As the year draws to a close, bullying in school and the ever-rising incidence of LGBT teen suicides continue to garner national headlines. The two closely linked issues will likely continue to command significant media coverage in the upcoming presidential election year. But history will proclaim 2011 as the year American lesbians, gays, bisexuals and transgender people said “enough!”
While the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimates about one fifth of high school students have suffered the age-old social plague of intentional and repeated bullying, and suicide is seen as the third leading cause of death among teens, it wasn’t until the last 11 or so months that standing up against bullies became an issue of national importance.
Arguably the year of the anti-bullying movement actually began in late 2010 when Fort Worth, Texas City Councilman Joel Burns lit the spark of what has become the “It Gets Better” campaign. During a council session at which members wore pink in commemoration of Breast Cancer Awareness Day, Burns asked to be indulged time to talk about “another issue that pulls at (his) heart.” Then, with an overhead projection of smiling photos of each; the councilman invoked the memories of four recently deceased children. All were victims of bullying-related suicides, brought on because they were either gay or perceived to be gay. Just before coming out himself, Burns offered brief descriptions of how and why Asher Brown, 13, of suburban Houston; Billy Lucas, 15, of Greensburg, Ind.; Justin Aaberg, 15, of Anoka, Minn. and Seth Walsh, 13, of Tehachapi died needlessly.
The one-year anniversary of Walsh’s death was reported on in San Diego LGBT Weekly (Sept. 22, Issue 45) in September, when his mother Wendy Walsh and brother Shawn came to Hillcrest for an event organized to help ensure passage of California’s anti-bullying measure known as Seth’s Law.
In the past year, countless celebrities, news programs, media outlets, politicians, LGBT and allied organizations, school administrators, school districts, local, state and federal government agencies and governments and human rights organizations and other international bodies have loudly spoken against bullying of LGBT individuals. Topping off a year during which many bold statements and even a few bold policies have been made to help stop the bullying epidemic, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton announced a full-throated policy position declaring LGBT rights as human rights.
Still, statistics indicate that nearly nine out of 10 LGBT students are harassed at school each year and have a dropout rate nearly three times the national average, and that LGBT youth are four times more likely to attempt suicide compared to their straight peers.
A conference addressing those very issues is coming to San Diego Feb. 17-19, 2012 (with early registration ending Friday, Dec. 16. However, by writing “LGBT Weekly reader” at the top of their registration forms, San Diego LGBT Weekly readers can get an extra week to register at the pre-registration price, which is $50 less than registering after Dec. 17.)
Titled, “Supporting Students – Saving Lives,” the conference is presented by The Center for Excellence in School Counseling and Leadership (CESCaL) and is the 3rd Annual National Educator Conference Focused on LGBTQIA Youth.
Says Vincent Pompei, the conference chair, “There are many amazing national organizations working at creating change for LGBT youth in schools. We have national, state and even local data on LGBT youth that is shocking and disturbing. It is common practice for educators to respond to academic and school climate data like this but for some reason many schools are simply ignoring it. This conference will bring educators to San Diego from all over the United States and abroad to empower them with the skills necessary to create needed change in their district.”
Previously published student surveys have revealed equally disquieting trends within schools with, for example, nearly two thirds of respondents saying they did not feel safe at school because of their sexual orientation and nearly 83 percent of students reporting that faculty and staff failed to intervene, or only sometimes intervened, when presented with homophobic remarks.
Says Pompei, “I believe there is the same ignorance within the school system that there is within society when it comes to LGBT people. Many administrators and superintendents received their college education years ago. This is true for some teachers, counselors and support staff as well. Many people define the word gay or lesbian with sex and therefore it becomes a topic not to be discussed within the school.”
Such attitudes contribute to an unsympathetic and insensitive educational environment. Adds Pompei, “The truth is that our youth know they are LGBT way before they are sexually active or even know what sex is. There are many educators that still feel sexual orientation is a choice and so there is no need to advocate for the safety of LGBT students. There are also those educators that come from conservative and religious backgrounds and bring those personal beliefs to work. It is simple for them to do so in a district that is clearly not addressing the school climate issues of LGBT students.”
The conference seeks to address those and other important issues by providing educators with a knowledge of laws and rights of LGBTQIA students and resources available to students and families, by empowering educators to take personal responsibility as advocates for LGBTQIA youth, and by teaching the skills necessary to access resources and to create “safe, welcoming and inclusive” schools for LGBTQIA youth.
Added Pompei, concerning the success of previous conferences, “Already, several of the attendees from the last two years have encouraged district-wide mandated training on LGBT youth. Most of them have created Safe Spaces, helped start a Gay and Straight Alliance club and even improved their district bullying and harassment policies to include LGBT students. It is simply amazing to watch the conference attendees leave on the last day saying that they can’t wait to return to work with all the new knowledge, free resources and best practices. It is like they are on a mission to transform their school and district climate for LGBT students.”
As an added bonus for attendees, Academy Award winning author Dustin Lance Black, has given permission for the organizers to put on a 10-minute excerpt of his most recent play, entitled 8, at the conference. In addition, MTV will participate this year and is receiving a special award for “their dedication and advocacy against anti-LGBT bullying and awareness of the struggles of LGBT youth.”
National organizations scheduled to be in attendance at the conference include: ACLU, the Anti-Defamation League, the California Teachers Association, Family Acceptance Project, Gay and Lesbian Task Force and Human Rights Campaign. In addition, featured speakers include: The vice president of the National Education Association, the 2010-2011 president of the American School Counselor Association, the president-elect of the National Association of Secondary School Principals, and the president of the California Teachers Association.
CESCaL’s annual national educator conference will take place in San Diego Feb. 17-19, 2012, at the Doubletree Hotel at Hazard Center. Early Bird pricing expires Friday, Dec. 16, and costs $129 for college students and $199 for general admission. After that date pricing goes up to $159 for college students and $249 for general admission. Prices include all conference activities, parking and all conference meals. More information can found at lgbtqia2012.org.
