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A school district made a big move to protect transgender students. Here's what that's all about.

This is great news for trans kids in Fairfax County, Virginia.

Transgender students in northern Virginia got some good news when the Fairfax County School Board voted to revise the nondiscrimination policy to include gender identity.

The school board adopted the revised policy on the evening of Thursday, May 7, 2015. Until then, the district's policy banned discrimination on the basis of age, race, national origin, disability, religion, and sexual orientation, but not gender identity.

Tamara Derenak Kaufax of the Fairfax County School Board gave a brief rundown of why they decided to include gender identity in the existing policy.


"The decision by the school board to add 'gender identity to our nondiscrimination policy is to provide an environment which promotes equality where every student and employee is treated with dignity and respect. This tells our students and staff that school and the FCPS workplace are places where they can be safe from harassment and discrimination." — School Board Chair, Tamara Derenak Kaufax

So often, the conversation surrounding whether to protect trans students revolves around talk of bathrooms or locker rooms. The reality is, what bathroom a trans student uses is just one of several major challenges they face in school.

Trans kids are harassed, physically and sexually assaulted, and even expelled as a result of their gender.

According to the National Transgender Discrimination Survey, more than 3 out of 4 trans students report being harassed because of their gender.

Worse yet, the harassment isn't solely the product of students. Nearly 1 in 3 trans students reports being harassed by a teacher or school staff member.

National Transgender Discrimination Survey, 2011

The numbers can be startling, but sometimes we need to hear from those most affected by these types of policies — the trans students themselves.

Here's an example of Ashton Lee detailing some of the challenges he faced as a trans student.

When California was considering a statewide policy that would add trans nondiscrimination policies to all schools, one of the most vocal students was then-16-year-old Ashton Lee.
(Full disclosure, in my past job as a freelance writer, I interviewed Ashton for Rolling Stone.)

He discussed how subtle forms of discrimination, both overt and accidental, made school an unnecessarily challenging experience.

Being forced to go by the name he was given at birth, separated from the other boys, and lumped in with the girls in his class, Ashton began to struggle.

He talks about how great it was to finally come to terms with himself for who he really is, but how much it hurts to have his existence erased by classmates, teachers, and parents.

Ashton's public testimony helped put a face to the issue for California lawmakers.

When I spoke to Ashton for Rolling Stone, shortly after the bill passed, here's what he told me about what it meant to him to be able to be treated as himself in school and be treated like any other boy:

"As soon as the governor signed the bill, my school allowed me to use the proper restrooms. If the bill is overturned, it would be a huge blow to me, and I fear that I would have to return to pretending to be someone I'm not at school." — Ashton Lee

It can be hard to take in just how much of a challenge kids like Ashton face. Being a teenager is hard. Why make it any harder?


Hopefully, the actions of the Fairfax County School Board will have the same effect on trans students in northern Virginia as the law had in California.

Kids shouldn't have to worry about being bullied for who they are. And for the naysayers claiming that the school board's decision will lead to boys pretending to be girls in order to use the locker rooms or other nonsense, here's a fact: California's law has been in effect now for more than a year. There have been no issues. The only effect it's had has been an improved environment for trans kids.

Check out Ashton Lee's 2013 testimony in the video below.

Pop Culture

Here’s a paycheck for a McDonald’s worker. And here's my jaw dropping to the floor.

So we've all heard the numbers, but what does that mean in reality? Here's one year's wages — yes, *full-time* wages. Woo.

Making a little over 10,000 for a yearly salary.


I've written tons of things about minimum wage, backed up by fact-checkers and economists and scholarly studies. All of them point to raising the minimum wage as a solution to lifting people out of poverty and getting folks off of public assistance. It's slowly happening, and there's much more to be done.

But when it comes right down to it, where the rubber meets the road is what it means for everyday workers who have to live with those wages. I honestly don't know how they do it.

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Joy

5-star Scottish resort offers whimsical afternoon tea experience with 'naughty sheep'

Cameron House's Woolly Wellness retreat includes tea in the garden with adorably rude guests.

Cameron House/Naughty Sheep

Cameron House's Woolly Wellness retreat includes a unique sheep encounter.

Remember when "goat yoga" was all the rage? And then "cow cuddling" and "turkey cuddling" made everyone's bucket lists?

Now we can add "nuzzling with naughty sheep" to the mix, but with a fancy Scottish twist.

Less than an hour from Glasgow, Scotland, the Cameron House resort sits on the bonnie banks of Loch Lomond, looking as if it were plucked straight out of a fairy tale. Sprawling green grounds, gorgeous lake views and a four-story castled mansion greet guests as their "home away from home" (only better), and a perusal of the reviews show guests raving about the 5-star resort's elegance, beauty and exceptional service.

I mean, just look at this place:

drone view of cameron house grounds and lakeCameron House sit on Lake Lochmond in Scotland.Cameron House


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A pitbull stares at the window, looking for the mailman.


Dogs are naturally driven by a sense of purpose and a need for belonging, which are all part of their instinctual pack behavior. When a dog has a job to do, it taps into its needs for structure, purpose, and the feeling of contributing to its pack, which in a domestic setting translates to its human family.

But let’s be honest: In a traditional domestic setting, dogs have fewer chores they can do as they would on a farm or as part of a rescue unit. A doggy mom in Vancouver Island, Canada had fun with her dog’s purposeful uselessness by sharing the 5 “chores” her pitbull-Lab mix does around the house.

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@caitlin.the.realtor/TikTok, used with permission

Wait, so 90's fashion is in, but 90's hair is out?

Every era has its own version of what’s attractive. And very rarely does that aesthetic hold power with the following generation. In fact, it often becomes the opposite of cool.

Just think of Elvis. He might have been a universal sex symbol for a time, but it also wasn’t long before his pompadour became passé. Same goes for Paul Newman’s rugged manliness, David Cassidy’s babyface, Tom Selleck’s mustache. Indeed, for everything a season.

Which brings us to the 90s. The age of beach blonde surfer boys (real surfing skills not required, but a plus). Of flannel, lots of flannel, and super chiseled bodies. Let’s not forget this was the dawning of the term “metrosexual,” and also the time period that brought us that Calvin Klein ad with Mark Wahlburg.

How exactly would these guys measure up with the Gen Z kids today?

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popular

A wild Eurasian crow befriended a toddler and won't leave his side

Crows are so much smarter than we think.

A Eurasian crow.

A family from Denmark has created a touching video montage documenting their unique friendship with a wild Eurasian crow. This crow, affectionately named Russell, has become an honorary member of their household, forming special bonds with each family member, including the pets.

However, the crow's relationship with their son, 2-year-old Otto, is truly extraordinary. “They could spend hours just playing,” Otto’s mother, Laerke Luna, says in a video shared by The Dodo. "When Otto is outside, he will never leave Otto’s side.”

Russell, the free-spirited crow, ventures away from the family's home from time to time, but never for too long. He always comes back and announces his return by tapping on the door, swooping in to lounge on the sofa, or awaiting Otto's return from school atop their roof.

“When we are inside, he will sit inside the window because he wants Otto to go outside with him,” Laerke said.

The family’s relationship with Russell didn’t come out of nowhere. When Russell was a young bird, he had health problems so the family took him and nursed the bird back to health. Eventually, they witnessed his first attempts to fly.

Recently, Russell became friends with another family member, their second child, Hedwig. Although he does get a little annoyed with the bird’s frequent attempts to nab his pacifier.

Even though it’s rare for humans to strike up such a close bond with a crow, according to research, it’s not that surprising. Audubon says that crows are “some of the smartest animals in the world” with an intelligence “on par with chimpanzees.” They are also very social and family-oriented, so no wonder Russell loves Otto and his family.

Crow Named Russell Waits For His Favorite Kid To Get Home From School | The Dodo


Learning

Why you shouldn't throw your dishwasher pod into the bottom of your dishwasher

Dishwashers actually use the dirty water to know how to wash your dishes.

Photos by cottonbro studio and PhotoMIX Ltd. via Canva

Why your detergent shouldn't go in the bottom of the dishwasher

There always seem to be something going on with the pods and powders you're supposed to use in the dishwasher to clean your dishes. Either the pods don't dissolve completely or the powder gets all goopy and hard, never really fully dispensing into the dishwasher.

The inconsistency in product dispensing can leave you wondering if the dishes are even getting cleaned, causing some to toss the detergent pod into the bottom of the dishwasher. It would seem that placing the detergent at the bottom would allow for it to actually reach your dirty dishes. But Melissa Pateras, a domestic expert, explains that doing it that way isn't doing what you think it's doing.

Pateras actually breaks down exactly how dishwashers work to clean your dishes while explaining why putting the detergent on the bottom is ineffective.

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