School is supposed to be a safe environment for all students regardless of their sexuality, gender identity, ethnicity, beliefs and backgrounds. Sadly, that is not the reality of our world currently. As a student apart of the LGBTQ+ community, I do not feel safe or accepted at my school. 

I recently took a survey asking, “Do you feel safe at your school as a student apart of the LGBTQ+ community?“. The results were sad, but not shocking. 80 students (22%) do feel safe in school, while 216 (78%) do not. I also asked those who are not apart of the community, “(Non LGBTQ+ members) do you feel like your school is safe for queer students?”. The results were nearly the same as my previous survey stated above. 24 students (22%) felt that their school was safe for their peers apart of the community, while 86 students (78%) disagreed.

Now that we’ve identified that there’s a flaw in the school system, where and how do we attack the problem? The first step is to raise awareness. By sharing this survey, you’re spreading the word that this is a serious problem going on, educating others, and contributing to something that could change other’s day to day lives. As a whole, it’s time to start standing up for students experiencing bullying due to their sexuality or gender identity. The more people to do it, the less it will happen in schools. You don’t have to be apart of the community to help out, just willing to stick up for others! Even if it’s just making a teacher or trusted adult aware of the situation will make a difference. If we don’t work towards change soon, it will be harder to reverse the damage done to the community. So let’s start now.