I never realised...
Sexuality-based prejudice in our society has significant implications for everyone. For individuals it can result in long-term psychological harm such as low self-esteem, depression, anger, poor academic performance, truancy, and violence against self or others. A community that ignores or fails to challenge any form of prejudice or does not support all its members is likely to feel unsafe to every person in it.
Sexuality-based prejudice:
- Locks people into rigid gender identities that inhibit self expression and life choices. For example: "Only girls can be...." and "Boys can't be...."
- Affects our ability to communicate and form close relationships. It can be hard for young men to express their feelings with male friends for fear of being labelled "gay" or "girly". Friendships between young women can be damaged by the pressure (and even competition) to find and keep a boyfriend. For example: "My best friend dumped me when she got a boyfriend."
- May encourage young people to become sexually active before they're ready in order to "prove" they are "heterosexual" or to "live up to" perceptions of what it means to be non-heterosexual. This can put them at risk of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) and/or unwanted pregnancies.
- Is responsible for much of the sexual violence in our society, e.g. sexual harassment, date rape, gay bashing, rape and sexual assault. Sexual violence can be linked directly with the fear of being labelled "gay" or "girly" and the pressure to "prove" otherwise.
- Excludes and silences many young people, particularly those who do not fit the dominant norms for sexual identity AND those who are perceived to not fit the dominant norms, for example, a straight person who "appears to be gay".
- Results in censoring of any discussion about the diversity of sexual identities as part of school-based sexuality education, thus keeping vital information from all students.
Everyone, therefore, needs to examine their values and attitudes about the diversity of sexual identities. They need to consider the effects of sexuality-based prejudice on the individual, the family, the community and society in general and then work out what they can do to help eliminate it.
All young people benefit from understanding, respecting and celebrating the diversity of sexual identities.
When my son was about 12, he and his friend were surfing.
It was one of those really fantastic Australian days. Ben and his mate were
coming in on a wave and they held hands, shrieking at the top of their lungs.
They were totally in the experience and it was a lovely thing to see.
And I knew the time was coming when they would not be allowed to have that
experience, or if they did it would come at a high price.
It was one of those moments, a freeze frame, when I realised that my son was
going to be robbed of all he could be. I was struck by the sadness of it all.
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