parental fear vs. self-expression
“You’re trying to ruin a woman’s career, and why? Because you’re bored? You’re afraid of someone who’s different than you?” This is the conclusion a former student of Judy Buranich comes to in the video above. Buranich is a high school English teacher in Middleburg, PA who has been teaching for 33 years and has been a published novelist for nine years. But — horror! — she writes erotic romance novels under a pseudonym. And — ewwww! — she teaches teenagers; as in, people with all the physiology, biology, chemistry and psychology to engage in erotic acts, but who lack a culture with a grounded perspective on how their sexuality is part of their holistic health and simple being-ness. And depending on which side of the magic number 18 the two partners in a teenage couple fall, they may even lack legal sanction.
Recently a few parents in the school district where Buranich teaches discovered her double life, taking the issue to the school board and the local news. Happily, there has been a groundswell of support and it does not look like her job is actually threatened. But I’d like to extend the train of thought from the opening quote a bit further. Not only do we have a group of people who are bored, but I would suggest they may lack passion for their lives in general, as well as a feeling of power. After all, who usually cuts down those who express their creativity and passion? People who themselves have had their passion and creativity shut down early in life. And boy, do we have a society full of adults in this boat.