Source: helsinkiwampire

26 October 16237 projectqueer Permalink

gayinnj:

Jamey Rodemyer, 14, Committed Suicide in Response to Incessant Tormentors

Jamey had been bullied for years in school and online for not only his sexual orientation but also his weight and hateful speech of all kinds was sent his way. In May he came out to his friends as bisexual, and even made his own “It Gets Better” video to spread the message of hope he desperately wanted to believe in himself. But it seems that the hateful words only increased to an unbearable point, and feeling he had no one to turn to, on Sunday September 18th, only days before the anniversary of Tyler Clementi’s death last year, Jamey killed himself outside his home in Williamsville, NY.

You might have heard the news that Jamey was a huge Lady Gaga fan, even claiming that she was “the reason why I am alive.” The news of his death has left Gaga and people across the world both saddened and angry. Gaga is now pushing for President Obama to “make bullying illegal”, and the Paws Up Forever Project is circulating on YouTube to honor Jamey by discussing the harsh reality of suicide and the horrible bullying that has lead to so many lately.

So what can you do? Keep reaching out to the quiet kid in your class or dorm. Keep telling the ones you love that you are there for them and that they are amazing and beautiful. It might seem simple or even silly, but you never know how your words can heal over the ones that hurt.

24 September 158 gayinnj Permalink

Possible Criminal Charges In Connection With Jamey Rodemeyer Suicide

Police in Buffalo, New York are considering whether to bring criminal charges against students who harassed Jamey Rodemeyer, the 14-year-old junior high school student who committed suicide after being bullied for coming out gay.

In May, Rodemeyer posted a heartbreaking YouTube video for the It Gets Project, which reaches out to struggling gay teens considering suicide. “Lady Gaga, she makes me so happy, and she lets me know that I was born this way. And that’s my advice to you from her. People are born this way. All you have to do is hold your head up and you’ll go far,” he said in the clip. “Just love yourself and you’re set … It gets better.”

The video was a relief for his parents who saw it as a sign that their son’s struggle might be coming to an end.

But on Sunday, Rodemeyer, who had just started his freshman year at Williamsville North High School outside Buffalo, was found dead outside his home. (Police have not released details of how he killed himself.)

Police Chief John C. Askey told the Buffalo News that the department was looking into the case.

“We’ve heard that there were some specific students, an unidentifiable group of students, that had specifically targeted Jamey, or had been picking on him for a period of time,” he said.

Officials said the actions of three students in particular are being investigated. The students could be charged with aggravated harassment. (An ABC News report is embedded in the right panel of this page.)

Source: ontopmag.com

24 September 15 Permalink

LGBT Bullying in School Linked to Long-Term Health Effects in New Report

“That’s so gay.”

Phrases such as this one, used dismissively by teenagers in what is often a casual, offhand way, can impair the health of LGBT youth long after classes end, a new study shows. The term is so pervasive, in fact, that an earlier survey found that 90% of American youth have heard “gay” used in a negative way.

A new report by the Family Acceptance Project at San Francisco State University traced the effects of LGBT-victimizing bullying in school — including unintentional epithets like “that’s so gay,” more direct verbal harassment, and physical violence — beyond their initial sting in school hallways. Using data from the project’s survey of 245 LGBT young adults, the paper links such bullying to long-term health and developmental problems.

It found that LGBT-targeted bullying related to gender expression or sexual orientation during school years led to increased young adult depression, suicidal thoughts, social adjustment issues and risky sexual behavior. LGBT young adults that reported high levels of anti-LGBT victimization as teens were 5.6 times more likely to report suicide attempts than those victimized less frequently. They were more than twice as likely to report being clinically depressed, and they were more than twice as likely to report having been diagnosed with a sexually transmitted disease by young adulthood.

The report also found that young adult GBT males are targeted more frequently than their female counterparts, and that the amount of bullying a boy receives in school can help predict the health issues he will face later in life.

The report, titled “Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Adolescent School Victimization: Implications for Young Adult Health and Adjustment” and published in the Journal of School Health, comes as both popular culture and policy hone in on the topic. The plot of last week’s episode of the ever-popular Fox hit show Glee, for example, revolved around quiet, biting homophobic bullying: an openly gay male was (spoiler alert!) crowned Prom Queen.

“I don’t know if these issues are getting easier to talk about, but a lot of people are willing to have the conversation,” said Jeff Krehely, director of the LGBT Research & Communications Project at the Center for American Progress. “That has to do with the fact that a lot more people are out as L, G, B, or T than they were 10 or 15 years ago.”

Source: The Huffington Post

16 May 180 Permalink