Today is Spirit Day, GLAAD’s annual event to show support for LGBTQ youth and speak out against bullying—both personal bullying and the sweeping bullying of anti-LGBTQ laws and rhetoric.
Supporting LGBTQ youth and those with LGBTQ parents against all kinds of bullying should be a year-round goal, of course, but today is a time to come together with an extra-visible show of unity.
Let’s recap a few findings from GLSEN’s National School Climate Survey. In the survey’s study of a representative sample of 22,298 students between the ages of 13 and 21 across the country:
- 82 percent reported feeling unsafe in school because of at least one of their actual or perceived personal characteristics. For 68 percent of them, these were SOGIE (sexual orientation, gender identity and/or gender expression) characteristics, though many were also harassed because of their race/ethnicity, religion, or disability.
- 76 percent of those in in-person or hybrid learning environments experienced in-person verbal harassment based on their SOGIE characteristics; 31 percent were physically harassed (e.g., pushed or shoved), and 13 percent were physically assaulted (e.g., punched, kicked, injured with a weapon).
- About a third of those who attended school online for all or part of the year experienced verbal harassment based on their SOGIE characteristics.
Among those who were harassed or assaulted in school, 62 percent did not report the incident to school staff, most commonly because they did not think school staff would do anything about the harassment even if they did report it.
The Trevor Project’s 2024 U.S. National Survey on the Mental Health of LGBTQ+ Young People also found that 49% of LGBTQ+ young people ages 13 to 17 reported being bullied in-person within the past year, and 26% of those ages 18 to 24 reported the same.
And “Experiences of Students with LGBTQ+ Caregivers and their Families in K-12 Schools,” a 2023 report from GLSEN, COLAGE, and Family Equality, found that most middle and high school students with LGBTQ+ parents or caregivers experienced harassment or exclusion at school because of their families.
Meanwhile, there are more than 500 anti-LGBTQ bills in state legislatures. More than 90% of LGBTQ+ young people said their well-being was negatively impacted due to recent politics, according to The Trevor Project’s survey.
And LGBTQ-inclusive books and those with other marginalized characters continue to be among the most frequently banned or challenged, which I see as a form of bullying as well—a message that “You are not welcome.” Luckily, there are more such books being published than ever before, too—so do what you can to help get them in the hands of LGBTQ youth and their peers near you.
As parents, it is up to us to support our own children if we see them bullied, to raise children so that they don’t bully others, and to speak out (and vote!) against both specific acts of bullying and environments that nurture bullying attitudes. May we also support each other and all our children in this endeavor, today and every day.
For some anti-bullying resources and ways of creating more inclusive and welcoming school climates, see my latest LGBTQ Back-to-School Resources List.
