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Project - Homophobic Bullying in Schools - need help!

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  • 10-03-2010 4:04pm
    #1
    Dark Artist
    Registered Users Posts: 387 ✭✭


    Hey all,

    I'm a graphic design student, and for my final year project I'm designing a project to tackle homophobic bullying in secondary schools. It's going to be an informative campaign that would hypothetically have the support of the Department of Education and would therefore have to be distributed in faith schools as well as secular. It's going to be aimed at students and staff alike, but more so students. It will possibly consist of flyers, posters, a website, booklets, TV ads etc.

    I'm looking to hear as many real life stories as possible - whatever you can think of, positive or negative. I'd especially like to hear from you if you're an LGBT person still in school, regardless of whether or not you're openly gay. If you're out of school but can give insight into what school was like for you, please get in touch. Everything will remain confidential, you don't have to give your name. If you'd be willing to be interviewed, possibly by email or IM, that would be very much appreciated.

    Apart from that, if you have any experience in this field, or any advice on how to communicate messages like this to children, please leave your opinion or get in touch.

    I want to make it clear that unless it is noticed and picked up by a third party, there are no plans to actually run this campaign. It is just hypothetical, and will only exist as part of assessments for my degree, but I need to conduct all research as if it were a live project.

    Post here in this thread if you like, PM me, or email me at lgbtschoolproject@gmail.com.

    General comments, discussion and questions welcome!

    Rob


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    #2
    Annasopra
    Registered Users Posts: 41,062 ✭✭✭✭Annasopra


    Have you contacted BelongTo? They've done a lot of work in this area and also in the UK Stonewall and LGBT Youth organisations in Scotland

    It was so much easier to blame it on Them. It was bleakly depressing to think that They were Us. If it was Them, then nothing was anyone's fault. If it was us, what did that make Me? After all, I'm one of Us. I must be. I've certainly never thought of myself as one of Them. No one ever thinks of themselves as one of Them. We're always one of Us. It's Them that do the bad things.

    Terry Pratchet



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    #3
    Dark Artist
    Registered Users Posts: 387 ✭✭Dark Artist


    Yes, I conducted an interview with someone from BelongTo, and that interview has led the project to where it is at the moment. I'm using their past campaigns as some of my references, although I'm hoping to get the perspective and opinions of the general LGBT community also.


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    #4
    Annasopra
    Registered Users Posts: 41,062 ✭✭✭✭Annasopra


    Ok, have you asked them to put you in touch with some people?

    It was so much easier to blame it on Them. It was bleakly depressing to think that They were Us. If it was Them, then nothing was anyone's fault. If it was us, what did that make Me? After all, I'm one of Us. I must be. I've certainly never thought of myself as one of Them. No one ever thinks of themselves as one of Them. We're always one of Us. It's Them that do the bad things.

    Terry Pratchet



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    #5
    AfterDusk
    Registered Users Posts: 407 ✭✭AfterDusk


    In my experience (for the most part), people who were 'camp' were picked on. But if the perpetrators discovered that the victims really were gay/bisexual, their tone changed and they stopped the 'bullying'.


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    #6
    Dark Artist
    Registered Users Posts: 387 ✭✭Dark Artist


    Johnnymcg wrote: »
    Ok, have you asked them to put you in touch with some people?

    No... I wasn't sure if they'd be at liberty to do that so I didn't, but now that you suggested it I suppose it couldn't hurt to ask.

    Neil, that's interesting what you said. Are you talking about an isolated incident? I noticed how you put the word 'bullying' in inverted commas, so did you consider what was happening as bullying or was it something of a lesser extent?


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    #7
    AfterDusk
    Registered Users Posts: 407 ✭✭AfterDusk


    Dark Artist wrote: »
    Neil, that's interesting what you said. Are you talking about an isolated incident? I noticed how you put the word 'bullying' in inverted commas, so did you consider what was happening as bullying or was it something of a lesser extent?

    No they weren't really isolated incidents, but there are always exceptions of course - I agree with you that it is rather interesting behaviour. Again, this is in my experience, so it may not be across the board. (I finished school May '09 by the way, so it's fairly recent)

    People who came across as gay/camp were slagged and called names, but any individuals who were out of the closet were treated with more respect - there were references to their sexuality, but they were directed more as 'banter' as opposed to insults. Although having said that, there were some homophobics who wouldn't have entertained them at all.

    I also found that the character/social status of the person was a key factor in determining whether their sexuality was accepted. If the person was popular, everyone just got on with it and accepted it. But for the more quiet ones, it was a different story - the quiet ones would have been victimised a bit more.



    I originally put bullying in inverted commas because I wasn't sure if it was the right term, but I realise now that it is.


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    #8
    Aard
    Registered Users Posts: 4,905 ✭✭✭Aard


    I think Neil's word 'banter' is appropriate for my experiences too. People made jokes about me, but they weren't malicious for the most part. Sure, there were one or two who really meant to cause offence, but they generally kept their opinions to themselves - I only ever found out through the grapevine.


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    #9
    AfterDusk
    Registered Users Posts: 407 ✭✭AfterDusk


    Actually, 'through the grapevine' does remind me of how horrible people can be behind other people's backs - I can't believe I forgot to include it in my post!

    I've heard many horrible things that were said about me and others behind our backs. So that could be another aspect. But then again, this was only directed at people who weren't out of the closet.


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    #10
    hitlersson666
    Closed Accounts Posts: 1,544 ✭✭✭hitlersson666


    I'll love to help


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    #11
    Dark Artist
    Registered Users Posts: 387 ✭✭Dark Artist


    neil2304 wrote: »
    People who came across as gay/camp were slagged and called names, but any individuals who were out of the closet were treated with more respect - there were references to their sexuality, but they were directed more as 'banter' as opposed to insults. Although having said that, there were some homophobics who wouldn't have entertained them at all.

    I also found that the character/social status of the person was a key factor in determining whether their sexuality was accepted. If the person was popular, everyone just got on with it and accepted it. But for the more quiet ones, it was a different story - the quiet ones would have been victimised a bit more.

    Yeah maybe the homophobic bullying of 'straight' people, so to speak, is considered acceptable by the perpetrators because the person concerned isn't actually gay and must therefore not be that hurt or offended. The point you made about social status is one I hadn't thought of.
    Aard wrote: »
    Sure, there were one or two who really meant to cause offence, but they generally kept their opinions to themselves - I only ever found out through the grapevine.

    That's a real sign of sneakiness and genuine dislike. The reason I'm making the campaign more informative than anything else is to educate people more on what being gay is actually like, why people are gay, and the difficulties that come with being gay. 'Homophobia' translates as 'a fear of gay people'. People fear/hate homosexuality simply because they can't relate to it or understand it, so more information will create more sympathy which will lead to more understanding and tolerance.
    hitlersson666 wrote: »
    I'll love to help

    Please, knock your socks off! I need all the help I can get to see what's important, what the biggest issues are etc. so that my content is as convincing and informed as possible.


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    #12
    Aard
    Registered Users Posts: 4,905 ✭✭✭Aard


    Yeah, the "through the grapevine" thing may be sneaky and underhanded, but tbh it didn't really bother me that much. To me, that kind of behaviour is childish and doesn't really warrant any attention or over-analysis. The only time I ever had a major problem with homophobia was when a classmate brought it up at a (Christian) spiritual retreat. I challenged him on it, and got the same ol' cliché arguments. It pissed me off more than anything, that there exist people like him who were as thick as a plank. I wasn't offended that he was homophobic per se, just irritated that his opinion was based on what others said rather than independent thought.


    In my experience, the vast majority of teenagers who are homophobic are just going by learned behaviour. I think you hit the nail on the head with "they can't relate to it or understand it". It's true - gay people are generally thought of as "artistic", "flamboyant", "non-sporty", etc. If the football team (generic example) realised that, chances are, there's a teammate who's gay, then they'd be a lot less likely to throw comments around.


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    #13
    hitlersson666
    Closed Accounts Posts: 1,544 ✭✭✭hitlersson666


    Pm me please


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    #14
    Dark Artist
    Registered Users Posts: 387 ✭✭Dark Artist


    Aard wrote: »
    It's true - gay people are generally thought of as "artistic", "flamboyant", "non-sporty", etc. If the football team (generic example) realised that, chances are, there's a teammate who's gay, then they'd be a lot less likely to throw comments around.

    Exactly, this is another important reality that I hope to get across.

    I also wanted to say that if anyone reading this has anti-gay views or opinions, feel free to express them. PM me if you like. As I said, I'm looking to get a realistic assessment of how people generally regard this issue.


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