Homophobia Is The Leading Cause Of Suicide And Depression Among Teenagers And Young Adults

In the article, How Homophobia Hurts Everyone by Warren J. Blumenfeld, Blumenfeld describes his experience growing up as a homosexual, and how homophobia affected him, as well as his family and peers. To begin, homophobia can be separated into two different catergories, personal homophobia and interpersonal homophobia. Personal homophobia can be described as a personal belief system, or prejudice that homosexuals, bisexual and transgender people are entitled to, should be disliked or remain powerless, due to their desires. They are also sometimes seen as psychologically disturbed, genetically modified or defective and overall, unfortunate human beings. While on the other hand, interpersonal homophobia refers to the personal prejudice or bias that affects relationships within individuals. An example of interpersonal homophobia could be making a joke, name calling, or insulting certain individuals or groups. This can be either verbal, physical or intimidation related.

In our society, we have many different issues that we are opposed to. Our different opinions on these issues, separates us into two different sides. Homophobia has been one of the most occurring issues that has been happening over these recent years.

The mental health of individuals in the LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgendered) community is something that is a serious problem. For most of the history of the United States and many different parts of the world LGBT people faced much persecution and in some cases even death. This constant fear of discovery and the pressure that one feels on oneself when “in the closet” can lead to major mental distress. Research has shown that people who identify as LGBT are twice as likely to develop lifetime mood and anxiety disorders (Bostwick 468). This is extremely noticeable the past couple years in the suicides of bullied teens on the basis of sexual identity and expression. The stigma on simply being perceived as LGBT is strong enough to

Then there is the interpersonal level. This level is letting prejudice (personal bias) manifest into discrimination. Then the institutional level, which is “the government, businesses, and educational, religious, and professional organizations systematically discriminating on the basis of sexual identity” (Blumenfeld 381). Blumenfeld uses the fact that homosexuality was considered a disorder up until 1973, as an example of homophobia on the institutional level. Lastly, homophobia works on a cultural level through the “social norms or codes that … [are put in place] within a society to legitimize oppression” (Blumenfeld 382).

[The Gay-Straight Alliance (GSA) organization at my high school, which meets twice per month, generated a list of concerns that they shared with school administration. The focus was specifically about gender identity, the lack of support from school staff, and the daily scrutiny they face as a result of their sexual orientation and gender identity. Through collaboration with my colleagues it was evident that there had been an increase in teacher and student referrals surrounding gender identity. The feedback from GSA clearly identified that as a school we are not meeting the needs of our LGBT students and those struggling with sexual orientation. Members of the GSA clearly feel that teachers ignore negative comments like “gay” and “faggot” when they hear them in class, that teachers may not clearly understand gender neutral language, and that our Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender (LGBT) students do not feel safe and protected in school. Students needed support advocating for their right to use a restroom, correct pronoun, etc., requiring district, community, parent, and colleague

Regrettably, in the US there are a lot more problems than homophobia. One of the ongoing problems in the US (that has been an issue forever) is racism. Yes, racism is still an issue, and now thanks to social media, it continues to be a trending topic. An example is this summer there were riots in Charlottesville that ended with death. (SAYERS) “One person was killed and 19 were hurt when a speeding car slammed into a throng of counter protesters in Charlottesville, where a "Unite the Right" rally of where white nationalists

Homophobia is the concept in which people are hateful or fearful towards lesbians and gays (Dictionary.com, 2014). Fear and revulsion of the LGBT population commonly emanate from religious concepts or traditional ideas of society. In 2011, 18% of hate crimes based upon sexual orientation were reported, however, the number proved to be higher than expected due to the fact that many more individuals are reporting these crimes to the authorities (Northhumberland View, 2013). This further demonstrates the progression of LGBT rights in Canadian society due to the fact that lesbian, gay and transgender individuals alike feel comfortable enough to report these matters to the police and receive justice rather than allowing the issue to go unnoticed out of fear of being judged. Also, though many laws have been implemented to prevent discrimination, it is a reality in which many members of the LGBT community still face today. In terms of bullying, 25% of homosexual adolescents reported being physically harassed by heterosexual peers in 2009 (CBC, 2010). However, in 2002 approximately one third of homosexual students were harassed based upon their sexuality (Riese, 2014). Although discrimination and bullying based upon sexual orientation is prevalent in today's society, Canadians have become more accustomed to the idea of homosexuality which is reflected through the decrease in the amount of harassment that occurs. However, with adequate education and continuous learning about the matter, discrimination based upon sexuality can be virtually eliminated in the

Homophobia and transphobia, especially amongst youths, can lead to higher rates of depression and suicide. It is estimated that 30-40% of all LGBT+ youth have attempted to take their lives, the average age for suicide attempts is much lower amongst LGBT+ people (37.5) than those who do not suffer from non-gender/binary identity-related hate (55.7). Active homophobia is often prominent in religious groups, the most homophobic being sub-genres/cultures/divisions of Christianity. A friend of mine attends Korowa Anglican Girl's School, a school which heavily bases its values upon Anglican beliefs. He is transgender and has been victim of homophobia and transphobia from both school officials and from female peers who have had religious upbringings since joining the school in 2012. Due to this abuse, he has been made to feel unsafe both at school and at home for his identity, and has consequently turned to self-deprecating behaviour to alleviate his suffering for a short time. Is this how we, as a nation, want our children and young adults to feel? Do we want them to hate themselves for something they have no control or choice over, especially in retrospect to political agenda, where laws are in place that allow such acts to unfurl? 42% of LGBT+ youth live in an

A comprehensive anti-homophobia school policy that includes the needs of staff and students, commitment to staff development and curricula development, can assist principals, teachers, and students to challenge and disrupt homophobic beliefs and practices in their schools. Evidence into the implementation of current anti-homophobia school policies from Canada, Australia and USA shows that policy based protection makes a positive difference to LGBT students as it has a highly significant relationship with reduced likelihood of thinking about self-harm, actual self- harm, suicidal ideation and attempted suicide [34]–[36].

Being gay and a teenager, I’ve obviously had times where I’ve dealt with homophobia. I’ve accepted that, and it doesn’t bother me much. Mostly because It doesn’t affect me for the most part. Some kids get a kick out of making fun of me, good for them, doesn’t really make a difference to me. However, one time I did let it get to me. Not because it hurt me or made me upset about myself, but because it was hurting someone

Sexual orientation and gender identity are two things that members of the LGBTQ community often fear opening up about. They fear that they will be rejected or harmed because of who they are, and it is important that we make all aspects of our society a safe place for every human being, regardless of their sexual orientation or gender identity. As School-based risk and protective factors for gender diverse and sexual minority children and youth: Improving school climate explained, “64% of students feel unsafe at school because of sexual orientation prejudice, and 44% feel unsafe at school because of gender expression” (American Psychological Association). Therefore, schools in America should be making a conscious effort to make their buildings a safe, comfortable place for members of the LGBTQ community. Schools can do several things to promote the

Society began to rethink homosexuality in the 1960's when heterosexual psychologist George Weinberg coined the term "homophobia." Weinberg used the term to label heterosexuals' fear of being in contact of homosexuals as well as the self-loathing of homosexuals, meaning that homosexuals hated themselves for being gay. As of the new millennium, there has been a new special term that has been born to define the fear, hate and disgust that people show towards anyone's sexual orientation called "sexual prejudice." Like other types of prejudice, there are three main principals that surround sexual prejudice: it is an attitude, it is directed at social groups and its members, and it is negative as

Experimentation with or realization/recognition of homosexual tendencies seems to surface during the early teen or Middle School ages. I have questioned whether these students actually have gender identity issues, or homosexual tendencies, or if they are using this behavior for sensationalism in an attempt to gain attention. At times, this behavior results in discipline issues, and creates a distraction for these students and others around them. Teachers often find themselves in a quandary due to social standards, which sometimes cause the subject of sexual orientation and sexuality to be off limits. I want to be equipped to help, while being mindful of student privacy, school rules, community standards, and my own personal beliefs. I

Many students may feel hesitant to speak out against anti-gay slurs out of fear of being persecuted themselves. In the U.K. a series of surveys commissioned by Stonewall reported that as many as 93 percent of young gay, lesbian and bisexual people who are ‘‘out’’ at school suffer verbal abuse (Thurlow, 2001). It is evident that it is not a coincidence the LGBTQ youth face the most harassment of any minority at school.

In simple terms, homophobia is the fear or hatred of gay people. It is not unheard of that gay people are discriminated against simply due to who they are attracted to. People will often use excuses to justify their beliefs. These excuses include "being gay is a choice!", "it's a lifestyle!", "you chose to be this way!", when, in fact, none of these are true. Studies have shown that sexual orientation is a