Suicides Put Light on Pressures of Gay Teenagers

[groovedaddy]

(I've said it before and I'm saying it again: We can't call ourselves a truly civilized people until we recognize and honor the sexual orientation of every individual - gd)

FRESNO, Calif. — When Seth Walsh was in the sixth grade, he turned to his mother one day and told her he had something to say.

I was folding clothes, and he said, ‘Mom, I’m gay,’ ” said Wendy Walsh, a hairstylist and single mother of four. “I said, ‘O.K., sweetheart, I love you no matter what.’ ”

But last month, Seth went into the backyard of his home in the desert town of Tehachapi, Calif., and hanged himself, apparently unable to bear a relentless barrage of taunting, bullying and other abuse at the hands of his peers. After a little more than a week on life support, he died last Tuesday. He was 13.

The case of Tyler Clementi, the Rutgers University freshman who jumped off the George Washington Bridge after a sexual encounter with another man was broadcast online, has shocked many. But his death is just one of several suicides in recent weeks by young gay teenagers who had been harassed by classmates, both in person and online.

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/10/04/us/04suicide.html?th&emc=th

[fascisthunter]

1. I Hate to Say This, but This Has Needed Attention A Long Time Ago

man can kids be cruel... you didn't even need to be gay to be bullied as if you were. Sex brings out some of the worst traits in people, usually those with their own sexual issues.

[Smarmie Doofus]

2. Seems to me, these are less "suicides" than they are homicides.

Alas ... nothing will be done at the school level.... the social agency that's supposed to be *protecting* kids while *educating* them ( in this case they're doing NEITHER)... until adults MAKE it happen.

Teachers can and should take the lead... but politicians control what does and does NOT get taught in PS. Therefore....this issue being completely obscured by the mania for "school reform" ( i.e. privatization)..... change is going to be a long time coming

[xchrom]

3. I don't think most people realize how isolated lgbtiq youth are.

When we come out or before - we are alone.

Unless our family is lgbtiq - it's a stand alone proposition unless
And until that lgbtiq youth can forge a community presense
For them selves.

[groovedaddy]

4. Without parental support, this makes the most sense. Teen years are hard enough as is. Finding

validation through a peer group can be a vital necessity.

[Imagevision]

5. The hetrosexual kids committing suicide over bullying don't seem to count (?)

Two girls last year.