Joe:

I'm glad you felt comfortable to write to us here at AskTrevor.  Being bullied for any reason is really difficult to deal with, and is unwarrented. No one has the right to bully you, make you feel bad for being who you are, or treat you with disrespect, for any reason. Surrounding yourself with friends and allies can help so you have people to talk to if it happens to you. If it happens at school telling a trusted adult can help to put a stop to the situation. Remember, no one has the right to make you feel uncomfortable for any reason and you have the right to feel safe at home, at school, and everywhere else.

I find that people who bully others tend to do so because the are uncomfortable or don't understand what the other person is going through. So people may bully openly gay, bisexual, or transgendered youth and adults because they don't understand what it means to identify in this way. Instead of learning about what it means, and trying to understand their situation, the bullies are scared by it, and they tend to react to being scared by bulling. This does not, at all, justify what they are doing, or how they act.

If this is happening to you, or someone you know, I'd strongly encourage you (or them) to talk to a trusted adult about it. Many schools have anti-bullying campaigns to address homophobia and transphobia among LGBT students and you can find out more about specific anti-bullying campaigns on the Gay, Lesbian, and Straight Student Network website: www.glsen.org. GLSEN has activities schools can intitiate to raise awareness such as their "no name calling week" and "a day of silence." Both of these campaigns bring awareness in schools to the harms of bullying as well as encouraging students, teachers, and parents to end bullying. On the Trevor website we also have a section called The Trevor Project's Lifeguard Workshop section where the film Trevor is used to create a workshop to open up discussions about how language and behavior can affect the way people feel. If you are interested in bringing these types of workshops or activities into your school see if you can speak with a trusted teacher or guidance counselor about how you go about doing this.

Lastly, remember, no one has the right to make you feel uncomfortable or disrespected. Surrounding yourself with people who love and care about you can create such a great support system to get through toughter times. The Trevor Project also has TrevorChat available on Monday and Friday evenings as well as TrevorSpace - the social networking site where you're able to connect with youth who may be going through the same situations you are and may be interested in having the types of conversations you'd like to have. If you are in crisis please call us at 1-866-4-U-TREVOR. We are always here for you.

The Trevor Project

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