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I am a student at Richland High. My entire life I have been picked out as "the gay kid," even before I knew I was gay myself. On a daily basis I hear the word "faggot" yelled at me at least five times. I've been faced with harassment pretty severely, but when I took it to the administration, the bullies were given warnings. The harassment stopped, yes, but how long until I am enduring the same treatment from another fellow student?

Let me explain. I am not trying to complain, I just want the public to know that there is an LGBT (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender) community here and that we do face hardship.

I don't expect to change anyone's views and I don't expect any better treatment than anybody else in the school, but I would like to be able to walk down the hall without being scrutinized for who I am. It's one thing to have a point of view; it's another to act negatively upon it. This is a request for the people of Richland: Stop discriminating against the LGBT community.

DOUG DOVE, Richland 5/19/2009
http://www.tri-cityherald.com/letters/story/583298.html