Society’s prejudice can lead to rejection and social isolation. One thing you should not have to take into consideration is the risk of being harassed or bashed in the street or in your home, targeted only because of your sexual preference. Violent anti-gay crime is thought to have increased (this can only be an estimate because the police hadn’t looked closely at the reasons for the crimes until recently). Most of the gay bashings in Sydney are the work of groups of teenage boys, and it is thought that many do it as a reaction to a fear of their own feelings. Many of the most harmful adverse attitudes come from those who are themselves uncertain about their sexuality. ‘Could it be that even in older age groups this unresolved sexual confusion is the basis of homophobia? Could it be that the ‘phobia’ is actually of the ‘homo’ within?
Part of the answer is to educate young people about sexuality and about violence. One of the old arguments against teaching young people about sexual orientation is that they might be convinced to ‘turn’ if they know about the options. Paul had a number of relationships with both men and women but decided he was gay in his mid-twenties. ‘Believe me, if I could have changed I would have. I had every reason to change. You don’t choose to feel different. You don’t choose -to feel excluded, or risk being beaten up at school, or to be alienated from your family. I tried so hard to fit into what they wanted me to be but it was just impossible.’
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