Power in Numbers

This post mentions harassment, assault, homophobia, homelessness, invalidation due to gender and sexuality, mental illness, cyberbullying, murder, racism, and suicide. If you are bothered by any of these things, please read with caution.

Photo Credit: Ashley Underwood

The 2nd most common reason for bullying in schools is a students' gender identity, sexuality, or sexual/gender expression. (GLSEN)

Almost 75% of LGBTQA+ students have been verbally harassed because of their sexuality, and almost a quarter for their gender identity. (GLAAD)

Over 15% of LTBTQA+ students have been victims of physical assault because of their sexuality, and over 10% for their gender identity, (GLAAD)

...these can be compared to only 27.3% of non-LGBTQA+ students being bullied or harassed either physically or verbally at school. (National Center for Educational Statistics)

Photo Credit: Laura Finley and Joseph Schroer

Over 60% of LGBTQA+ students who have reported bullying in school said no action was taken by school staff. (GLAAD)

Over half of LGBTQA+ students say they feel unsafe at school because of their sexuality, and nearly 40% because of their gender identity. (GLAAD)

32% have skipped school to avoid bullying. (GLSEN)

28% drop out of school altogether because of bullying. (Stop Bullying)

But it doesn't always end at school...

Photo Credit: UKnowKids

49% of LGBTQA+ students have experienced cyberbullying. (GLAAD)

35% of those effected are cyberbullied in the form of online threats (Bullying Statistics)

33% report sexual harrassment online, which is over 4 times as much as non-LGBTQA+ youth. (GLSEN)

...or online...

Becky Baker and Adam Torres from Degrassi, while telling Becky's father that she is going to continue dating Adam even though her family does not approve of him being transgender.

Photo Credit: Degrassi Wiki

Half of LGBTQA+ youth live in an unsafe, unaccepting environment. (PFLAG)

Nearly 30% get kicked out by their parents or guardians after coming out. (PFLAG)

Half of homeless youth identify somewhere within the LGBTQA+ communities. (PFLAG)

Nearly half of transgender people report a family breakdown after coming out (Stop Our Silence)...

...nearly 40% have family who will not speak to them since they began transitioning. (Stop Our Silence)

...or at home...

Photo Credit: Aricka Flowers

As high as 43% of LGBTQA+ people have experienced discrimination at their place of work (American Progress)...

... 40% have been verbally or physically harassed for their sexuality (American Progress)...

...and 90% because of their gender identity (American Progress).

Over 15% of LGBTQA+ adults have been terminated from their jobs due to their sexuality or gender identity. (American Progress)

...or at work...

90% of gay or bisexual cisgender males say they're often harassed or made to feel unwelcome in any public setting. (Stop Street Harassment)

Over 46,000 LGBTQA+ people avoid being out in public because they fear street harassment. (Stop Street Harassment).

Photo Credit: Chuck McFadden

Almost 50% of transgender people will not use public restrooms out of fear. (Stop Our Silence)

...and that's still not the last of it...

Photo Credit: Keithrtrottier

LGBTQA+ teens are three times more likely attempt to take their own lives than non-LGBTQA+ teens. (Stop Bullying)

When living with an unaccepting family, LGBTQA+ youth are eight times more likely to commit suicide. (Make Beats Not Beat Downs)

A third of youth suicide attempts are because of a sexual identity crisis. (Make Beats Not Beat Downs)

They say a trans-woman is murdered at least every 29 hours, and trans-women of color are especially frequent victims. (Planet Transgender)

Photo Credit: Samantha Michaels

Over half of transgender individuals  seek help for depression or anxiety (Stop Our Silence)...

...as well as 42% of LGB individuals (Stop Our Silence)...

...as opposed to 29% of straight and cisgender individuals (Stop Our Silence)...

...yet 41% of these LGBT people say they were not treated well when they sought help. (Stop Our Silence

Both asexuals, non-binary people and bisexuals are often told their sexuality or gender identity is "just a phase", "unnatural", they're "confused" or "doesn't exist" (Gay Star News) ...

...and asexuals are often invalidated with "You're just a late bloomer". (Gay Star News)

In fact, if you go to type in "non-binary bullying" or "asexual bullying" into Google, the recommended search result is "non-binary/asexual bullsh*t". (I found this one out on my own)

Photo Credit: Amygdala

Gender neutral pronouns such as they/them/their, xe/xem/xyr, ze/zir/zes are often called "improper", "ridiculous", or "made up". (Everyday Feminism)

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Gender Identity: A person's personal perception of their own gender

Sexuality/Sexual Identity: A person's sexual orientation, preference, or capacity for sexual feelings

Sexual Expression: The way a person presents themself as a sexual being; sometimes wrongfully thought to be visible by actions, words, voice, clothing, etc.

Gender Expression: The way a person externally presents their gender identity, or concept of masculinity vs. femininity.

LGBTQA+: Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, questioning, asexual, plus

Coming Out: "Coming out of the closet"; when someone tells another or many others that they are LGBTQA+

Transitioning: Typically thought of as the time when someone stops identifying as the sex they were assigned at birth and starts identifying with their gender identity; may or may not include hormones, surgeries, etc.; can mean something different to every transgender person

Gay: Someone who identifies as male and is sexually attracted to other males, or an umbrella term for anyone who is sexually attracted to their own sex

Bisexual: Someone who is sexually attracted to both males and females

Transgender: Someone whose gender identity does not align with the sex they were assigned at birth

Trans-woman: A transgender woman, also called as MtF (Male to Female)

Straight: Someone who is attracted to the opposite gender

Cisgender: Someone whose sex assigned at birth aligns with their gender identity

Asexual: Someone who does not desire or experience sexual attraction

Non-Binary: A gender that is not specifically male or female

Gender Neutral Pronouns: Pronouns applicable to any or all genders

October 7th, 1998 (Cont.)

* This is a continuation of my last post about Matthew Shepard. If you haven't done so already, I highly recommend you read that one first.

This post mentions assault, homophobic actions and slurs, hate crimes, death, abuse, neglect, suicide, and murder. If you are triggered by any of these things, please read with caution.

Photo Credit: World Builder Blog

It's safe to assume that most people don't know a whole lot about Matthew Shepard. It seems like the majority of times I've brought that name up in conversation I get one of two responses:

"Who?"
(Usually this one)

or less frequently,

"Oh, that kid from The Laramie Project?"

(Which I will explain shortly.)

The saddest thing about Matt's story to me is that the knowledge that he was gay can change someone's entire perspective. Notice in my last post that I didn't mention Matt's sexuality until the last sentence. You probably felt sad reading about how young he was when he died and the positive comments from his peers. Maybe you felt a little sick to your stomach reading about the severity of his assault. Perhaps it even got you thinking about your own kids or friends and what it might be like to be in the shoes of the people who were close to Matt when he was killed. Who wouldn't be upset after hearing of such a tragic outcome for an innocent young man, right?

But for some, just one word can completely change their opinion on Matt's story.

According to the Children's Defense Fund on a daily basis in The United States an average of 4 children or teens are killed by parental abuse or neglect, 6 by suicide, 21 by accidents, and 48 by gunfire. How many of these funerals do you see bombarded by protesters? How many people show up to the funerals of these kids and teens with signs saying they belong in Hell? How many of these parents get told by strangers every day of their life that their kid deserved to be brutally murdered and left to die?

Matthew's story went on to be published into a bestselling book written by his mother titled "The Meaning of Matthew", captured in a documentary titled "Matt Shepard is a Friend of Mine" which has since won 10 seperate film festival awards, be recreated in a TV movie, and turned into a play titled "The Laramie Project".

The Matthew Shepard Foundation was created in his honor, an organization whose self-described mission is to "embrace diversity" and "erase hate by replacing it with understanding, compassion, and acceptance." The foundation also started an online resource known as Matthew's Place where LGBTQA+ youth can go to find anything from a list of homeless shelters in their area to kind words from other LGBTQA+ youth and allies. In 2009, the foundation worked for the passing of the "Matthew Shepard and James Byrd Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act". Until the passing of the act, hate crime statistics did not include those for LGBTQA+ victims in which the reason for the hate crime was their sexual orientation or gender identity. 

So, with all this information out there why is it that Matthew Shepard's name is still so widely unrecognized? Why is it that the only thing the people who do recognize him seem to know him from is The Laramie Project, and why many of those people don't even realize the story is not fictional? Why is it that in 49 out of 50 states, there is a perfectly legal Gay and Trans Panic Defense in which the culprit of a hate crime can be let free of charges because they were taken off guard by the news that a victim was gay or transgender?

Society has made some great advances in the way we perceive and treat people who are LGBTQA+, but that does not mean the issues are anywhere near over. Matthew's story may have built an albeit typically unrecognized legacy, but is certainly not the last of its kind. In my next post, I want to share some recent statistics on LGBTQA+ hate crimes, bullying, and the like.

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Gay: Someone who identifies as male and is attracted to other males, or an umbrella term for anyone who is sexually attracted to their own sex.

Sexuality/Sexual Orientation: A person's sexual orientation, preference, or capacity for sexual feelings

LGBTQA+: Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer/questioning, asexual, plus

Gender Identity: A person's personal perception of their own gender

Transgender: Someone whose gender identity does not align with their biological sex