If you're a lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgendered youth in Southern California, you've probably got enough to worry about without having your school board sanction open harassment by your peers. Unfortunately, some elected officials have chosen ideological zealotry over the welfare of our children.

It happened in Westminster this year. Extreme conservative school board members decided to reject the state's guidelines protecting transgendered people from discrimination and harassment, even though doing so risked thousands of dollars. Outraged parents and community members have launched a recall effort to remove those board members who place their religiously motivated intolerance ahead of providing educational services to children.

Sad to say, we've got a similar problem here in Southwest Riverside County.

Murrieta school board President Kenneth Dickson opposes a proposed school policy which would ban harassment of students on account of race, religion, gender and sexuality.

Students are prevented from discussing important issues, Dickson told me, by these "so-called hate behavior policies," which he views as an affront to free speech.

One of those important issues appears to be whether students should be ashamed of being gay. Besides being school board president, Dickson is also a lawyer, and he currently represents Tyler Harper, a Poway High School student who was suspended for wearing a T-shirt that reads "Homosexuality is shameful."

Dickson believes that Harper's rights to free speech were violated, and uses this as an example of why a policy similar to the Poway anti-harassment rules should not be implemented in Murrieta.

But what about our bisexual, lesbian, gay and transgendered students in Murrieta schools? Why aren't they entitled to attend school in a supporting and safe environment where they can learn their lessons rather than face harassment from less-tolerant peers?

Courts have held that students in schools have limits on their freedom of expression, especially when that expression disrupts the learning process. Hate speech on T-shirts, no matter who it targets, is simply not acceptable in school.

Harassment of gay, lesbian, bisexual or transgendered students can have repercussions beyond simply hurt feelings. Gay teens attempt suicide two to three times more often than straight students. Transgendered youth are at even greater risk. Ensuring that school is a place for learning, and not for torment, is essential for these children and all others who are perceived as different.

For this reason, it's important to have leadership in the schools that recognizes a duty to the welfare of all our students, especially those who are most vulnerable to insults, taunts and jeers that may escalate into physical abuse. Unfortunately, Murrieta has a school board president who is fine with name-calling.

"What's a name, what's hate behavior? A lot of that is in the eye of the beholder and it's a moving target," Dickson told The Californian last month.

Maybe Dickson's OK with name-calling because he does it himself. In a letter to The Californian, Dickson followed the lead of Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and referred to Democratic state lawmakers as "girlie-men."

"Girlie-men." Is this someone we can trust to ensure the safety of Murrieta's transgendered and gay students?

Kynn Bartlett of Lake Elsinore is a regular columnist for The Californian; e-mail: column@kynn.com.