“After Scandal: School Hires Witch”

for piano, electronics, and spoken word poet

2023

“After Scandal, School Hires Witch” moves from national to local, using news clips highlighting the trends towards anti-LGBTQIA+ hatred. In it, you will hear clips from CBC, CBS, Fox News, CPAC speakers, Poudre School District board meetings, Erin Lee’s Twitter feed, conservative podcastsand lists of anti-LGBTQIA+ legislation.

Locally, this piece responds to the hate spread by a group called “Parents Defending Education” and specifically uses clips of Erin Lee, a parent who began antagonizing the school district, local LGBTQIA+ youth organization SPLASH, and me after she learned her kid had been attending a GSA club without telling her about it. In it, you will hear Erin discuss how the school district has a radical “gender and sexuality ideology that hurts kids,” because they host clubs such as Gender & Sexuality Alliance (formerly referred to as Gay-Straight Alliances) where students can talk to others about their identities. I became the subject of this hatred because of my former work at the Alliance for Suicide Prevention, where I visited classrooms to teach students and staff about LGBTQIA+ suicide prevention and mental health.

During the second half, I read a poem describing my perspective of the story.

To view this piece, please contact me.