How about I share some encouraging news for a change? The Québec government has officially launched their Lutte contre l’homophobie, a five-year program to combat homophobic bullying and discrimination.

The program, which was announced in 2008 but came into effect last month, has seven million dollars allocated toward over 60 anti-homophobia measures, including support for independent community organisations. (Organisations that would like to apply for financial support have until December 1st under this program.)

While I don’t expect this will rid the province of homophobia overnight, I’m confident it will help—and it’s a far cry from government policies that actively oppose equal rights for GLBT citizens.

Good for Québec!

• Quebec government to spend $7M fighting anti-gay bullying [Vancouver Sun]
• The fight against homophobia [Justice Québec]

A new study being released today by the University of Winnipeg has found that homophobia has become a normal part of school life in Canada, with a direct impact on student safety.

Homophobic harassment and comments, sometimes even uttered by teachers, is commonplace. 64% of GLBT students actually report feeling unsafe at school. 21% have even reported being physically harassed or assaulted because of their sexual orientation.

The study also revealed a bit of hope, though. Both verbal and physical harassment were found to be significantly reduced in schools that have explicit anti-homophobia policies compared to those that did not. A clear majority of straight students, 58%, also reported homophobic comments to be upsetting, meaning that most students you meet will be an ally.

Anti-homophobia policies are finding organized opposition from church groups, as was seen in Burnaby this week, but academic research like this certainly outshines any imaginative misinformation and demonstrates a clear need for programs to make schools safer.

So, to all you guys having a rough time in school, hang in there! Things are getting better!

• Study finds startling new data on homophobia in Canadian classrooms [National Post]

A group of parents, organised by a handful of churches, rallied yesterday to protest a non-discrimination policy introduced by the Burnaby school district. The draft policy, which has yet to be finalized, addresses the unacceptably high levels of bullying that GLBT students face in comparison to other students.

This doesn’t sit well with some people, though. James Gray, one of the protest organisers, explained his objections to the press: “I have two young children in the school system and I don’t want any adult to look at them in a sexual way. Whether or not my daughter is heterosexual or a lesbian in none of their business.”

Whoa there, tiger!

I’m not sure what Mr. Gray thinks he’s protesting, but he won’t get very far with this sort of hyperbole.

Mr. Gray should try a thought experiment and imagine growing up in a world where everyone—his teachers, his principal, his parents—assumed that all students, including him, were gay. As a (presumably) straight male, would he have had a problem with this? Would he feel sexualized? I suggest this experiment, because any objections he has should be identical to those of gay people growing up in today’s school systems.

You see, the new policy has nothing to do with “sexualizing” schools, but rather the reverse. With respect to teaching staff, it trains them to remove the assumption that all boys will end up falling in love with girls, and vice versa. Students are not assumed to be either way, because the assumption would inevitably be wrong for some of them. With respect to students, it means that bullying and harassing students for being (or appearing to be) gay will not be tolerated; being a “fag” will no longer be a focus in the schoolyard.

The policy also means that staff will be better trained to deal with crises. Today, GLBT youth have the highest rate of suicide and depression of any other identifiable group, and proper support systems have demonstrated clear improvements to this statistic. If a student discovers that he or she is different and needs to discuss anything, the school will be prepared to lend any special support that student may want. Students can feel safe with the knowledge that teachers and councilors have not made any assumptions about them and will be open to helping.

Larry Hayes, the Burnaby school board chairman, put it best: “It’s all part of creating a safe, caring and respectful environment for all of our students.”

• Parents protest new gay-friendly policy for Burnaby schools [Vancouver Sun]

A new study out of Montréal’s Concordia University has linked homophobic bullying to hormonal disruptions that can make youth more prone to memory loss, cardiovascular problems, bone density depletion, and even higher rates of suicide.

The research involved questionnaires and saliva swabs from 63 gay and lesbian youth. Results suggest that participants who endured the most bullying in day-to-day life had a higher rate of cortisol disruptions, which can cause negative health effects.

While I suspect that bullying of any kind would produce such a correlation, GLBT youth are indeed particularly prone to harassment.

Relatively unique to GLBT youth, the study also showed that having supportive family and friends who are responsive to gay issues significantly improved resiliency to homophobic harassment, making support groups a great countermeasure to the hormonal disruptions.

• Study links homophobic bullying to suicide, memory loss [Vancouver Sun]

Two weeks from today is Pink Shirt Day, a movement started in 2007 by two high school students—David Shepherd and Travis Price—after they saw a new student being bullied and harassed for wearing a pink T-shirt. That evening, they purchased as many pink shirts as they could find and then distributed them around the school the next morning, flooding the halls with pink. Since then, the day has become an annual event to help put an end to bullying in schools.

It’s a great idea, so consider this a head’s up for anyone who works at, or goes to, a high school in Canada. Visit http://www.pinkshirtday.ca/ to learn about how you can get your own pink shirt, or make a bulk order for your Gay-Straight Alliance, if you have one. All proceeds go to the Boys and Girls Club of Canada.

Toronto’s Gay Village is a little on edge recently after a rash of slushie attacks.

Groups of teens from a nearby school, Jarvis Collegiate, have apparently been trolling the neighbourhood during lunch hour, picking anyone strolling along Church street and hurling slushies at them, à la Glee. Unlike Glee, they’re also hurling some nasty slurs.

Paul Winsor, a local florist and slushie victim, said that the slurs happen often, but didn’t think the attacks are specifically targeting the gay community. “In my mind, it’s a bunch of teenagers behaving badly all around,” he told the Toronto Star. “I think it’s general hooliganism; it’s a crime of opportunity—whoever happens to be around.”

Considering that Jarvis Collegiate is right in the middle of the Gay Village, and not all the victims have been gay, I’m inclined to agree. Although the slurs and general behaviour is certainly revealing of a larger homophobic problem in schools. After all, if this is the stuff that leaks out of the school into the general public, imagine what it must be like inside for students who are gay or perceived to be gay.

As for the slushie-slinging squad, may they all get brain freeze.

• Teens hurling slushies and slurs in Gay Village [Toronto Star]
• No Glee in Gay Village slushies [Toronto SUN]