Constance McMillan, the teen who made headlines last month for fight a Mississippi school district when her prom was cancelled after she asked to bring her lesbian partner, is back in the headlines. According to the news, she was invited to a parent-sponsored prom by local parents, but was sent to a fake venue while other students partied the night away at the actual venue. According to perezhilton.com, they tried to make the best of the night.
This is a sad statement on our society. Instead of loving and accepting this young girl for who she is, the parents and community where this young girl lives are choosing to even further outcast her. LGBT teens are 8.4 times more likely to attempt suicide than any other teens. For every successful suicide by a gay teen, nearly 100 to 200 are attempted according to a 2009 study by Family Acceptance Project at San Francisco State University.
Obviously, the old tactics by disgrunted families and communities that are being used for these teens are more harmful than helpful. We shouldn't challenge kids on an issue like this, we should learn to love and accept everybody for who they are. This girl could have easily been one of those, but instead had the courage to stand up. It's time for a change in America when it comes to how to deal with the subject of homosexuality.
Everybody has an opinion on it, until it becomes their son, daughter, parent, or best friend. All this negative attention should be focused on REAL problems that we have in America. It's not going away anytime soon.
Monday, April 5, 2010
Constance McMillan, lesbian teen, sent to fake prom: The Ignorance of Homosexuality in America.
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I agree with you about the cruel and homophobic way that Constance was treated. LGBT youth are at high risk for a number of health problems, related to stigma and victimization.
ReplyDeleteBut the information you cited on LGBT teens and suicide is incorrect.
My study (affiliated with San Francisco State University) found that LGBT young adults who reported high levels of family rejection during adolescence were 8.4 times more likely to report suicide attempts than peers who reported no or low levels of family rejection.
Also, my research never said that nearly 100 to 200 suicide attempts were made by LGBT youth for every completed suicide. We don't know the completed suicide rate for LGBT young people. And my research didn't speculate.
We do know that studies over many years have shown high rates of attempted suicide among lesbian, gay and bisexual (LGB) young people. In some state school-based studies, the rate of attempted suicide is 3-4 times higher among LGB students than their heterosexual peers. This rate is very high, is of great concern, and calls for school support programs, family and provider education.
But I just wanted to set the record "straight" on my research.
Caitlin Ryan, PhD
San Francisco state University