Image via Wikipedia
09/08/2011 – by Cynthia Wright
The Center for American Progress posted an article today discussing the lack of coverage black LGBT students receive from the media when it comes bullying and suicide.
While the article doesn’t downplay the seriousness of bullying today’s schools – it does point out one disturbing fact that black LGBT students are being increasingly ignored by the media.
Why is the issues and dilemmas surrounding the black youth just as important? Especially when it has been proven that black gay or gender-noncomforming youth are the victims of bullying the most in schools across the country. The report stated that 85 percent of black LGBT students were subjected to homophobic slurs on the daily basis, 47 percent of these same students also reported hearing racial insults during the school day.
The article also discusses that during a three-week period approximately a year ago when 5 white teens were covered extensively by the media but it was barely mentioned that several black students also took their lives around that same time.
Excerpted from CAP:
Schools are supposed to be environments where students feel safe and gain the skills necessary for success. But for black gay and gender-nonconforming youth, this is frequently not the case. These students often choose to miss school to avoid the harassment and violence they face on a nearly daily basis. In fact, about a quarter of black LGBT students have missed at least one full day of school in the past month because they felt unsafe or uncomfortable, compared to just 6.3 percent of all black youth and 3.5 percent of all white youth. Black students in some cases are already behind the curve academically compared to their peers, and 12 missed school days due to bullying do not help them learn and achieve.
What will it take for Congress to step up that bullying doesn’t discriminate and it affects all who have to deal with it. With black students already dealing with issues surrounding their race, being hammered due to their sexuality (or its assumption) is harming this upcoming generation. We need inclusive anti-bullying laws for all children regardless of their race and background.
