” Here we can be ourselves “. This is the name of the national prevention and awareness campaign against LGBT+ phobias in schools, launched on Wednesday 17 May 2023 by the government. In its annual report, published on the same day, the SOS Homophobia association, which has been carrying out interventions for 20 years in schools, reveals that 6% of the reports it receives concern LGBTIphobia in schools. Among the victims, 56% are minors and 84% are students. In 74% of the cases the perpetrators are also pupils, who most of the sometimes they work in a mixed group (40%).Rejections, insults, outings, physical violence, harassment on social networks… the methods are many and the consequences are devastating, warns the association. Situation with Véronique Godet, co-president.
Interview with Véronique Godet, co-president of SOS Homophobia.
To miss. What role can schools play in the fight against LGBTiphobia?
Verónica Godet. During their middle and high school years, children spend more time at school than at home. It is therefore our responsibility as adults to be role models to give them the opportunity to build themselves in tolerance and self-acceptance. Today, too few teachers are trained in this. However, if we talk about plural families, rainbow, if we celebrate Parents’ Day rather than the “ father’s Day ” OR ” mothers », if we invent fairy tales with two princesses who lived happily ever after, that we include trans people, that we explain intersectionality… This gives students the impression that they are not on the margins, that they are integrated into the social model. It is essential.
You notice that LGBTI phobias are often the result of a group effect. How to explain it?
Verónica Godet. It is related to self-image. The college and high school years are critical to social construction. We ask ourselves a lot and in these moments we tend to go towards the more powerful dynamic. It happens, for example, that we have pupils who ask themselves questions about their orientation, but who make homophobic remarks in order to integrate into the dominant group. Class is a reflection of society. Students pass on their parents’ words; sometimes we have a hard core, formed around religious convictions or a reactionary upbringing… But, during our interventions, we notice that there are nuanced positions, when we don’t judge them, when we take the time to deconstruct stereotypes, when students become aware of the violence of their words and the concrete impact they can have.
What role do social networks play in the spread of LGBTIphobia?
Verónica Godet. They are sounding boards. An insult on the internet is endlessly multiplied and picked up by people we don’t even know. The harassment amplifies, we find ourselves without any safe space: harassed at school, we are caught in a continuum of violence that continues online when we return home. It is very difficult to build oneself in such a web of violence. And then, some LGBTI influencers broadcast completely distorted images of our experiences, with this idea that if we don’t stand out, we are invisible. The role of our interventions is also to normalize the existence of LGBTI people.
What about the government’s “You can be yourself here” campaign?
Verónica Godet. I am in favor of campaigns, if they are applied in all institutions, accompanied by discussions, learning, group reflection, if teachers are trained… A poster campaign alone is not enough. It is a measure of good conscience. We have a government that doesn’t dare to take real measures, so we end up with a campaign that doesn’t allow for real awareness. The state must allocate the necessary means for this awareness, for the training of teaching staff on these issues. It must guarantee at all costs that the subject is no longer taboo… And, it is necessary to fight against the breakdown of equality on the territory by involving all institutions, and therefore all pupils, without exception.
What are the interventions of SOS Homophobia in schools?
Verónica Godet. For two hours, our volunteers are first trained, then they bring the students together in a space without an external adult, so that the word is confidential. Together, we deconstruct received stereotypes and ideas, make students reflect on discrimination, on how it works, starting with sexism which necessarily influences the way we consider masculinity for example, and which is therefore a fertile ground for homophobia.
We also make them reflect on the consequences of their words, rejection, homophobia, transphobia… We take this opportunity to remind them of the law: being gay, bi, lesbian, trans is not illegal. Being homophobic, being lesbophobic, being transphobic and showing it… it is. Finally, they are offered to ask questions anonymously and are reassured of their place in this world. Today, a quarter of the calls we receive from young people evoke a bad life that is related to the fact that they cannot be who they are. It’s because we live in a society that doesn’t allow us to be who we are.
In 2022, SOS Homophobia raised awareness of nearly 30,000 students throughout France thanks to its volunteers. Do you want to get involved alongside them and lead interventions in schools? Register at www.sos-homophobia.org
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Source: Madmoizelle
Mary Crossley is an author at “The Fashion Vibes”. She is a seasoned journalist who is dedicated to delivering the latest news to her readers. With a keen sense of what’s important, Mary covers a wide range of topics, from politics to lifestyle and everything in between.
