= SUNDAY FOCUS the North Staying No support, no services for local gays . Katharine Hamer News Reporter khamer@nsnews.com IN March, at the B.C. Teachers’ Federation Annual General Meeting, 80% of teach- ers voted in favour of supporting gay/straight alliance clubs in schools. North Vancouver Teacher's Association _ vice-president Diane Nelson was among those who supported the BCTF motion. “We have an obligation to support students,” she says. “It’s really important for both educational and human rights teasons that kids feel school is a safe environment.” Currently, though, there are no plans afoot to start an alliance (linking students on both sides of the sexual-identi- ty-divide to help foster under- standing) on this side of the Burrard Inlet. : The North Shore may be a more tolerant suburb than some. But issues concerning sexuality continue to cause discomfiture even here. During ‘a recent debate over student participation in the McCreary Centre Society research survey, parent fears atout their children being pressed into making a decision too early about sex- ual orientation far outweighed worries about questions relating to substance abuse. Many. counsellors and students believe a community-based club may be preferable to any within. the school system. But for local teens wo may be contemplating their sexual preferences, pport groups at all. pretty bold step for the North Shore,” observes Debbie Ryan, «i former nurse who now oversees child, maternal, Homophobia on Stage in West Van “| VANCOUVER Youth Theztre’s newest musi- cal play, Harmony, is based on the real, hon- -est experiences and reflections of its teen actors with respect to such issues as racism, bullying, and homophobia. . The spring touring production of the young com “comes te the North Shore next week when West pany ‘Vancouver senior secondary school hosts a district-wide performance sponsored by the West Vancouver school ard. : Harmony aims to foster a shift rowards attitudes of _ understanding and acceptance. among the multicultural * diversity of youth in Lower Mainland schools. As well as being based on the experiences and ideas of the young actors, extensive research has been conducted via video screenings and guest speakers. ; With the aim of reducing racism and prejudice, there ~ are focused follow-ups after school performances in the ‘}-form of a question and answer period let by the actors and ’ |. facilitated classroom sessions. Anditions were held in September 1999, at which time 16 teenagers were selected to be part of the project. The FSactors represent a cross section of cultures including: China, Taiwan, Venezuela, Iran, England, Ireland, Fiji, Italy and Canada. : The group quickly realized the importance of listening “< and learning about each other before they could discuss how they could, through theatre, speak to others. "Actors and script writers also shared their experiences and observations with respect io. bullying, racism, and homophobia. Some of these experiences have been written into the script so the audience will have the unique oppor- tunity to watch their peers dramatize true and honest sto- ries. © : : @ Harmony performs Wednesday, May 10 at § p.m. at West Vancouver senior secondary school, 1750 Mathers Ave. — Martin Millerchip Bs Fh soe Shore cl and youth programs for the North Shore Health Region. Ryan, who says that the North Shore has “well-defined boundaries about what is appropriate behaviour,” speculates that gay, lesbian, and bisexual teens may venture to clubs or associa- tions downtown. “They have to keep their secret. There are no safe places here. There’s less comfort with diversity.” Jennifer Horgos co-ordinates youth programs for Gab (the youth division of the Gay and Lesbian Community Centre). The downtown centre offers regular drop-in evenings for youngsters. Of the 60 to 80 who turn up each month, says Horgos, four or five are from the North Shore. She says most of them would be too fearful of being found out to attend a yathering on this side of the water — and are more comfortable in the supportive “gay village” atmosphere of the West End. “We have a number of teenagers who teil us they would never dream of coming out while they're still living on the North Shore,” she says. “ y would sooner swallow a box of tacks than come out to their parents.” Like other suburban kids, North Shore teens find out about Gab through counsellors, internet chat services, or simply, says Horgos, by “looking up ths word ‘gay’ in the phone book and finding, our phone number.” When the McCreary Centre Society conducted its Adolescent Health Survey Hin 1998, onc of the survey questions asked teens about their perceived sexual orientation. Of West Vancouver-Garibaldi students polled, 88% said they were “100% heterosexual,” 8% declared themselves to be “most- ly heterosexual, bisexual, or 100% homosexual,” while 4% were “not sure.” West Vancouver secondary counsellor Linda Hathaway, “[e’s unusual for us to sce a grounded tcenager who's gay come out and say, ‘This is who I am and I’m OK with this.”” : That doesn’t mean there are no youngsters on the North Shore facing doubts about their sexuality. But youth admitting, even to themselves, that they might be gay face the threat of con- stant verbal abuse from their peers. Hathaway said she was aware of “a handful” of gay students in West Vancouver schools. None, she said, would be willing to talk to a reporter, even anonymously. “It’s very covert, very subtle,” says Hathaway. “It’s such a crit- ical time for peer acceptance. You might use a phrase like ‘That’s so gay.” Maybe your best friend is gay. Is he ever going to confide in you?” : “The North Shore is affluent and educated,” observes Horgos, “but it’s incredibly conservative. “It's (homosexuality) just not talked about. There’s a blind eye turned to harassment in schools. It’s a silent issue. If you’re gay just be quiet.” Of one workshop given by Gab at Carson Graham school, Jennifer Horgos comments, “The kids were fine, but the teacher said, ‘Why did you have to tell your parents you were gay, any- way, when you had a good relationship with them? I just could- n’t wrap my head around it. “Also, it’s like, “Well you can come and talk to our Grade 12s, but not Grade 8 or 9. It’s considered outrageous if we ever do a sex ed class for people that age. “I ask them if they think kids are too young to know if they’re heterosexual — they don’t seem to have a problem with that. A lot of kids know when they hit puberty that something is differ- ent, even if they don’t put a name to it.” Says the NVTA’s Diane Nelson, “we can’t deny it anymore. Sunday, May 7, 2000 — North Shore liews -— 3 Gay teens in B.C. @ 37% say they feel like out- siders at school. B Over 80% heard homo- phobic remarks from other students. @ 25% had attempted sui- cide in the last year. Half said they had attempted suicide at least once, with their first attempt at an average age of 13 @ Almost 50% of gay and lesbian youth have very low self-esteem. Most are reluc- tant to disclose their sexual orientation to teachers, doctors, and counsellors. i Lesbian and gay youth are more likely to engage in self-destructive behaviour such as substance abuse and risky sexual activities. @ Over half have been physically and/or sexually abused. @ None of the youth in the survey gave high ratings to the quality of their family relationships. , — Source: The McCreary Centre Society NEWS photo Jutle Iverson THERE are gay and lesbian youth on the North Shore but no support services for them in or out of the edu- cation system. Some say coming out at school is not an option for fear of abuse. There are kids as early as 11 or 12 who know.their sexual orien- tation — and when they’ve made it known publicly, they’ve been targeted or bullied.” Stephanie Perrins, a Grade 11 student at Handsworth sec- ondary who is also a peer counsellor, confirms that prejudices are sull deeply embedded in the school system. “I sec it a lot,” she says. “People are walking down the hall and they get, ‘Yeah, you're gay,’ or ‘Homo,’ or ‘Fag’ — even if they’re not gay. “1 think in general (having a support network) is a good idea. Ic gives people a chance nor to feel alone. But it wouldn’t work in my school. It would just point people out and make them a tar- get.” Debbie Ryan agrees that a community-based centre may be preferable, but thinks that some form of support service is essen- tial for youngsters who think they're “the only person in the world who's confused.” Samantha Kaplan, 18, graduated from West Vancouver sec- ondary last year. She has been openly bisexual since Grade 11, and hasn't been hassled too much herself — but her friends have. “I had one friend who wasn’t openly gay, but he had his car vandalized, they put it up on bricks. He got jokes every time he walked into the classroom. I know a guy from Mission who was kicked out of town because he was gay. He got so many death threats he had to leave.” Kaplan also cites an incident fast year in which the name of a gay teacher at a North Vancouver high school was bumt into the school field, above the word “fag.” Usually it’s the other way around, according to Kaplan: she ~~ says teachers often make jokes and remarks about their students” —_ posture or sexual preferences (both real and per- ceived). . When friends of hers tried to initiate a gay/straight alliance a couple of years ago at a Vancouver high school, teachers and the school principal repeatedly tore down student posters. a Having a safe place like Gab to go makes “a world of differ-'-- ence” to isolated kids, Kaplan says — whe have “felt worthless... because they’re queer. They think they're awful, awful people and they’re going to hell” — and whe otherwise might have no access to the sensible health advice they also need. w One boy who now attends drop-in sessions downtown was 13.” when he went to his family doctor, says Kaplan, to try to talk about being gay. Though the boy had never even been kissed, let alone engaged ~~ in sexual intercourse, the doctor insisted on testing him for AIDS. - “He was just dealing with the fact that he was gay and he thought he was going to die,” says Kaplan. | It wasn’t until the boy reached a drop-in meeting that his fears — Sre Health page V3 Coming in. Sunday Focus NEXT week in Sunday Focus Martin Millerchip goes trolling for a story about the state of the’ B.C. sports fishing industry. To suggest a feature story that deserves to be “in Focus” write to Martin Millerchip, North Shore News, 1139 Lonsdale Ave., North Vancouver, V7M 2H4, fax 985-2104 or e-mail .