Civil Rights Movement

Unequal Education

Some Facts to Ponder

• It is estimated that in the U.S., a teen takes their own life every 5 hours because they are gay, bisexual, transgender, or lesbian, and cannot deal with the added stresses that society puts upon them.
• Several studies have found that approximately 40% of homeless "street" teens self-identify as gay/lesbian yet there are relatively few resources specifically aimed at meeting their needs.
• GLBT youth are two to three times more likely to attempt suicide than non-gay teens, according to a 1989 U.S. Department of Health and Human Services study.
  The same study found that 30 percent of successful teen suicides are by gay or lesbian youths.
• GLBT youth are attacked at alarmingly high rates nationwide.
• Queer youth are at increased risk for drug/alcohol problems and dropping out of school. Many bisexual, gay and lesbian youth drop out of school due to harassment or low self-esteem, and fear of "being found out."
  Studies have found that more than 25% of gay and lesbian youth have severe drug and alcohol problems.
• Those who believe they don't know someone who is gay are more likely than those who do to reject equal rights for, and equal treatment of, GLBT people.
• Early exposure to diversity and sexuality issues helps to reduce prejudice and homophobia, including internalized homophobia which often leads to self-destructive behaviors.
• Teenagers and young adults are among the leading perpetrators of anti-gay violence.
  

Click here for the source of these facts.

Reviewing these facts, along with the other information in my blog, leads me to believe that if we engage in open and honest conversations as well as community building activities to involve all students in our classroom communities, we can attempt to combat homophobia and many of the negative effects of this in our schools.

Topic Choice

I selected this topic for many different reasons. The first and foremost reason being that I can rarely walk down a hallway in an elementary, middle, high school, or college setting without hearing the phrase, "That's so gay." The prevalent use of this phrase is indicative of the problems that youths who identify as gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgendered (GLBT) face as they approach school on a daily basis. And potentially the worst part of it all is that I don't only hear that phrase from children who may or may not know better. I hear it from adults; well-educated adults who should have the training and understanding of the struggles that GLBT youths face in accepting their identities and should be able to assist in this process. Finding out that the adults who are entrusted with their care cannot accept them for who they are is a potentially damaging lesson for students to learn.

Hopefully some parts of this will be helpful in learning something new or a different way to approach GLBT students in your classroom. While I would use some of this information with middle and high school students, I would restructure it to be more appropriate for their grade level and the particular goal of my lesson. I would also be more likely to us it in the classroom and not as a web-based assignment. This topic is certainly one that requires careful processing and thoughtful questioning which I think would be difficult for middle and high school students to handle as a homework assignment.

Check out this Video

Click to watch the video


Think about the students he is talking about. What are your high school experiences like? Have you encountered any similar problems of bullying and harassment? What does being bullied feel like for students?

I selected this video clip because it is a brief introduction to the problems GLBT students face in schools. I felt it gave a good overview of what I wanted to cover. It is also based on research and involves percentages which I think could be useful for a classroom discussion as well as to do a poll in the classroom.

Check out this Poem

The author of this poem is unknown. It was found here.

Do you know what it is to be an outsider
on the other side of the fence?
How alone you would feel, if excluded you were.
Does it make any sense?

Can you imagine the isolated soul
with no-one in sight to hear
the cries and the tears that your heart would shed,
and the constant, looming fear?

Can you see in your mind the life of a man
without anywhere to belong?
Because a society judged him unworthy,
because they think they’re right, and he’s wrong.

Try and imagine the pain that you’d feel,
with sneers and hateful words, and spit at your heels.
What would it be like if the gates were locked;
you couldn’t get in, and you couldn’t get out?

Imagine the feeling that you’re worthless,
some dirt that’s been stepped on by someone’s uncaring shoe.
Perhaps at that point it’s too much for your heart,
and you take your own life, to stop it hurting you.

Imagine this world, for maybe a minute,
after that you can stop; you don’t like it, sure
but there are people who go through this every day,
and they can’t stop it, unless they’re no more.

So when you hear of hate, bigots and death,
don’t side with haters, cause that’s how you’ve been bred.
Imagine how it is, or was for that guy,
the one that’s hurt, or lying dead.

So imagine the feelings and memories too,
of people oppressed, hated, abused;
Of people who lived outside of that fence
and what they came to - does it make sense?

While reading the poem, think about how it would feel to be an outsider in school. Are you an outsider from any group in school or outside of school? How does it feel to be excluded? How much more difficult is it if you are excluded and then harassed for being different? Write a short response based on your thoughts from this poem and the Good Morning America video clip.

I selected this poem because I think it covers the GLBT experiences in school and it's also applicable to anyone who has ever been an outsider and hasn't fit in. I think students would be able to connect to the feelings and emotions created by the poem.

Check out this Video

Click to watch this video about homophobia in schools.




While you are watching, think about whose voice is represented? Whose voice is discounted or ignored? Many different stories are shared. Write a short response reflecting on the information that was presented to you and your reaction.

I happened upon this video, I do not know the UB student who created it. I think it shares many of my frustrations with "That's so gay" and how people use that term without thinking about why they are using it and why they shouldn't. It also gives anecdotes of many of the types of encounters students have in the school system, especially if they are a GLBT student.

Check out this Photograph

Click on the photograph for a full view.

As you look at this photograph, think about what are the intentions of the author. What does the author want you to learn from the photo? What purpose does the author have in creating this piece?

As I created this blog, I created each entry as a progression and this one adds to the previous posts. I feel this way because of the way that I interpreted the photo. In looking at the photo a second time, I certainly acknowledge that there is a lot of violence which leads to death of GLBT youths. Initially, however, I read the photo to mean that the homophobia students encounter in schools often leads GLBT students to attempt and commit suicide. While I imagine my reading was not the specific intention of the author, I feel that whatever way he/she created the photograph, it is helpful to understand the situation facing GLBT students.

Check out this Song

Click here to listen to the song

tip
Song and lyrics by Angie Evans

my soul beats to the rhythm
words heal my indecision
but all I can do is breathe it in
shape my eyes by blending into the difference

so I tip back throw my hat to the side
sit back let the energy collide
can you feel that you know these eyes just can’t lie

so I recline defining temptation
I don’t have the time for your petty complications
conversations soon turn to faded
all blown up and non related
why don’t you face it
fact follows fiction false faith is what you’re chasing

and will you be saved if you let them recruit your views?
we’re losing our patience these tunes got your brain
strangled in the noose
strung by the voices on TV
bias leaders of this country
repeat the beat of unjust accepting
over-stand that I’ve been watching

I choose to attack with the words that

why do these cutting mc’s let their pens bleed thick full of shit
that don’t even mean a grip
it drips past the pessimism of & the negativity of what our
society has become
but they told me not to listen like words don’t add to action
or attraction
yet they’ve been trapping me tightly
killing me silently

flip that its time we tried the rhyme that finally finds the truth inside

As you listen to the poem and read the lyrics, think about what the musician is trying to say. What information is she hoping that you will learn from her?

I found this song to be extremely powerful and well crafted. As I was creating my blog I probably listened to this song 10 times as I researched and wrote. I think the author provides an important perspective for people to understand.

Check out this Poem

Click here to view the poem.

The author mentions many negative events facing GLBT students. He also mentions in every stanza that, "There's Hope." How can you create hope for a classmate, friend, or family member who identifies as GLBT? How will you support him or her?

I selected this poem because it provides both the negative things facing GLBT students as well as the repeating phrase "There's Hope." I found that to make this piece very positive and I was hoping to end my blog on a more positive note regarding supporting GLBT students in school.

Check out this Poem

To Be OUT
by Lyndsey D'Arcangelo
(from Click Here )

Release.
Relief from my shoulders.
This boulder that I was able to push aside,
Leaving me stable, with the sensation
That I have nothing to hide.
Freedom.
Free at last.
Looking past the fear in my eyes,
Beyond the tears, without hesitation
I see clear skies.
Pride.
Raising my head high.
The shallow dread I left behind,
I looked inside and saw myself.
I believe in me.
Courage.
Having the strength to stand.
You gave me your hand without thought,
With this gesture you taught,
a life long lesson
I am normal after all.

While you are reading, think about the people you know. Has anyone ever come out to you? How did you handle it if they have? If no one has come out to you, what would you do or say if they did? How can you be supportive, even if you aren't sure you understand what they are going through? Write a short response to comment on this.

This is the most positive piece I included. The choice to add this has to do with the fact that the author, while recognizing the difficulties of coming out also recognizes how it can be positive in the long run. You can be yourself and find acceptance in who you are without changing to who other people think you are or want you to be. I felt it was important to end on a positive note and with something that if we support our GLBT students and promote a community in our schools, we can get these students to the point where they accept themselves. And hopefully, through activities and open discussions, others will accept them as well.