peaceloverugby
November 10th, 2010, 09:31 PM
So as some of you may know, I'm editor-in-chief of my school's newspaper. Last issue I used my column in the Commentary section to write about the recently publicized gay suicides. Here is the article. (Note: If you want to debate about homosexuality, I would ask you to go to another thread. This is just me posting my writings on the topic. Thank you :))
Asher Brown, 13 years old, of Cypress, Texas, shot and killed himself because of homophobic bullying from classmates on September 23. Just four days prior, on September 19, 13-year-old Seth Walsh of California hanged himself because of homophobic bullying at school. Ten days before that, 15-year-old Billy Lucas of Indiana killed himself because of homophobic bullying at school.
And on September 22, Tyler Clementi killed himself after his sexual orientation was revealed at Rutgers University. These four are not alone. One other boy took his own life, for a total of five in September alone. At just 18-years-old, Clementi was the oldest of September’s five suicide victims. All five were gay or assumed to be gay, and all five were bullied to death.
Suicide rates within the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community are some of the highest in the country, especially with teenagers. According to a 2007 Massachusetts Youth Risk Survey, LGBT teens are four times more likely to attempt suicide than straight teens. This is largely due to hostile environments caused by harassment and bullying.
LGBT teens are not the only ones being bullied. According to the Department of Education, bullying affects one in every three middle or high school students. And unfortunately, due to modern technology, bullying extends beyond the classroom and into the homes of both the bully and victim via the Internet. According to a recent speech by Secretary of Education Arne Duncan, over 900,000 high school students reported being cyber-bullied in 2007.
Adults must take steps to stop bullying by working with both the victim and the bully. If educators and parents can prevent a kid from becoming a bully in the first place, this would be ideal. Adults can influence students with their words and actions. If adults show students that harassment based on sexual orientation is unacceptable, it will stop. Hate is a learned behavior.
Congress is moving to increase these kinds of preventative measures. Senator Bob Casey of Pennsylvania recently introduced S. 3739, the “Safe Schools Improvement Act.” It would require schools that receive any federal money to enact strict anti-bullying and harassment policies. It would also require schools and districts to focus on preventative measures to stop bullying before it starts.
Unfortunately, our school community is not free of bullying. In fact, it is difficult to walk without hearing a student picking on another student, or using derogatory language. Students and teachers must be more proactive in making sure our learning environment is safe for all students. If you see or hear student being made fun of or bullied, something that is more than teasing, call that person out. This shows the bully that what they are doing will not be tolerated. It also shows the victim that they are not alone.
Further, we have to specifically target homophobia, not just bullying in general, because homophobic bullying seems to be more dangerous than any other type, based on prevalence alone. According to the 2009 Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network (GLSEN) National School Climate Survey, nine out of every 10 LGBT students experienced harassment at school.
900,000 students were bullied in their own home via the Internet and five teens took their own lives in September alone. Bullying is finally receiving the attention it deserves. Steps must be taken to ensure another life is not lost. First, the federal government must improve the climate in schools by passing the Safe Schools Improvement Act. Second, our faculty and administration need to become even more committed to fighting bullying and homophobia by having a zero tolerance policy for bullying of any sort, including homophobic language.
But we must bear much of the responsibility ourselves. The faculty’s main job is to teach us, not to protect us from each other. We need to take initiative and end bullying ourselves by leading by example.
Thank you for reading :)
Asher Brown, 13 years old, of Cypress, Texas, shot and killed himself because of homophobic bullying from classmates on September 23. Just four days prior, on September 19, 13-year-old Seth Walsh of California hanged himself because of homophobic bullying at school. Ten days before that, 15-year-old Billy Lucas of Indiana killed himself because of homophobic bullying at school.
And on September 22, Tyler Clementi killed himself after his sexual orientation was revealed at Rutgers University. These four are not alone. One other boy took his own life, for a total of five in September alone. At just 18-years-old, Clementi was the oldest of September’s five suicide victims. All five were gay or assumed to be gay, and all five were bullied to death.
Suicide rates within the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community are some of the highest in the country, especially with teenagers. According to a 2007 Massachusetts Youth Risk Survey, LGBT teens are four times more likely to attempt suicide than straight teens. This is largely due to hostile environments caused by harassment and bullying.
LGBT teens are not the only ones being bullied. According to the Department of Education, bullying affects one in every three middle or high school students. And unfortunately, due to modern technology, bullying extends beyond the classroom and into the homes of both the bully and victim via the Internet. According to a recent speech by Secretary of Education Arne Duncan, over 900,000 high school students reported being cyber-bullied in 2007.
Adults must take steps to stop bullying by working with both the victim and the bully. If educators and parents can prevent a kid from becoming a bully in the first place, this would be ideal. Adults can influence students with their words and actions. If adults show students that harassment based on sexual orientation is unacceptable, it will stop. Hate is a learned behavior.
Congress is moving to increase these kinds of preventative measures. Senator Bob Casey of Pennsylvania recently introduced S. 3739, the “Safe Schools Improvement Act.” It would require schools that receive any federal money to enact strict anti-bullying and harassment policies. It would also require schools and districts to focus on preventative measures to stop bullying before it starts.
Unfortunately, our school community is not free of bullying. In fact, it is difficult to walk without hearing a student picking on another student, or using derogatory language. Students and teachers must be more proactive in making sure our learning environment is safe for all students. If you see or hear student being made fun of or bullied, something that is more than teasing, call that person out. This shows the bully that what they are doing will not be tolerated. It also shows the victim that they are not alone.
Further, we have to specifically target homophobia, not just bullying in general, because homophobic bullying seems to be more dangerous than any other type, based on prevalence alone. According to the 2009 Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network (GLSEN) National School Climate Survey, nine out of every 10 LGBT students experienced harassment at school.
900,000 students were bullied in their own home via the Internet and five teens took their own lives in September alone. Bullying is finally receiving the attention it deserves. Steps must be taken to ensure another life is not lost. First, the federal government must improve the climate in schools by passing the Safe Schools Improvement Act. Second, our faculty and administration need to become even more committed to fighting bullying and homophobia by having a zero tolerance policy for bullying of any sort, including homophobic language.
But we must bear much of the responsibility ourselves. The faculty’s main job is to teach us, not to protect us from each other. We need to take initiative and end bullying ourselves by leading by example.
Thank you for reading :)