The Lens: LGBTQ education at school would prevent discrimination, violence
- One Hong Kong teen writes about Florida’s ‘Don’t Say Gay’ bill and why students should learn about gender identity and sexual orientation at school
- The Lens will be taking a break for the summer, but we’ll be back next school year!
Students should learn about the LGBTQ community in school to prevent misunderstandings and discrimination. Photo: ShutterstockThank you for your contributions and insightful thoughts to The Lens this past year. We’ll be taking a short break for the summer and return next school year with a brand-new layout! Stay tuned.
Thoughts from last week
Yuhua Lin, Hong Kong International School
Earlier this month, parents and pro-LGBTQ protesters argued in front of a Los Angeles primary school over whether LGBTQ education should be taught in schools. This wasn’t the only time concerns around LGBTQ education have risen in the US; in 2022, a “Don’t Say Gay” bill was signed in Florida, banning public school teachers from teaching about sexual orientation and gender identity from kindergarten to Primary Three. The measure has recently been extended to cover all grades, and those who back the bill say that parents – not schools – should be the ones to decide if and when to teach kids about LGBTQ identities. However, I believe this bill is wrong and that LGBTQ education should be a part of every school’s curriculum.
Schools help students learn more about their community, which LGBTQ people are integral to. Therefore, learning about LGBTQ people is just as indispensable as learning about maths or science. People can be hostile towards things they do not understand. However, once they have learned about it, they will be more friendly towards it. Accurate information about LGBTQ identities can help stop discrimination and harm against these individuals.
Second, if students don’t receive LGBTQ education at school, students could get biased information from their parents, friends, or the internet. This could amplify misunderstandings instead of resolving them and lead the child to form biased opinions of their own, causing more attacks against the community. However, if students learn about LGBTQ issues at school, they can become more open and accepting.
I believe LGBTQ education should be taught at school. Learning about the community through non-biased, accurate information is key to ending violence and discrimination against this group in society.
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