Speaking their hearts
by Jeanette Stewart
the Carillon

Raising awareness and reaching out
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One of the leading causes of teen suicide is the guilt and shame of being gay. Although the attitudes of society have changed greatly in recent years, it is still difficult and often painful for homosexual youth to find their place in society.

This was just one of the many issues raised at the Prairie Symposium for Education and Social Justice for Gay, Lesbian and Transgender Youth held last Friday and Saturday, October 15 and 16, at the University of Regina.

The aim of the event was to create a “safe” environment in which people could come together to share their experiences and ask the hard questions involved with being gay. The event was also a way to address sexual issues that are typically pushed aside and ignored. Society does not often consider the reality of life as a homosexual.

The symposium allowed people to come together and consider the real and difficult issues facing this particular minority group. Event organizer James McNinch says the occurrence of such an event in Regina was “overdue.”

“We’ve never had a public forum in Regina around the topic of education and social justice for queer youth.”

The event’s presenters included Julie Richards, part of the couple challenging the current court definition of marriage, the Regina Symphony Orchestra’s resident composer David McIntyre, representatives from the Roman Catholic Church and the U of R, as well as educators and health care providers. In addition to informing the audience, the presenters shared their own personal experiences and struggles. Although most of the stories were obviously painful to tell, the underlying message was one of hope and a great move towards social change and awareness.

McNinch describes the way society is changing as “dazzling.”

“If you even think about what [society’s] attitudes were like 10 years ago to today, and again we think [of the way attitudes will change] ten years in the future, we will look back and laugh about how uptight we were about all of this.”

The optimism felt by McNinch is not a total indication that “queer” people have found their place in society. One of the presenters, an “out” teacher who taught in the public school system, backed out at the last minute because he did not feel he could speak publicly without facing the possibility of backlash. He felt that if the media got hold of his name he might become a “football” in his community.

This is contrary to the feeling that society is moving forward and is a testament to the fact that, although through seminars like this awareness is being raised, there is a still a long way to go.

Chris Bates, one of the youth in attendance says he wished that “more people would have come.” In his experience, “[these issues are really never raised in] the basic gay community.” He finds the “opportunity for open discussion like this really intellectually stimulating,” but the small representation by the young gay community was somewhat discouraging.

“Although we are in a supposedly safe institution, we are not necessarily home free,” says Wes Pearce, one of the symposium’s presenters. He feels that in academia there is a pervading sense of indifference, that assumptions of the youth are ingrained and there is tolerance but not necessarily understanding.

Perhaps with further emphasis on education and more discussion and debate such as this, Pearce says society will reach further awareness and become able to recognize these issues with compassion instead of mere passive acceptance and blind tolerance.