What Words Can Do

Many individuals claim that there is nothing worse than death. But what about the great misfortunes and cruelties one endures long before they meet their demise? Perhaps something worse than death is the actual living itself, when a person’s differences are constantly condemned and excoriated by those around them. Andre Gide writes, “Society knows perfectly well how to kill a man and has methods more subtle than death.” For gay teens, the vitriolic diatribes by peers at school, the ostracism they endure by family members, and the random bashings by strangers leave not only physical and emotional scars, but also inculcate the idea that their lives are worthless—to the point that suicide feels like their only solution.

“Faggot,” “dyke,” “queer,” “that’s so gay”—these are not the words every teenager hears at school; yet, for many gay teens these words are a constant mantra they cannot escape. Schools are deemed institutions where children and teenagers not only learn, but where they can develop their identity and learn to express themselves socially.
However, all of this can certainly be negated when a typical high school student hears an average of “25.5 anti-gay slurs a day.”1 The Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education
Network, or GLSEN’s 2005 National School Climate Survey (NSCS), showed that
75.4% of students heard derogatory remarks such as “faggot” or “dyke” frequently or often at school, and nearly nine out of ten (89.2%) reported hearing
“that’s so gay” or “you’re so gay”—meaning stupid or worthless—frequently or often.2 It is many times at school where a gay, bisexual, or transgendered teenager first experiences the bashings of homophobia that damages their self-esteem and confidence.

1
2

Carter, Kelley, “Gay Slurs Abound,” in The Des Moines Register, March 7, 1997, p. 1.
GLSEN < http://www.glsen.org/cgi-bin/iowa/all/news/record/1927.html >

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The average teenager realizes his or her sexual orientation during