Help for LGBT Kids: It DOES Get Better

By Geoffrey Wertime

It’s many kids’ worst nightmare: getting teased, pushed around or even beaten up at school. It’s a problem that’s particularly prevalent among members of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community, and a recent study shows that sort of bullying has negative, long-lasting effects on its victims.

As reported by our partners at the Huffington Post, a study last month by the Family Acceptance Project at San Francisco State University determined that students experiencing slights like hearing “that’s so gay” up through those who are physically attacked is linked to long-term problems in health and development. Entitled “Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Adolescent School Victimization: Implications for Young Adult Health and Adjustment” and published in the Journal of School Health, the study found targets of LGBT-related bullying in school face increased risk of adult depression, suicidal thoughts, social adjustment issues and risky sexual behavior.

Those who reported high levels of victimization, as compared to those who reported lower levels, were found to be 5.6 times more likely to report suicide attempts, twice as likely to report being clinically depressed and more than twice as likely to report a diagnosis of a sexually transmitted infection by young adulthood.

“The power of this research is that it can help the educators, staff and administrators understand that this is serious, it has long-term effects. It is not just something that, 'Oh, everybody says those things and we're not going to pay attention to that.' People have to take that seriously,” said Carol Watchler, co-chair of the Central Jersey Chapter of the Gay, Lesbian, Straight Education Network (GLSEN).

“Being name-called one time, no matter what it's about, maybe people would say, ‘they'll get over that.’ But to know that this is happening in social situations for youngsters, just over and over again…” she continued.

“I asked people yesterday how many have heard the term, 'that's so gay' within the recent past. Every hand in the room goes up and they know this is being used as a put-down. That's the little stuff, where we have to start to step up, because it's easy to make changes with that; it's hard when it starts to become bullying directed at somebody specifically and then becomes even physical stuff. We've got to start working on it with the level of casual comments and change those casual comments so that an atmosphere of respect is just in the air, it's what people expect.”

Watchler noted that New Jersey’s , adopted in the wake of the highly-publicized September 2010 suicide of Ridgewood's Tyler Clementi and signed by Gov. Chris Christie in January, now requires schools to look into reports of bullying.

Since Clementi’s suicide and a spate of others by LGBT teens that received widespread media attention, bullying has also become a topic in popular culture. Syndicated columnist Dan Savage started the “It Gets Better” Project, in which adults post videos online encouraging young victims of LGBT bullying to stick it out and telling them that their lives will improve. The Fox TV show “Glee” recently featured a storyline where a gay teenager, Kurt, was bullied by a classmate.  Watchler said things like that can do a lot to help LGBT kids out.

 “I think it gives them just a little boost of confidence to know people are talking about it,” she said. “People are able to see the connection and we need to keep pointing out to them the long-term deleterious effects, and in some cases very serious actions being taken right now.

Another source of comfort to LGBT teens are Gay-Straight Alliance groups in schools, which a GLSEN charter can help get started.

“We feel that it would be very helpful, and sometimes it just takes the right combination of students stepping up and a potential advisor knowing that that need is there and is coming together . . . we’re just hoping students who are willing to step forward and make that request of the administration will do so.”

At Columbia High School, SPECTRUM is a club for students who are bisexual, straight, gay, lesbian, and transgender. The club has previously filled the first-floor gallery with displays intended to educate viewers about topics such as "Don't Ask, Don't Tell", Allies, and  Marriage Equality

Watchler said it’s up to everyone in the community to take a stance against bullying.

“Every one of us has a role, every person in our community has a role in watching our own language, that we're not putting out those little bits of disrespectful anti-gay language and modeling that for our youth, because that's what's going to make difference,” she said.

“It doesn't matter what people’s backgrounds say about being gay or lesbian, it's just that everybody deserves respect, and these disrespectful things [that bullies say] are used to put everyone down whether they’re gay or not gay. 

“People who are LGBT or questioning or care about somebody or are affected in any way by these questions, when you hear that stuff over and over again, it's just terribly discouraging,” she added.

Students interested in starting a GSA at their own school can contact GLSEN at cnj@njglsen.org or by leave a message at 609-448-8243.