A Brief Overview of LGBTQ Youth and Their Role in Schools
The want for students to fit in and feel valued during elementary school, middle school, and high school is incredibly prominent. This fact is true regardless of your sexual orientation, gender identity, race, religion, etc. However, children that are a part of minority groups, such as the LGBTQ community, may find it increasingly challenging to fit in or to feel valued.
If you’ve been paying any attention to the LGBTQ community in the United States within the past few years, you’d know what great strides were made under our 44th President, Barack Obama. He did a number of things to strengthen the community with included repealing the “Don’t Ask Don’t Tell” policy of the Clinton administration, strengthening laws to protect members of the community, and naming the Stonewall Inn (the birthplace of the modern gay rights movement) a national monument. All of these actions strengthened the community and helped its members, including youth, feel more valued and equal. With the 2016 presidential election and a new president this year, many people have been concerned with what Donald Trump may do to change such policies.
Just as many feared, upon entering office Mr. Trump rather quickly reversed many of Obama’s directives. Last year under the Obama administration, the Education and Justice Departments declared that the 150,000 transgender youth in American schools were allowed to use whichever bathroom they felt they identified closest to (1). This brought up the subject of all gender bathrooms or gender neutral bathrooms in schools and other public places. When Trump took office he revoked this directive. The White House stated, “…President Trump has clearly stated [that] he believes policy regarding transgender bathrooms should be decided at the state level,” (2). This statement and belief makes it so that it is not a national policy to allow transgender students to choose to use which gender bathroom they feel most comfortable using. Rather, it is now up to the state government to decide whether or not schools can discriminate against their transgender students.
Clearly a statement like this will have a variety of reactions from the public. Some may be happy that the national government isn’t trying to control such a “sensitive” or personal subject while many others are outraged that the President would cause transgender children, and people in general, to feel less than their classmates who are cisgender (those who identify as the gender they were assigned at birth). More importantly, a statement like that from the newly elected President of the United States says something to transgender students and to other students in the LGBTQ community. According to Michael Lindenberger of The Dallas Morning News, the President’s removal of Obama’s directive says to transgender kids:
“You’re weird now, and will be even weirder when you grow up. And you sure can’t be trusted in a bathroom stall next to a stall that might be in use by someone who isn’t,” (3).
In politics, the views of those under 18 are usually glossed over because they can’t vote. Typically kids don’t care all that much about politics, because again, they can’t vote so why should they care? However, for a child who falls under the LGBTQ umbrella, politics of this sort can be incredibly important because it affects their every day lives in a much more meaningful way. In fact, 68% of LGBT youth have reported that they’ve heard elected officials (those who are supposed to be setting examples for us) say negative things about the community (4).
If elected officials aren’t showing that they care about the LGBTQ population, including the youth, it is incredibly important that schools show that they care and that they value the LGBTQ community. LGBTQ students being harassed or discriminated against in school often has a negative impact on their mental health. This not only impedes them academically but it also hinders the development of their social skills. (5)
In fact, 69% of LGBT youth in grades 7–12 stated that they felt unsafe at school (6). According to the Gay, Lesbian, & Straight Education Network (also referred to as GLSEN), 85% of LGBTQ students have experienced verbal harassment of some type at school based on one or more of their personal characteristics, most regularly sexual orientation and gender expression. Additionally, 40% of LGBTQ students have been physically harassed or assaulted. 59% of LGBTQ students have been sexually assaulted at school but less than half of them reported the incident because most doubted the situation would have been handled appropriately and they worried that the situation would worsen. What’s even more troubling is that of the students that reported the harassment, 63% said that the school staff either did nothing to help them or told them to ignore it (7). This fear of being harassed, bullied, and having absolutely no support from their school is what causes LGBTQ students to skip school and thus negatively affects their education.
The state of California, however, is trying to combat this national problem. In the state of California several schools have made their curriculum include LGBTQ topics. The California Safe Schools Coalition collected data about these schools and the effect this kind of curriculum had on students. In their research they not only found that LGBT students felt safer in their schools when these topics were in their curriculum, but straight students also felt safer overall. They also reported less harassment (8). Below are some bar graphs which show the data that they found in more detail:
With tangible data that shows the positive effects a LGBTQ inclusive curriculum has, why wouldn’t more schools around the nation be more open to this idea? That question can simply be answered by this quote from Peter LaBarbera, which weighs in on a situation where parents were outraged that a teacher was having young students read the book King and King, a novel about two gay princes:
“…homosexuality-affirming legislation forces society to treat unequal things as equal — thereby corrupting and confusing even the minds of the very young. It says a lot about pro-homosexual liberals’ caving moral foundation that they are increasingly willing to break down healthy and natural boundaries — even for grade school kids who don’t know what normal sex is yet.
Celebrate the passing of older, “anti-gay” generations as you desensitize the newer ones, distorting and exploiting noble concepts like “equal rights.” Since when did it become OK to expose very young children to homosexuality at all — much less through biased “lessons” that parrot the “gay” activist line?” (9)
The world is full of people with mindsets similar to LaBarbera’s, which make it increasingly challenging for school officials to effectively put a LGBTQ inclusive curriculum together. The California Safe Schools Coalition has put a list of a number of things students, teachers, administrators, and local policy makers can do to make a more LGBTQ inclusive environment. Examples include having your next English presentation be related to an LGBTQ topic or having teachers invite organizations from the community present about LGBTQ related topics. The full list of recommendations can be viewed here.
Every child should have a fair shot to be as successful in their education and in their life. If the government isn’t going to be as involved as it has been within the past few years, the responsibility of appreciating each other falls into the hands of each of us. In the end it is important to show whether you are a student, teacher, parent, or community member, that all youth matter and are valued.
References:
- Karimi, Faith, and Emanuella Grinberg. “Trump’s Reversal on Transgender Directive: How We Got Here.” CNN. February 23, 2017. Accessed April 16, 2017. http://www.cnn.com/2017/02/23/health/transgender-bathrooms-trump-q-and-a/.
- Ibid.
3. Lindenberger, Michael A. “OPINION: If Trump Won’t Protect Transgender Students, School Officials Must Find Courage to Do It for Him.” Issues and Controversies [Facts On File News Services], February 24, 2017. Accessed April 16, 2017. http://icof.infobaselearning.wfl.orc.scoolaid.net/icofnewsedgestory.aspx?key=ernGSXzkNbHfcm1nHfByCRxJgmiqs2LmiI63QcnkCK9m-ijm-Lh5EkmwF2wKkyYTYEYsYHxCgKNIpO5FdWOUEbwm_2JJa7pTzYmpgrL2v4r0yc4ZHNCET6LxYIezLZEX&sr=1&tab=2&b=By+Michael+A.+Lindenberger%2c+The+Dallas+Morning+News&c=&source=Dallas+Morning+News+(TX)&user=1.
4. Campaign, Human Rights. “Growing Up LGBT in America: View and Share Statistics.” Human Rights Campaign. Accessed April 16, 2017. http://www.hrc.org/youth-report/view-and-share-statistics.
5. Shinn, Marybeth, and Hirokazu Yoshikawa. Toward Positive Youth Development: Transforming Schools and Community Programs. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2008.
6. Ibid.
7. “GLSEN Shares Latest Findings on LGBTQ Students’ Experiences in Schools.” GLSEN. Accessed April 17, 2017. https://www.glsen.org/article/2015-national-school-climate-survey.
8. Russell, S. T., J. K. McGuire, C. Laub, O. Kostroski, and E. Manke. “LGBT Issues in the Curriculum Promotes School Safety.” California Safe Schools Coalition. 2006. Accessed April 17, 2017. http://www.casafeschools.org/FactSheet-curriculum.pdf.
9. LaBarbera, Peter. “Books Condoning Homosexuality Should Not Be Offered to Children.” In Banned Books, edited by Cynthia A. Bily, 40–46. Introducing Issues with Opposing Viewpoints. Detroit: Greenhaven Press, 2012. Accessed April 17, 2017. http://dbsearch.fredonia.edu:2048/login?url=http://go.galegroup.com/ps/i.do?p=GVRL&sw=w&u=sunyfredonia&v=2.1&it=r&id=GALE|CX4032200013&asid=13049b04a1c9b6adc2d7ec3e723c0dfe.
