‘Severe’ Homophobia in Northern Ireland Schools
WIMPS talks to students, teachers and the Minister for Education, John O'Dowd, at the 'Left out of the Equation' launch.
The report, launched by 'The Rainbow Project' and 'Cara-Friend', highlights the severe bullying experienced by lesbian, gay and bisexual young people in NI schools.
Education Equality Officer, Gavin Boyd highlighted the problems for the young people, 'They get severely bullied but frequently don’t tell anyone because they don’t believe their school will do anything about it.'
Gavin continued, 'They hear homophobic slurs every day but teachers don’t intervene. They aren’t taught that they can have stable and fulfilling relationships. They aren’t taught how to gauge risk and protect themselves from mental and sexual ill-health. They are simply expected to suffer in silence.'
Watch the video and let us know how you feel about this issue.
Could we do more to support lesbian, gay and bi-sexual young people in Northern Ireland?
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Who you can contact
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John O’Dowd MLA
John O'Dowd represents Upper Bann constituency at the Northern Ireland Assembly.
Minister of Department of Education.
