Sexual Orientation in Schools

sexual minority youth often remain an invisible population in schools and they may choose to remain invisible out of concern for their own safety. Sexual minority youth who come out or access services which are inclusive and supportive of their sexual identity may be at risk of increased vulnerability as a result. Rather than assuming that there are no sexual minority stu dents in your school, perhaps a more important question to ask is why they are not visible? Is the environment supportive of sexual minority youth or perpetuating their invisibility? Current research indicates that between 2% and 10% of individuals in North American society are non-heterosexual10. In Canada, a recent demographic survey of over 105,000 junior and senior high school students, conducted by the Toronto District School Board, found that 8% of students in grades 9-12 identified as non- heterosexual or questioning their sexual orientation11. Additionally, adolescent health research indicates that the average “coming out” age is now 15 or 16 years of age12. These research findings illustrate how the issues of sexual orientation and sexual identity are relevant in today’s schools. What are the health, safety, and educational concerns of sexual minority students in our schools today? Homophobia and Harassment Students may be harassed for being “gay” based on their presumed sexual orientation or not conforming to gender expectations, though the harassers may know nothing of their victims’ actual sexual orientation. The victimized students may not be certain of their sexual orientation themselves. Many students may have a sense of themselves as being ‘different’ in some way and vulnerable, but survive by “flying under the radar”. These students may prefer to not attract negative attention and, therefore, wait to come out later in more supportive environments. “That’s so gay” has become embedded in youth culture as the prime put-down equivalent to “stupid” or the opposite of cool13. Many students use words like “faggot” and “homo” without a clear unders tanding of how they may be affecting their peers. Often tolerated in schools, these words are one aspect of homophobic bullying, and, if left unchecked, further reinforce the hostility, intolerance and negative perceptions of sexual minorities. Research indicates that experiences of dis crimination, stigmatization, violence, and the associated negative mental health outcomes disproportionately impact the physical, emo tional, and educational lives of sexual minority youth. A study of 1,598 adolescents from five high schools in Ontario found “sexual minority adolescents reported significantly higher rates of bullying and sexual harassment than did hetero sexual adolescents” and that lesbian, gay, bisexual students and “adolescents questioning their sexual orientation reported similar adjustment difficulties, victimization experiences, and perceived [lack of] social support.”14 In Canada, a 2008 survey conducted by the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health found that one-third of Grade 9 and Grade 11 boys reported being victims of homophobic insults, with roughly equal numbers of boys reporting having been perpetrators of such insults. Slightly fewer girls in Grade 9, about one-quarter, reported being victims and perpetrators of homophobic insults; among Grade 11 girls, reports of being victims and perpetrators of homophobic insults drop substantially15. Mental Health Stigma, prejudice, and discrimination can create a hostile and stressful social environment for sexual minority youth. This can lead to youth developing expectations of rejection, internalized homophobia, hiding their sexual orientation, feeling of shame and negative coping mechanisms16. Current research exploring key 3 Questions & Answers: Sexual Orientation in Schools INTERNALIZED HOMOPHOBIA: A diminished sense of personal self-worth or esteem felt by an individual as a result of the experienced or presumed homophobia of others. stressors in the lives of sexual minority youth identify that these youth experience greater and more severe risk factors, such as bullying and homophobic victimization and higher incidence of depression and substance abuse when compared with their heterosexual peers17. In particular, sexual minority youth who also face other risk factors, such as being an ethno-cultural minority, being homeless, living in care and/or being involved with the corrections system may be at further risk for negative health outcomes. Suicide 4 Research studies focused on adolescent health consistently indicate that suicide is one of the leading causes of death of today’s youth18. For sexual minority youth, suicide is the number one cause of death19. Research identifies that sexual minority youth are 1.5 to 7 times more likely to MSM: An acronym to describe men who have sex with men. The acronym is used to reflect the complexity of sexual orientation and, in particular, that some men who have sex with men do not identify as gay. WSW: An acronym to describe women who have sex with women. The acronym is used to reflect the complexity of sexual orientation and, in particular, that some women who have sex with women do not identify as lesbian. attempt suicide than their heterosexual peers20. Key risk factors for adolescent suicide, in general, include feelings of hopelessness, a history of family dysfunction, sexual abuse, substance abuse, and the recent or attempted suicide of a family member or close friend21. In addition to these general risk factors, sexual-minority youth also face other risk factors including younger age of disclosure/coming out22, lack of family acceptance, and more frequent interpersonal conflict (such as bullying) regarding their sexuality23. One Canadian study found that lesbian, gay, and bisexual youth, when compared to their heterosexual peers, were more likely to: • have had suicidal thoughts and a history of suicide attempts; • experience greater physical and sexual abuse; • have higher rates of harassment in school and discrimination in the community; • have run away from home once or more in the past year; • be sexually experienced and have either been pregnant or to have gotten someone pregnant; • be current smokers, tried alcohol, or used other drugs; • report higher rates of emotional distress; • participate less frequently in sports and physical activity; • report higher levels of computer usage/ time; and, • feel less cared about by parents/caregivers and less connected to their families24. Other Health Risks Failure to provide accurate, non-judgmental, and age-appropriate information on sexual orientation within the school system represents not only a pressing safety and educational concern, but also a significant public health issue. The United Nations and the United States’ Centers for Disease Control (CDC), indicate that young gay and bi sexual males and young men who have sex with men are at significantly increased risk for HIV infection25. This risk can be attributed to the