Whiz Kids: Leaders of Samohi's Gay Straight Alliance

With bullying incidents and teen suicides dominating news headlines related to students, the  has been spotlighting positive impacts made by local gay and lesbian teens, and reminding the students that it is a faith community that welcomes them with open arms.

On Sunday morning, the church staged the second of two Spirits of Hope Banquets honoring four leaders of 's Gay Straight Alliance: Emily Engle, Logan Henderson, Evan Kahn and Olivia Mudglian.

The first banquet took place at early last month, with the Church in Ocean Park's minister, the Rev. Janet McKeithen; ; former Mayor Judy Abdo; Rent Control Board Chairman Chris Braun; and School Board Vice President Ben Allen in attendance. The city leaders shared words of encouragement with the students.

Kahn and Mudglian, however, were unable to attend the ceremony, spurring the second banquet. It featured comments by McKeithen, Allen, Abdo, Torie Osborn of The California Alliance and Yolanda de Cordova from the .

On Sunday morning, Santa Monica Patch caught up with Henderson and Kahn, who attended the second banquet. Henderson, who is transgender and a sophomore, said he grew up in a Christian community that was not as welcoming as the Church in Ocean Park.

"It was difficult," Henderson said. "Then I learned about Janet and that there is a place where people can be involved in the religion [and accepted]."

According to Henderson, Samohi's GSA has been around for about 10 years and varies in size from 15 to 30 members.

Kahn, who is a senior, has been involved with the group since his first year at Samohi.

"I wanted to do something for this community that I had so recently become a part of," said Kahn, who is gay. "So I joined the alliance. The president at the time really made me feel at home and helped me learn so many great things."

Kahn and Mudglian, a junior, are co-presidents of the club. Engle is a senior. Vice President Abby Mahler, a junior, has been picking up some of Kahn's slack as the avid cellist also performs in two music ensembles at the school.

Henderson and Kahn said that, compared with other schools in Los Angeles County, the environment at Samohi is more welcoming to lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender teens.

"I've lived in other parts of L.A., and we are definitely a very open school," Henderson said. "We're trying to spread our beliefs and atmosphere" to other schools in the area.

"I'm so proud to be from a community that is so inclusive," said Allen, adding that there was a "proto version" of the GSA when he attended Samohi. "When I read the newspapers, I'm reminded by how far behind the rest of the nation is."

Abdo, who works for the Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District, said, "It's perfectly safe to be out [at Samohi]. And it's because of you and others who have stood up for many years to say who you are."

But even though Samohi is relatively accepting, "there is still prejudice," Kahn noted. He said that last year, when Samohi was holding its Project Safe Zone seminar—which raises awareness about sexism, homophobia and gender equity—someone wrote "fags" on one of the event signs. "In crayon, mind you," Kahn said. "I can't say that this is a utopian environment."

Members of the GSA and the Church in Ocean Park have a shared belief: that educating and raising awareness is the key to combating intolerance.

"My [Methodist Church] has some very negative things to say about the LGBT community," McKeithen said, noting that some of the church's views are "sinful, immoral and unethical."

"The majority of people think that churches say being gay is a sin," she said. "There's no such thing as a God who doesn't love you."

According to Henderson, "The first step is to educate [people]. Even if we spread our knowledge and people don't believe in what we believe in, it's important to get them educated."

Kahn also emphasized the importance of maintaining a dialogue on key issues.

"We tend to spend more time on talking about problems, not just seeing that they're there and moving on," he said. "I think people in Santa Monica tend to think this is a liberal environment where nothing can go wrong."

According to Kahn, that mindset may have contributed to the passage of anti-gay-marriage Proposition 8 in California in 2008.

"Los Angeles was a 'Yes on 8' area by 2 percent because of that mentality," he said.

Both Henderson and Kahn said they are inspired to become involved in GSAs after they graduate from Samohi. They both reiterated the importance of helping cultivate environments that are welcoming to LGBT teens, particularly ones who attend schools that aren't as accepting as Samohi.

"I didn't feel left out" at the school when he first began attending, Kahn said. "I was extremely lucky, and my parents were very accepting. I got help from my guidance counselor [Yunuen Valencia]. My friends were all very supportive. Mine is a success story."

Want to recommend a young person who has made extraordinary accomplishments in the Santa Monica community, for feature in "Whiz Kid"? Drop a line to Kurt.Orzeck@patch.com.

Past Whiz Kids:

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Editor's note: The author of this article was formerly a member of the Westside Interfaith Council, led by McKeithen.