If you are a lesbian, gay man,
transexual or bisexual in college, you need not feel like a fish out
of water. You are probably not the only one there. You may not know
them yet, however some of your college mates are LGTB (in fact, out
of 1,000 students in the place, between 50 and 100 will be LGTB). So
will some of the teachers, administrators, etc. Some of your fellow
students even come from homoparental families.
Find below some tips which
can make things easier for you in college:
-
Your college is a place where
everyone should feel free, where differences should be viewed as a treasure,
not as a problem. Educational laws favour you. If you wish you are entitled
to stand up for your right to be different.
-
It would be great if you could
tell a teacher about your homosexuality, bisexuality or transexuality,
someone who could provide written material, resources, advice. If such
person is not sufficiently trained in those issues, you may suggest
they get in touch the COGAM Education Commission. They will assist him/her
to help you.
If you are sick and tired of
being in the closet and decide to come out in college, you have the
right to do so. No one can keep you from doing that or make you come
out forcefully. Be cautious though. Before taking such an important
step, you should keep several considerations in mind:
-
Familiarise yourself
with your environment. How do you think the rest of your fellow students
will react? Be forewarned in case some of those reactions are not as
positive as you may expect.
- First of all try
to get the support of close friend. Should you be in trouble, their
help will be invaluable.
- Talk to a tutor,
mentor or teacher you feel safe with. It would be great if they could
pave the way by talking about affection and sexuality in class.
You can ask your teachers or
people responsible for the college library if they have any written
material on sexual diversity (COGAM hands it for free at the college´s
request). Get any literature or magazine which could be helpful, so
you and your classmates can understand diversity and improve your self-esteem.
One of the legal principles
in Spanish education is focus on sexual diversity. Students have the
right to participate in the discussion of such issues, to have positive
role-models who could help them to build healthy sexual identities.
If you feel strong enough, reclaim it.
If you have a reliable teacher,
they could contact COGAM about a visit to your college to present their
programme “banish homophobia from educational centres”. You will
then be assured your college will benefit from interesting and well-documented
information on sexual diversity.
A college in Rivas Vaciamadrid
runs a sexual diversity information service. If you wish you may contact
them at tutorglbt@yahoo.es
If you believe your rights
are being violated by fellow students or teaching staff, report it to
your head teacher or tutor. Bullying has many faces. It is not only
physical assault. It can consist of: insults, abusive jokes, or making
you feel marginalised. If you think you are being bullied, do not keep
it to yourself. Get someone reliable to tell them about it. Never suffer
from bullying in silence. Ask for help. Of course, never feel ashamed.
It is the attackers who should feel ashamed of their acts.
If you witness a fellow student
being bullied, do not keep it to yourself either. When someone is bullied
because of their sexual orientation or identity, chances of people coming
out in the future are greatly diminished. We must never give in.
If you are bullied for being
a gay man, lesbian, bisexual or transsexual, report your case to el
Defensor del Menor de la Comunidad de Madrid: 91 563 44 11. This service
is private and confidential. You can also get in touch with social workers
from the Programa de Atención a Homosexuales y Transexuales de la Comunidad
de Madrid, co-ordinated by COGAM: 900
720 569.