News: More Than Half of LGBT Students Experience Homophobic or Transphobic Bullying

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Published by The Strathclyde Telegraph.

More than half of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT+) students have experienced homophobic or transphobic abuse in further and higher education, according to a new National Union of Students (NUS) study.

The Pride and Prejudice in Education research into the extent of bullying and harassment experienced by LGBT+ students and staff at colleges and universities found that out of 1,505 respondents, 60% had experienced abuse, with a further one in 10 witnessing intimidating behaviour every day.

Out of 930 students and 575 staff surveyed, 78% also said they did not know who to go to if they experienced bullying.

Robbiie Young and Fran Cowling, LGBT+ officers at NUS, said: “It is deeply concerning to see how widespread the bullying and harassment of LGBT+ students is. Every student should feel safe while at college or university. They shouldn’t have to face name-calling and other bullying, or have to consider dropping out of their course because of the way they are treated by other students.”

They added: “NUS will be working with students’ unions to implement the recommendations in this report to create learning environments that are inclusive and welcoming for all LGBT+ students.”

NUS said the survey findings suggest that homophobic and transphobic abuse directed at LGBT+ students also has an impact on their learning and retention levels, with gay/lesbian and non-binary learners more than twice as likely as average students to consider abandoning their course.

Seth Aitken, Forum for Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity Equality chair, said: “This report clearly shows there is much to be done to foster confidence amongst both staff and learners, which seems to be particularly lacking when it comes to reporting bullying and harassment.’

The report calls for colleges and universities to: do more to prevent LGBT+ students from dropping out as a result of bullying, improve training and support for staff, develop inclusive curriculum content, and adopt zero tolerance policies for harassment.

Helen Carr, Head of Equality at the University and College Union, said: ‘While much has been done to address bullying and harassment based on sexual orientation and gender identity in colleges and universities, there is no getting away from the fact that it is still a problem.’

Support for LGBT+ students at the University of Strathclyde is available through the Advice Hub and the Strathclyde LGBT+ Society. Information on how to report bullying and abuse based on sexual orientation or gender identity is available on the University of Strathclyde Students’ Association (USSA) website.

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A Cultural Shift for LGBTQ Support: OITNB’s Ruby Rose on Gender Fluidity

After working as an intern at The National last week, I was so busy I didn’t have any time for writing other articles. So, I’m so happy to now have the time to write some more for Cult Noise! I absolutely love writing for this publication and I think what Cult Noise do is so important and they offer a unique platform for aspiring journalists.

Read my new piece for Cult Noise on LGBTQ, the meaning of gender fluidity and the new it girl that everyone is talking about, Ruby Rose.

A Cultural Shift for LGBTQ Support: OITNB’s Ruby Rose on Gender Fluidity

How many different sexualities are there? Heterosexual, homosexual, bisexual, pansexual and asexual. That must be all of them, right? Wrong.

How many different genders exist? Male, female, trans-male, trans-female, bi-gender, gender binary and agender. Is that all of them? Wrong again.

Theoretically, the list of all the different sexualities and genders in existence is infinite. A person who does not wish to identify with the gender they were assigned at birth can essentially choose any form of gender identity they like. They can choose to be either one or the other traditional sex (male or female), or they could be both, or neither, or both at the same time – whatever they choose. I personally think of gender and sexuality as subjective social constructs, something that, in our day and age, we have the option to explore and define for ourselves.

After Equal Marriage, Is an Abortion Referendum Next for Ireland?

“Currently in the Republic of Ireland, it is a criminal offence to commit the “intentional destruction of unborn human life” which carries a sentence of up to 14 years imprisonment. Amendments to this law were made in 2013 as part of the Protection of Life During Pregnancy Act which states that a woman may have an abortion if there is a substantial risk to her life (this includes the possibility of suicide) but refuses access to abortion in cases of rape or any other circumstance. As Ireland is a largely Catholic country, it is understandable that much of the population are against abortion but the reality of the matter is that the termination of pregnancies will happen regardless of laws and legislations.

Criminalising abortion does not prevent abortions, it prevents safe abortions.”

Read my new current affairs article for Cult Noise magazine on the attitudes surrounding ROI’s abortion laws.

Sophie’s Choice: Keeping Up with the Kardashians – About Bruce (TV Review)

As part of my new Sophie’s Choice feature with the Student Rag, I will be writing 3-5 reviews a week of TV programmes, films, documentaries – pretty much anything and everything I watch on TV.

For my first feature, I choose to write on Sunday’s Keeping Up with the Kardashian’s special About Bruce in which Bruce and the rest of the family finally open up about his gender identity issues and his decision to transition into a woman. Have a read on the Student Rag website and stay tuned for more TV reviews to come!