A new survey has revealed that almost half of transgender schoolchildren in Britain have attempted suicide.
Forty five percent of trans students have attempted to take their own life, compared with 22% of LGB youth.
It’s part of a number of findings in the School Report survey, compiled by LGBTQ charity Stonewall, which documented the experiences of 3,713 LGBTQ youth in Britain’s schools.
Among the findings:
45% of LGBTQ youth have been bullied at school
One in ten trans students are subjected to death threats at school
45% of bullied LGBTQ youth don’t tell anyone about being bullied
Only 29% say a teacher has intervened when they witnessed bullying
A third of trans students are not able to use their preferred name at school
Only 20% of LGBTQ youth have learned about safe sex in same-sex relationships
Shockingly, 84% of trans youth and 61% of LGB youth have self-harmed
96% of LGBTQ young people had to use the internet to learn more about their sexuality/gender identity
Zoe, a 12-year-old student in England, told Stonewall: “I felt like whatever I was doing was worthless. Even if I did well in school, it wouldn’t matter to people because all they would care about is me being gay.”
“I lost confidence and the power to succeed and get the best qualifications,” said George, 16, who attended a faith high school in Scotland. “I left because I was scared and I didn’t belong in that environment.”
Jack, 15, who attends high school in the South East of England, said: “I’ve been bullied all my school life, but when I came out as gay five years ago, and then as trans two years ago, the bullying increased.
“People call me a ‘he-she’, ‘tranny’, and other transphobic slurs. People also call me homophobic slurs like ‘lezza’ and ‘fag’.”
But despite the negative findings, Stonewall Chief Executive Ruth Hunt said there is cause for optimism.
“Thanks to government and cross-party support, compulsory relationships and sex education (RSE) is set to become a reality in England’s schools,” she said. “This is a vital step towards ensuring that all young people are equipped to make informed decisions about their lives and relationships.”
The survey’s findings reflect that. In 2007, 70% of students had never been taught about LGBTQ issues. That figure has fallen to 40% by 2017.
Incidences of homophobic language have also fallen. In 2007, 71% regularly heard “faggot” and other slurs while at school, a figure that now sits at 52% in 2017.
“As we look ahead, we must keep sight of our shared mission: to create a world where every young person can grow up happy, healthy and supported to reach their full potential,” Hunt said. “While much has changed over the past decade, it is clear we cannot be complacent in the fight for equality.”
Not for anything I've said over the course of our lively hour-long phone interview one recent Saturday, but for this magazine's past transgressions.
This issue, you see, marks Cho's fourth appearance on a Metro Weekly cover in three decades, and I'm sheepishly begging forgiveness for how we handled the previous headlines, bastardizing her last name for the sake of a pun.
"Cho-Zen."
"On With the Cho."
"Cho Girl."
"It's all good," she laughs, taking it in stride. One thing about Margaret Cho is that she doesn't offend easily, if at all.
California Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom has drawn the ire of the LGBTQ community for stating that allowing transgender women to compete against cisgender female athletes is "deeply unfair."
Newsom made the remarks on the inaugural episode of his podcast, This is Gavin Newsom, in which he seeks to interview "the biggest leaders and architects in the MAGA movement."
In the episode, Newsom interviewed conservative firebrand Charlie Kirk, executive director of the conservative youth-focused Turning Point USA.
Newsom asked Kirk what advice he would give to the Democratic Party.
President Donald Trump used his address to Congress on Tuesday, March 4, to attack transgender individuals, calling transgender identity a "lie" and railing against transgender athletes, gender-affirming care, and trans visibility in the military and more broadly within society.
At one point during the speech, Trump switched from speaking about a child who was diagnosed with cancer to claim his administration was protecting children from "toxic ideologies" in schools.
He brought up the story of January Littlejohn, a Florida anti-transgender activist who sued the Leon County School District in Tallahassee, Flordia, in 2021, alleging that her child's school had discussed restrooms and name change requests with the child, assisting her in "socially transitioning" without informing Littlejohn or her husband of their efforts.
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