• ELIXHER
• On November 12, 2014

By Ashland Johnson

The Gay Lesbian and Straight Education Network (GLSEN) has released their 2013 National Climate Survey, a study on the climate of LGBT bullying in the U.S. school system, to cap off National Bullying Prevention Month. The findings are alarming, but also encouraging.

First, the bad news: The report finds that bullying is rampant and that many schools are not safe spaces for LGBT youth. Surveying nearly 8,000 13- to 21-year-old students, GLSEN’s study shows:

• 65 percent of respondents frequently heard homophobic slurs or were verbally harassed.
• 58 percent of respondents experienced discriminatory school policies that ranged from not being able to take same-sex dates to school events to being disproportionally disciplined for engaging in public displays of affection.
• 30 percent of respondents missed school because they felt unsafe.

This harassment contributed to LGBT students having lower grades and self-esteem. It also decreased the likelihood of them planning to attend college.

GLSEN’s study gives us a better understanding of how emotionally harmful bullying and harassment in school can be for LGBT youth. It also gives us hope. Since GLSEN began doing these reports nearly a decade ago, more states have enacted protections against bullying for LGBT students, the number of LGBT students who report they have supportive educators has increased, and the rate of students hearing discriminatory language has decreased.

Policymakers are also starting to see school bullying for what it is—a public health concern. This is progress, but lawmakers are still not doing enough to protect our youth. LGBT students are protected against gender-based harassment in schools under Title IX. However, only 17 states and the District of Columbia protect students from harassment based on their sexual orientation.

The study underscores the need to make sure all LGBT students have access to supportive resources that have been proven to work, including Gay-Straight Alliances, LGBT-inclusive curriculum, and safe-space training for teachers and staff.

National Bullying Prevention Month, observed in October, may be over, but efforts to protect youth—especially LGBT youth—continue. Advocates for safer schools are pushing for federal laws that will include specific protections based on sexual orientation and gender identity. These efforts are critical to the success of LGBT youth, especially youth of color who face higher levels of bullying and harassment.

Each one of us can be personal advocates against bullying by knowing what’s happening in school districts in our communities, supporting policies addressing bullying and LGBT harassment, and helping students organize LGBT-inclusive organizations.

To ensure that every student across the country is not only safe in school, but has opportunities to be successful, will need each of us—including advocates, lawmakers, and school leaders—working in unison toward an end to bullying.

Ashland Johnson is a social justice advocate based in DC. She is Policy Counsel at the National Center for Lesbian Rights where she promotes the full protection of LGBTQ rights through law and policy. Much of her work focuses on health, housing, sports, and people of color inclusion. Ashland has contributed to Huffington Post, StandUp magazine, and the Harvard LGBT Policy Journal. Follow her on Twitter @ashlandj11.