Opinion: Today’s Gay & Lesbian Youth Are Tomorrow’s Gay & Lesbian Revolutionaries!

LGBT, Opinion — By Speak Equal on May 26, 2009 at 3:32 pm

LGBT Youth

Duckling Today, Swan Tomorrow

The issues effecting gay & lesbian youth in today’s society cannot be overlooked. As adults, it is our responsibility to strengthen and maintain our families and communities.

Families are the backbone of communities, and communities define a nation. This fact is what made the liberation of African slaves in the U.S. one of the most important human rights movements of the 19th century. It is also what made the Women’s Suffrage, Civil Rights, as well as the Gay & Lesbian Rights Movements as influential and pertinent to the development of American society as they were.

The Gay & Lesbian Rights Movement is as strong as it ever was, with new fights on new fronts everyday. However, as we push forward toward equality, education, and dialogue; it is important that we do not forget those members of our community whom cannot help themselves and have not yet been given the voice they deserve.

Youth.

Transgendered youth. Gay & Lesbian youth. Bisexual youth. Queer youth.

Welcome them into your homes, your hearts, your family. Listen to them. Wipe their tears. Share your experiences. They need it.

Volunteer at local shelters or community centers. Be sure to provide gay & lesbian youth-oriented workshops and/or events at your local gay pride event. Reach out. I know it’s hard to help someone else, especially when so many of us are fighting the good fight on our own home front, but … any little bit will help:

As we fight for political representation and recognition. As we fight to be seen as human beings and not freak shows. As we fight to feel and love and express who we are. We cannot forget to fight to protect those of us whom cannot protect themselves.

Most of us can easily name and locate a gay & lesbian bar, restaurant, bookstore, or networking center in our area. We can find unlimited amounts of information related to any PRIDE Parade/Event in any country across the world. We will avidly research and participate in any LGBT naughty or nice event we want, however I challenge any one of my readers to name and locate (without Google) at least three gay & lesbian youth-oriented support groups, shelters, or activity centers in their area. What about in the surrounding area of a favorite travel destination? Hometown? Three? Anyone? I grew up in inner city Detroit, and I’ll be the first to admit that I can name and easily locate two LGBT youth centers. I’ve traveled all over the country and couldn’t name a single one in any other city other than the one I currently live in, but I can name at least one favorite gay & lesbian bar in at least five states other than my own.

The gay & lesbian youth of today become the adult gay & lesbian activists our community will need tomorrow. Their cause is important, the problems they are facing in their schools and communities are real, and their banner is worth carrying. They cannot be allowed to live another day feeling unloved, overlooked, and unworthy.

2007 National School Climate Survey: Nearly 9 out of 10 LGBT Students Harassed

NEW YORK, Oct. 8, 2008 – GLSEN, the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network, today released the most comprehensive report ever on the experiences of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) students, the 2007 National School Climate Survey. The report is being released in conjunction with the announcement that GLSEN will partner with the Ad Council on a multiyear national public education campaign targeting anti-LGBT language among teenagers.

The survey of 6,209 middle and high school students found that nearly 9 out of 10 LGBT students (86.2%) experienced harassment at school in the past year, three-fifths (60.8%) felt unsafe at school because of their sexual orientation and about a third (32.7%) skipped a day of school in the past month because of feeling unsafe.

“The 2007 National School Climate Survey reveals that, on a whole, the situation is still dire for many LGBT youth when it comes to school safety,” GLSEN Executive Director Kevin Jennings said. “It’s hard to believe that anyone who reads this report could continue to turn the other way as our nation’s LGBT students are bullied and harassed at alarming rates. The good news is there’s hope. The 2007 National School Climate Survey also shows that when schools and educators take action, they can make a drastic difference.”

Key Findings of the 2007 National School Climate Survey include:
A Hostile School Climate and the Effects on Academic Achievement:

86.2% of LGBT students reported being verbally harassed, 44.1% reported being physically harassed and 22.1% reported being physically assaulted at school in the past year because of their sexual orientation.
73.6% heard derogatory remarks such as “faggot” or “dyke” frequently or often at school.
More than half (60.8%) of students reported that they felt unsafe in school because of their sexual orientation, and more than a third (38.4%) felt unsafe because of their gender expression.
31.7% of LGBT students missed a class and 32.7% missed a day of school in the past month because of feeling unsafe, compared to only 5.5% and 4.5%, respectively, of a national sample of secondary school students.
The reported grade point average of students who were more frequently harassed because of their sexual orientation or gender expression was almost half a grade lower than for students who were less often harassed (2.8 versus 2.4).

This information taken from GLSEN.com