What+are+the+dangers+that+Gay+and+Lesbian+students+must+face?

//Jeffrey Kong//  What are the dangers that Gay and Lesbian students must face?


 * __ Opinion Essay __**

Ward, Myrna. (2011). Homosexuality the wrong path.//HJNews// //.// Retrieved from []

Summary: This article is about religious perspective on homosexuality. The editor is an old lady name, Myrna Ward, who views homosexuality as the wrong path in life. She talks about how homosexual urges are some of the strongest forces in the universe. She believes that God created these urges to reward his children for resisting temptation. The kingdom of heaven and eternal life are given to these good Sumerians. Those who are easily given into these urges are sent to hell. She mentions that Satan will use any trickery to make anyone act in homosexuality. Satan wants to be the new form of god and saved everyone in his alternative world.

Reaction: I can see how religion plays a big role when it comes to homosexuality. Many people believe that homosexuality is a crime because god created Adam and Eve, not Adam and Dave. The bible is a very powerful guideline for billions of people and I respect that. It was very interesting to read how Myrna view homosexual as a way to test their loyalty to god. However, I don’t view affection between two people of the same sex as an act of Satan. There are millions of murders and rapists out there and grouping gays and lesbians with them isn’t right. They shouldn’t face consequences in the afterlife, especially when they already dealt that in their past life.




 * __ Analysis Article __**

Eckholm, Erik. (2011, April 18). Even on religious campuses, students fight for gay identity.//NYTimes.// Retrieved from []

Summary: This article talks about homosexuality in religious campuses. Since these universities and colleges are strongly Christian base, they view homosexuality as a sin. Gay and lesbian students want to project their identities on their campuses, by forming programs and clubs. They are willingly to go against their administrators who have a negative view on their behaviors. On the other hand, some gay and lesbian students are too afraid to fight back because they fear their scholarships would be taken away. In one case, a girl name Amanda Lee Genaro was rejected from North Central University, a Bible college, for coming out of the closet. She was very sexual confused and emotional disturbed. She found help from the campus of Soul Force, a gay religious college. They helped her out and she announced her openly gay relationship with a woman on MySpace. The university suspended her, unless she rejected homosexuality.

Reaction: I would believe that Christian schools would have a big negative view on homosexuality, seeing that I went to one for 8 years. To these schools, the bible is everything. It’s the word of god that they strongly follow. Since the bible view homosexuality as a sin, any acts of it should be dealt with the strongest attention. It’s very sad that some of these gay and lesbian students are afraid to express their sexuality because they are under a scholarship. That kind of hardship should be expected from all students, gay or straight. Changing the view of Christian universities is like going against the bible. The odds of achieving that are very slim.




 * __ Two Scholarly Articles __**

Munoz-Plaza, Corrine. (2002). Lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender students: perceived social support in the high school environment. // ERIC Digest //, // 85 // (4), 52-63. Retrieved from []

Summary: This article talks about school discrimination towards gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender students. They face a higher risk than heterosexual students, such as suicide, harassment, and low school performances. This article is about a study consisting 12 male and female that are gay, lesbian, bisexual, or transgender. The purpose of this is to see the social support they receive from their schools. Some of these test subjects said they receive more support from non-family members than family members. On the other hand, they didn’t receive any emotional support from heterosexual students because they are uncomfortable with handling the situation. Studies have shown that 76 % of homosexual male have engaged in drinking and 26 % on cocaine use. Other studies have shown that heterosexual males engage alcohol use by 49% and cocaine use by 2%.

Reaction: I find it surprising that non-family members are more supporting than family members when it comes to homosexuality. Maybe that’s the reason why teens are afraid to come out of the closet. They probably don’t want to dishonor their family with their situation. This article has a lot of surprising facts like the cocaine and alcohol use from homosexual males. They are more likely to engage in dangerous behaviors then heterosexual males. There are much more risk that homosexual students must face in school. Harassment is the biggest as it can lead to bad school performances and thoughts of suicide.



Horn, Stacey. (2010, July 10). Peer contexts for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender students: reducing stigma, prejudice, and discrimination. //ERIC Digest.// Retrieved from @http://0-vnweb.hwwilsonweb.com.helin.uri.edu/hww/results/getResults.jhtml?_DARGS=/hww/results/results_common.jhtml.35

Summary: This article talks about how interaction between peers plays an important role on development. Teen relationships help teen understand their identity, social skills, and life skills. Peers can be a positive source of support and affection. However, some can be a source of harassment. Gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender students have to face a lot of obstacles; such as social norms, stereotypes, and prejudice. A percentage between 11% and 20% of heterosexual students feels they can’t have gay friends. All of this neglect and prejudice can cause homosexual students to feel isolated.

Reaction: I find this article very interesting because it talks about the effect of peer’s relationship on teen’s development. I agree that friends play a big role when it comes to making a decision. Most teens rely on their friends to tell them what’s right and what’s wrong. This creates an environment where confused teens are learning from the voices of other teens. It’s very heartbreaking to see gay and lesbian teens to live in an environment where it views homosexuality as a taboo. They have to face the harassment from other teens because of their sexuality. I believe they need a more supportive environment, where gay and lesbian teens don’t have to fear the perspective of others.




 * __Summary Article__**

Crossley, Danielle. (2010, November 8). What school boards should know before attempting to circumvent the rights of high school students to organize gay-straight alliances under the auspices of the equal access act. // ERIC Digest //. Retrieved from @http://www.eric.ed.gov/PDFS/ED512691.pdf

Summary: This article talks about the controversy of protecting the rights of gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender students. One group said that every student deserve an education free from harassment and discrimination. As a research project, they gave heterosexual students a survey about their attitudes and views about homosexuality and gay and lesbian’s rights. The results showed that many students have different opinion on the subject. Some viewed that gay and lesbian students should have rights, and some viewed it as a waste of time. These views are taken into account when it comes to creating a safe learning environment for heterosexual and homosexual students. Under the No Child Left Behind Act, students are protected from any acts of violent and harassment in their schools. Unfortunately, lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender students are still being victimized every day. They serve as a subject to prejudice from their peers, teachers, and counselors.

Reaction: I feel that lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender students shouldn’t be afraid of being victimized by their school. Just like any other students, they deserve to have every protection from their school system. Schools are supposed to protect their students from discrimination and harassment regardless of their sexual orientation. Look at gay and lesbian’s point of view, they have to face many prejudice behaviors from their peers such as name picking, teasing, and taunting. This can damage a person’s being mentally and physically. The biggest concern of this is that they don’t have anyone to protect them. Teachers, counsels, and other adults would turn their shoulders around and let the harassment continue. Saying “No” isn’t just enough. They have to act as protectors for all their students. Without that protection, homosexual students are facing a long journey of discrimination.