ago , when children that young weren ' t really as open as they are now . I lived and learned in a Catholic education context , and this significantly impacted the way that I experienced school as an openly queer kid .
I think I was really lucky to have progressive Catholic educators as parents . Both of my parents are established Catholic educators in the Northwest Territories , and they protected me unconditionally within my school system , and they were positioned to do so as educators and administrators who worked within it . I definitely experienced some homophobia from my classmates and teachers , but I think I was shielded from a lot of it because of who my parents were . I know other queer kids in Catholic schools aren ' t that lucky .
Still , when I was in Grade 5 , I approached my elementary school principal and asked if I could plan something in school for May 17 , the International Day Against Homophobia , Biphobia & Transphobia . She said " no ." I walked out of her office thinking to myself : " You will rue the day that you told me I couldn ' t do this !" Ever since then , I have had a strong commitment and motivation to work on improving learning spaces for 2SLGBTQ + kids and teachers .
More recently , when I took my Master ' s of Education at the University of Regina where I focused on queering curriculum and community-based curriculum development , I was in an early childhood education course where I heard my colleagues ( most of whom were licensed and practicing teachers in Saskatchewan !) share anti-gay and anti-trans dogwhistles about queer and trans children . I was amazed at how many really competent teachers were spouting off talking points that I thought everybody understood were violent and obviously harmful towards 2SLGBTQ + communities . This has led me to develop a stronger interest in queering children ' s literature and queering early childhood education ; however , I ' m definitely not an expert yet !
j wallace skelton : GSD work and research is about me , my family , my children , my communities , and other 2SLGBTQA + people who do not get the love , welcome , language , and