Demonstrating resilience in the face of adversity: an embedded phenomenological case study of the Magic City Acceptance Academy

Abstract

Our research team explored a political campaign that targeted the Magic City Acceptance Academy (MCAA) as the ‘first transgender public school in the South’. Located near Birmingham, Alabama, MCAA opened in fall 2021 as one of the first LGBTQ + affirming charter schools in the United States. In spring 2022, gubernatorial candidate Tim James launched a series of negative TV and radio ads that defamed MCAA, ostensibly to generate votes from the ultra-conservate right wing of the Republican party. Our team conducted an embedded case study of the Tim James campaign as part of a multifaceted phenomenological case study of MCAA. We drew data from media coverage, key informant interviews, and a student focus group. Study findings revealed three themes: concerns for student safety, community support, and unanticipated benefits. Findings further suggested that Tim James’ overt heterosexist actions inherently endorsed binary framings of sexuality and gender, which served his political interests and sought to normalize and privilege cisnormativity and heterosexuality while marginalizing and excluding the needs of LGBTQ + students. The hate speech comprising James’ TV and radio ads reflects anti-LGBTQ + ideology and may serve as a preview of future campaigns that seek to demonize the LGBTQ + community for political gain.