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Troublemakers: Young People as Unruly Activists in an Anti-Trans US School Context

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Title: Troublemakers: Young People as Unruly Activists in an Anti-Trans US School Context
Language: English
Authors: Sally Campbell Pirie (ORCID 0000-0001-9005-7534)
Source: Education, Citizenship and Social Justice. 2026 21(1):18-41.
Availability: SAGE Publications. 2455 Teller Road, Thousand Oaks, CA 91320. Tel: 800-818-7243; Tel: 805-499-9774; Fax: 800-583-2665; e-mail: journals@sagepub.com; Web site: https://sagepub.com
Peer Reviewed: Y
Page Count: 24
Publication Date: 2026
Document Type: Journal Articles
Reports - Descriptive
Education Level: Secondary Education
Junior High Schools
Middle Schools
Descriptors: Secondary School Students, Secondary School Teachers, Administrators, Parents, Transgender People, Gender Identity, Activism, Community Action, Violence, Safety, Gender Discrimination, Student Reaction, Teacher Response, Expectation, Values Education, Middle Schools, Religious Factors, Social Influences, Change Agents
DOI: 10.1177/17461979241242000
ISSN: 1746-1979
1746-1987
Abstract: This piece of comics-based research (CBR) tells the story of young people's activism and adult lassitude in progressive US communities where the transgender and nonbinary youth had seemed well supported, but were in fact targeted by school staff at two middle-grade schools. While there ensued various forms of protest and activism, adults encouraged children to engage in adult-curated, docile forms, such as making chalk art on the sidewalk in front of the middle school, or writing letters to administration. Many young people refused these forms and instead used "unruly" forms of activism. These included defacing school spaces and other means of disrupting institutional functioning. They saw adult-curated docile activism as a frustratingly inert treatment. Even in such a clear situation, many adults seemed still more uncomfortable with unruly activism, cast as "troublemaking" than with adult transgressions, and refused to see the children as anything other than improper. This comic describes children's unruly activism in the context of adult violence and adult-curated docile activism as a form of control--and reflects on adult discomfort as a fulcrum of complex power. Reflections on reframing all child "misbehavior" as radical action conclude the comic narrative.
Abstractor: As Provided
Entry Date: 2026
Accession Number: EJ1499369
Database: ERIC
FullText Text:
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  Data: Troublemakers: Young People as Unruly Activists in an Anti-Trans US School Context
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Sally+Campbell+Pirie%22">Sally Campbell Pirie</searchLink> (ORCID <externalLink term="https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9005-7534">0000-0001-9005-7534</externalLink>)
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="SO" term="%22Education%2C+Citizenship+and+Social+Justice%22"><i>Education, Citizenship and Social Justice</i></searchLink>. 2026 21(1):18-41.
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  Data: SAGE Publications. 2455 Teller Road, Thousand Oaks, CA 91320. Tel: 800-818-7243; Tel: 805-499-9774; Fax: 800-583-2665; e-mail: journals@sagepub.com; Web site: https://sagepub.com
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  Data: Journal Articles<br />Reports - Descriptive
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="EL" term="%22Secondary+Education%22">Secondary Education</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="EL" term="%22Junior+High+Schools%22">Junior High Schools</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="EL" term="%22Middle+Schools%22">Middle Schools</searchLink>
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  Data: 10.1177/17461979241242000
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  Data: 1746-1979<br />1746-1987
– Name: Abstract
  Label: Abstract
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  Data: This piece of comics-based research (CBR) tells the story of young people's activism and adult lassitude in progressive US communities where the transgender and nonbinary youth had seemed well supported, but were in fact targeted by school staff at two middle-grade schools. While there ensued various forms of protest and activism, adults encouraged children to engage in adult-curated, docile forms, such as making chalk art on the sidewalk in front of the middle school, or writing letters to administration. Many young people refused these forms and instead used "unruly" forms of activism. These included defacing school spaces and other means of disrupting institutional functioning. They saw adult-curated docile activism as a frustratingly inert treatment. Even in such a clear situation, many adults seemed still more uncomfortable with unruly activism, cast as "troublemaking" than with adult transgressions, and refused to see the children as anything other than improper. This comic describes children's unruly activism in the context of adult violence and adult-curated docile activism as a form of control--and reflects on adult discomfort as a fulcrum of complex power. Reflections on reframing all child "misbehavior" as radical action conclude the comic narrative.
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  Data: 2026
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  Data: EJ1499369
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        Value: 10.1177/17461979241242000
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      – Text: English
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        PageCount: 24
        StartPage: 18
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      – SubjectFull: Secondary School Students
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Secondary School Teachers
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      – SubjectFull: Administrators
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      – SubjectFull: Parents
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      – SubjectFull: Transgender People
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      – SubjectFull: Gender Identity
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      – SubjectFull: Activism
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      – SubjectFull: Community Action
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Violence
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Safety
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Gender Discrimination
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Student Reaction
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Teacher Response
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Expectation
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      – SubjectFull: Values Education
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      – SubjectFull: Change Agents
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      – TitleFull: Troublemakers: Young People as Unruly Activists in an Anti-Trans US School Context
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