Boys Gender and Schooling > Issues for schools > Masculinities matter >

Homophobia

Homophobia has become a key issue for behaviour management in schools. Like harassment on the grounds of race, sex or class, harassment on the basis of sexuality or perceived sexuality creates an unsafe learning environment affecting all students.

Although it is sometimes dismissed as meaningless, homophobic name-calling is significant in the construction of boys' and girls' gender identities and in the acting out of aggressive masculinity.

Whether the target is homosexual or not often matters little to the perpetrators who, through their harassing behaviours, declare themselves safely heterosexual. Students wishing to avoid harassment must stay within acceptable gender boundaries or risk becoming targets. In this way homophobic harassment policies narrow masculine and feminine behaviours for all students.

Recent research with same-sex-attracted young people showed that:

81% of young men and 53% of young women (69% overall) had been harassed and abused at school, making school a more violent place for these students than the streets
59% were harassed by other students
young men were more likely targets for verbal abuse (52%) than young women (39%) but overall nearly half (46%) had been verbally abused
verbal abuse involved mostly name-calling (80%) but 18% of same-sex-attracted young women and 11% of same-sex-attracted young men had been threatened with physical violence
13% had been physically abused
many same-sex-attracted young people expressed the belief that there was no protection available at school and that if assault or harassment occurred, procedures and practices would not be set in motion to ensure justice or to prevent such behaviour recurring
those who had been abused were less likely to feel safe at home and at school
of the 33% who said they had not been abused, many added that this was because no one knew about their sexuality. Many feared the consequences if they were found out.

(Hillier et al. 1998:33-40)

I am most afraid about what will happen at school. I know that I will get verbally harassed a hell of a lot but I'm hoping physical abuse won't happen.

(Mei 16 in Hillier et al. 1998:35)

Homophobic harassment is widespread in schools and has an enormous impact on those targeted and those who fear to be. It detracts from the learning and undermines the safety of all students.

	Ian's story details the experiences of one student.
	Other boys talk about homophobia.

Homophobia

Recommended reading