An analysis released this week by a national safe-schools agency found pervasive homophobic comments and behavior throughout Pennsylvania high schools.
The Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network released statewide statistics from its 2009 National School Climate Survey, a biennial survey of more than 7,000 LGBT students nationwide, with a total of 332 Pennsylvania participants.
The report found that nearly all — 99 percent — of local survey respondents reported hearing the word “gay” used in a negative connotation in a classroom setting — compared to 88.9 percent nationwide.
Additionally, 92 percent of local students reported hearing other homophobic language, and 86 percent said students made negative remarks about an individual’s gender expression. Nationwide, GLSEN found 72.4 percent of students reported homophobic remarks and 62.6 percent heard negative comments about a student’s gender expression.
The language was not just limited to students, however, as about 25 percent of Pennsylvania students reported hearing school staff make homophobic comments.
The vast majority of respondents — 85 percent — reported being verbally harassed for their sexual orientation, but those incidents also escalated to physical harassment in 45 percent of the cases and physical assault in 21 percent. Sixty-one percent of students faced verbal harassment because of their gender expression, while 31 percent and 15 percent, respectively, reported physical harassment and assault.
Nearly all of the Pennsylvania statistics for harassment and assault were slightly higher than the national averages.
Local respondents reported sexual orientation and gender identity were the top motivating factors in verbal and physical harassment when compared with other characteristics like race or religion.
The attacks also took on other forms, such as being deliberately left out by peers (87 percent), having rumors spread about them (87 percent), sexual harassment (70 percent), cyberbullying (55 percent) and property damage (50 percent).
Fifty-two percent of students who were harassed or assaulted did not report the incidents to school staff and 48 percent never told family members; of those who did report to school officials, only 34 percent said they were satisfied by the school response.
In terms of resources, only 21 percent of students attended a school with an LGBT-inclusive bullying or harassment policy and just 10 percent said their school had an inclusive curriculum. More than half of the students reported they could not access LGBT information on school Internet or in school libraries.
About 40 percent of students attended a school with a gay-straight alliance, and a wide majority — 93 percent — could identify a supportive staff member, although that number shrunk to 48 percent if asked to identify several supportive staffers.
To contend with the climate faced by Pennsylvania students, GLSEN laid out numerous recommendations, including the implementation of comprehensive LGBT-inclusive anti-bullying policies, support for GSAs, LGBT-inclusive training for staff and increased access to LGBT-inclusive curriculum and resources.
“These actions can move us toward a future in which all students in Pennsylvania will have the opportunity to learn and succeed in school, regardless of sexual orientation, gender identity or gender expression,” the report stated.
Jen Colletta can be reached at [email protected].