TESA applauds EPSB for sexual orientation and gender identity policy
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE -- November 29, 2011 -- EDMONTON
TRANS EQUALITY SOCIETY OF ALBERTA APPLAUDS NEW INCLUSIVE EDMONTON PUBLIC SCHOOL BOARD POLICY ON SEXUAL ORIENTATION AND GENDER IDENTITY
The Trans Equality Society of Alberta (TESA) would like to applaud the Edmonton Public School Board (EPSB) for establishing a policy (IFA.BP – Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity)[1]which affirms students, staff, teachers, and families who identify as gay, lesbian, bisexual, transsexual or transgender. Their policy, which is the first in Alberta, will be a milestone in the fight against bullying and harassment in schools in this province.
TESA is especially pleased by EPSB’s inclusion of transgender, transsexual, and two-spirited people in their groundbreaking policy. Given the great challenges that trans kids and adults alike face in day-to-day life, protection from discrimination at school and at work is both welcomed and necessary. For kids, being able to transition at school while being protected from bullying and harassment is integral to their ability to participate in the educational system.
Although comparable data is rarely collected in Canada, a recent report by the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force, Injustice at Every Turn: A Report of the National Transgender Discrimination Survey, found that 76% of respondents in the U.S. experienced bullying and harassment in a K-12 setting, with 35% also experiencing physical assault, and 11% were also sexually assaulted. These findings were also notably higher where there were intersections of prejudice, such as among multiracial trans students.[2] The same report also found that nearly a sixth -- or 15% -- of trans students experienced harassment so severe that it led them to leave school and discontinue their education, and also reported that:
We would also encourage other school districts in Alberta, as well as the Alberta School Boards Association, to develop and implement similar policies to help end violence and harassment in our schools and allow all those involved to focus on education.
REFERENCES
[1] http://www.epsb.ca/policy/draft_ifa.bp.shtml
[2] http://www.thetaskforce.org/downloads/reports/reports/ntds_full.pdf
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TRANS EQUALITY SOCIETY OF ALBERTA APPLAUDS NEW INCLUSIVE EDMONTON PUBLIC SCHOOL BOARD POLICY ON SEXUAL ORIENTATION AND GENDER IDENTITY
The Trans Equality Society of Alberta (TESA) would like to applaud the Edmonton Public School Board (EPSB) for establishing a policy (IFA.BP – Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity)[1]which affirms students, staff, teachers, and families who identify as gay, lesbian, bisexual, transsexual or transgender. Their policy, which is the first in Alberta, will be a milestone in the fight against bullying and harassment in schools in this province.
TESA is especially pleased by EPSB’s inclusion of transgender, transsexual, and two-spirited people in their groundbreaking policy. Given the great challenges that trans kids and adults alike face in day-to-day life, protection from discrimination at school and at work is both welcomed and necessary. For kids, being able to transition at school while being protected from bullying and harassment is integral to their ability to participate in the educational system.
Although comparable data is rarely collected in Canada, a recent report by the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force, Injustice at Every Turn: A Report of the National Transgender Discrimination Survey, found that 76% of respondents in the U.S. experienced bullying and harassment in a K-12 setting, with 35% also experiencing physical assault, and 11% were also sexually assaulted. These findings were also notably higher where there were intersections of prejudice, such as among multiracial trans students.[2] The same report also found that nearly a sixth -- or 15% -- of trans students experienced harassment so severe that it led them to leave school and discontinue their education, and also reported that:
- Those respondents who said they were physically assaulted at school due to gender identity/expression were twice as likely to have done sex work and other work in the underground economy and were 50% more likely to be incarcerated.
- For those who had to leave school due to harassment, nearly half (48%) reported having experienced homelessness.
- Those who were mistreated in school had higher rates of drug and alcohol abuse and smoking to cope with the mistreatment. For those who were physically assaulted or had to leave school due to harassment, rates of misuse of alcohol and drugs doubled.
- Respondents who reported having to leave school due to harassment were HIV-positive at a rate of 5.14%, more than eight times the HIV rate of the general population, 0.6%.
- More than half (51%) of respondents who were harassed, physically or sexually assaulted, or expelled because of their gender identity/expression reported having attempted suicide. Of those who were physically assaulted by teachers/staff or students, 64% reported having attempted suicide.
We would also encourage other school districts in Alberta, as well as the Alberta School Boards Association, to develop and implement similar policies to help end violence and harassment in our schools and allow all those involved to focus on education.
REFERENCES
[1] http://www.epsb.ca/policy/draft_ifa.bp.shtml
[2] http://www.thetaskforce.org/downloads/reports/reports/ntds_full.pdf
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