What Schools Miss About LGBTQ+ History and Why It Matters | Ep. 172 (with Robert Keston)

“If we don’t tell queer history, students grow up with fake education—and fake history is the foundation of oppression.”

In this episode, Robert Keston, President & CEO of the Stonewall National Museum Archives & Library in Fort Lauderdale, shares how queer educators can resist erasure and fight for visibility in schools. From his activism during the AIDS crisis to leading one of the largest LGBTQ+ archives in the U.S., Robert brings urgent perspective on what’s at stake when history is silenced.

You’ll hear:

• Why teaching LGBTQ+ history is essential for democracy, not just inclusion
• How queer teachers can show up authentically in hostile political climates
• What Florida’s book bans reveal about education and power

If you’ve ever wondered how to bring queer history into your classroom—or how to hold onto hope while teaching in hostile states—this episode is for you.

Tap play to reclaim queer visibility in education and remind students they are part of history.

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This podcast explores the challenges and successes of queer representation in education, tackling topics like burnout, tokenism, doxing, and the role of advocacy in building inclusive classrooms, safe spaces, and anti-bullying strategies. It centers support for gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, asexual, aromantic, agender, two-spirit, and non-binary teachers, and addresses how gender identity in schools can be honored to combat isolation and foster community.

Teaching While Queer is a podcast for LGBTQ+ educators navigating teaching, leadership, and survival in today’s schools. The show explores queer and trans representation in education, educator burnout, book bans, workplace discrimination, tokenism, doxing, and advocacy—while sharing practical strategies for building inclusive classrooms, affirming school cultures, and safer learning environments. Episodes center gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, nonbinary, asexual, aromantic, agender, and Two-Spirit educators, with conversations on gender identity in schools, anti-bullying practices, mental health, and community care. This podcast supports ed

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Queering Education is a Teaching While Queer podcast centering LGBTQ+ educators and the real-world realities of teaching while queer. We explore queer representation in education, including burnout, tokenism, doxing, visibility, boundaries, and advocacy for inclusive classrooms, safe schools, and anti-bullying practices.

This podcast supports gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, non-binary, asexual, aromantic, agender, and two-spirit teachers, and addresses how gender identity in schools can be honored to reduce isolation, protect educators, and build community.

Support the podcast and spread the message with merch from Equalitees.Me.

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Keywords: Teaching While Queer, queer educators, LGBTQ teachers, inclusive education, gender identity in schools, safe classrooms, anti-bullying strategies, educator burnout, LGBTQ advocacy, queer visibility in education