Carey Pride: because all students deserve to feel safe at school

Simon Carver, Pride Group Co-ordinator and Facilitator

For many LGBTIQ+ students, school can be an unsafe place. In June last year, a survey of more than 2370 Australian high school students who identify as gender diverse and/or sexuality diverse was conducted by Western Sydney University.

It revealed some alarming statistics from schools that do not actively support their LGBTIQ+ population, including the 93% of students who had heard homophobic language at school, and, of those, 37% who heard it ‘almost every day’. Students noted that often teachers did nothing to stop it, with only 6% of students surveyed saying adults ‘always’ intervened. Some of the case studies were shocking – one student explained that another had thrown an apple at his head after telling him the classroom was for ‘normal straight people only’.

Importantly, this contrasted with the experience of LGBTIQ+ students attending schools that are proudly supportive of them, like Carey. Not surprisingly, they expressed higher rates of wellbeing which led to better academic prospects, with a significantly higher number of LGBTIQ+ students reporting that they plan to attend university.

Carey is a safe school where we aim to protect LGBTIQ+ students by ensuring our environments are inclusive spaces for them. We recognise that all students deserve to feel safe while at school. LGBTIQ+ students require our support because they are at a higher risk of bullying and the mental health concerns that can occur as a result.

The Interschool Conference on Sexual and Gender Diversity

In acknowledgement of the difference we can make by supporting our LGBTIQ+ community, 250 students from 20 Safe Schools around Melbourne came together for the student-led Interschool Conference on Sexual and Gender Diversity. This was Victoria’s first interschool LGBTIQ+ student conference, and Carey eagerly embraced the opportunity.

Guest speakers included The Hon. Harriet Shing MP, Minister for Equality, who enthusiastically supported the conference and reiterated the Victorian Government’s strong policies and values in supporting all LGBTIQ+ students across all school sectors in Victoria. Daniel Witthaus, facilitator of a regional support service for LGBTIQ+ youth, provided the audience with tips and anecdotes from his experience as a queer writer and youth justice advocate. His experience and knowledge brought both laughter and sympathy to the auditorium as he spoke honestly and sincerely about his own life and stories from some of Victoria’s most remote communities.

The Carey Pride Group eagerly and actively involved themselves in the student-led workshops for rigorous debate and discussion, including:

• transiting in a single-sex school

• establishing a student committee to support LGBTIQ+ students

• developing networks and allies

• using pronouns in a diverse world

• intersectionality – race and sexuality.

Carey’s 2022 Pride Week Panel spoke openly about their own experiences.

‘Meeting students from other schools and talking about each school’s version of Pride made me realise how incredibly lucky Carey is to have such a prominent and supported group,’ says Year 12 student and Carey Pride Group Captain, Marisa. ‘While other schools have teachers and administration squashing their voice and presence, Carey welcomes and listens to all of its students.’

Marisa says her favourite session of the day was about intersectionality. ’Essentially, each facet of our identity influences the way we experience certain events. Even if we share one facet with another person – for example, being queer – that doesn’t mean that we experience each event the same way. As a school, we celebrate our diversity, so the idea that it’s impossible to lump people into a single category is a great message for us all to remember.’

Elodie, also Year 12, felt that she was able to learn a lot about experiences outside of her own and was inspired by the student presenters. ‘My biggest takeaway from the whole day was how important it is for the schools themselves to not just condone pride groups and trans students, but to actively make an effort to be supportive,’ Elodie says.

Marisa, Year 12: As a school, we celebrate our diversity, so the idea that it’s impossible to lump people into a single category is a great message for us all to remember.

The conference was an incredibly rewarding experience and it was reaffirming to see the Carey Pride group, now in its sixth year, providing advice and leadership to other schools.

Our participation in the conference represents a small part of our work to engage with and providing a safe space for LGBTIQ+ students at Carey. For example, our Pride Week this year was full of engaging activities for everyone to participate in, including guest speakers and a lively panel discussion where some of our LGBTIQ+ alumni returned to share their experiences.

As a member of the Carey Pride Group said at the end of the conference, ‘We are so fortunate at Carey that our Pride Group forebearers provided us with the values and structures to support us today. This was their legacy.’