The PFLAG NYC Safe Schools Program visited Community Action School on Manhattan's Upper West Side on February 3 to speak with the three sixth-grade classes. Volunteers Alice Wong, Aundaray Guess, Diane Coughlin, Florence Shuster, Myron Yolkut, Johanna Antar, and Judy Accurso shared their personal experiences of a loved one's coming out.
Aundaray Guess had his audience riveted with his dramatic illustration of how a gay person is affected by the casual use of homophobic slang words. Going through some of the common epithets -- "That's so gay... fag... queer..." -- Aundaray slashed his forearm with a magic marker once for every term. "Do you think that words hurt? On the outside I may look fine," he said, holding up his unblemished forearm, "but inside every word leaves a scar that I feel on the inside," and he held up the arm covered in black marks.
PFLAG NYC father Myron Yolkut speaks with 6th graders at Community Action School
Sixth-grade classes like these at CAS are the youngest that the Safe Schools Program typically addresses. PFLAG NYC's volunteer speakers were especially enthusiastic about sharing their real-life experiences with students who are just entering a new stage of awareness about themselves, their peers, and the wider world.
Woody Enoicaras, a PFLAG NYC volunteer and first-time observer of a Safe Schools event, said, "I was surprised at how small the kids seemed, yet almost all knew what 'gay' was, knew someone who was gay, had gay people in their family and/or knew someone who was bullied for being gay."
LGBT youth are coming out at younger ages. Many struggle with trying to figure out who they are and where they fit in, most often without the benefit of accurate information, role models or counselors and teachers who are comfortable with their issues. Schools cannot ignore the issues raised by younger students' growing awareness of issues of sexual orientation and gender identity.
"I know that the students absorb our stories," said Judy Accurso, mother of a gay son. "I know also that at this age students can relate to concepts such as self-image, peer pressure, teasing, bullying, self-respect, and ethics. If we speak with them sooner rather than later, we have a head start on helping at-risk students through difficult times."
Read more about the PFLAG NYC Safe Schools Program here
or to inquire about a Safe Schools event at your school, call PFLAG NYC at 646-403-3197 or email safeschools@pflagnyc.org.
