Edition: U.S. / Global  Don't Segregate Gay Students  Published:
August 2, 2003  As a young gay man only a few years out of high
school, I see the appeal of the Harvey Milk High School, a
public school in New York City for gay, lesbian, bisexual and
transgender students that will be expanded this fall. But it is
the easy way out — an exercise in wishful thinking that will do
little to foster tolerance.  I know that public high schools can
be unfriendly and scary, especially if you are homosexual. But
the purpose of high school is not just earning a diploma, but
also learning how to interact with people who may be different
from you. There's no way an isolated, segregated environment
will teach homosexual and heterosexual students to coexist and
respect each other.  After years of keeping silent, I decided to
come out during my sophomore year in high school. I knew it
wouldn't be easy, but at least I would be facing reality. My
school, Schenley High School in Pittsburgh, is an inner-city
public high school. It