Generation Queer, Sexual and Gender Minority Youth in Canadian Schools, provides an overview of LGBTQ youth-related research, a current picture of homophobia in Canadian schools and ideas for helping to build the "resiliency of sexual and gender minority youth "in schools .
The Gold Trail BC School District, encompassing Ashcroft, Cache Creek, Clinton, Lillooet and Lytton recently passed an anti-homophobioa policy. The decision to do so came up at a routine committee meeting, "We thought it was important that we have a policy in place to make it quite clear where we stood on the matter," says Gold Trail trustee Christopher Roden. So far the policy has proved uncontroversial.
Edmonton is the first Alberta school board to develop a policy to make schools welcoming and safe for "students, staff and families who identify or are perceived as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, transsexual, two-spirit, queer or questioning their sexual orientation, gender identity or gender expression." Read more in the Edmonton Journal.
Under new provincial legislation, school administrators will be able to permanently expel bullies. The province already has a Safe Schools Act and this new legislation will provide an opportunity to take meaningful action.
A campaign to create a sexual orientation and gender identity policy for all BC schools is underway. The campaign is asking individuals to submit personal letters explaining why they think such a policy is needed. Those in the LGBT community are encouraged to write as are their friends and allies. Letters can be sent to:
Purple Letter Campaign#376-3495 Cambie StVancouver, BCV5Z 4R3
Or via email to purplelettercampaign@gmail.com
Last night the Burnaby School Board unanimously passed policy 5.45, Sexual Orientation/Gender Identity. The policy was developed over a two year period and intended to address the diversity within schools and to create an atmosphere of "respect and safety."
The Burnaby School Board is facing tremendous pressure from an ad-hoc parents group, called Parents' Voice, which wants to see policy 545, an anti-homophobia policy designed to protect LGBTQ staff and students from harassment, scrapped. The school board has already redrafted the policy to address some of the concerns of parents and will be presenting a new version of the policy tonight. Unfortunately "Parent's Voice, "plans to boycott the meeting and is now putting pressure on Premier Christy Clark to "respect the religious views" of parents.
A recent study has shown that children and adolescents who bully others at school have a high likelihood of abusing their partners as adults. In fact, the correlation was even stronger than amongst those who had witnessed or were abused as children. Researchers hope the study will generate more attention and resources to help stop bullying. Read more in the Vancouver Sun.
The Burnaby school district has drafted a policy, No. 5.45, to support students and employees who are (or are assumed to be) lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, transsexual, two-spirit or queer (LGBTQ). While the policy is being met with protest from some parents and church groups, students are overwhelmingly in favour of the policy.
Read more in the Burnaby Now.
