Tolerance VS Segregation: Britain Mulls First LGBT School

The Manchester-based charity recently won a £63,000 grant to implement its project. LGBT Youth North West are following in the footsteps of the Harvey Milk High School in New York, created in 1985, to cater to the needs of LGBT youth in America at the time, however never limiting enrolment strictly to them. 

Harvey Milk High School offers education to LGBT teenagers who cannot physically attend other schools due to threats and violence, as well as an intolerable environment which makes it impossible to succeed academically.

Amelia Lee, strategic director for LGBT Youth North West in the UK, stated that behind the plan lies the concern for the well-being of vulnerable young people, as bullying and a lack of support can potentially lead to suicide.

Last year's case of 14-year-old Elizabeth Lowe, who hanged herself in a park in Manchester, brought the matter to light. Elizabeth came from a devout Christian family — she was unable to come out to her parents and struggled to come to terms with her sexuality.  

The proposed school, which will be based in Manchester, would be funded by the state. It would be able provide 40 permanent places to local children aged 13 and older, who are constantly struggling with bullying, as well as not receiving any support.

The school could also accommodate 20 part-time students who wish to continue with 'mainstream' education. Just like the Harvey Milk High School in New York, Manchester's school would not be LGBT-exclusive and would open its doors to anyone simply questioning their sexuality.

However, many including those who belong to the LGBT movement, are sceptical of LGBT Youth North West and their proposal, noting that creating such a school will only promote further segregation. 

Ruth Hunt, chief executive of Stonewall, a charity campaigning for gay, lesbian and bisexual rights, released a statement in which she criticised the separative approach chosen by LGBT Youth North West: 

"We know that lesbian, gay, bisexual and trans (LGBT) students still experience bullying and harassment. That needs to change. While we're sympathetic to the aims and objectives of LGBT-only schools, we don't see them as the answer".

According to Stonewall, it is the transformation of the mainstream school environment that should be the main priority.

"Our experience working with more than 12,000 schools across the country shows that it is possible to create safe and inclusive environments where all pupils can be themselves. This makes the learning environment better for all students — regardless of their sexual orientation — and is key to eradicating homophobia in every single school in Britain." 

The project also received a cold welcome from Tory MP and former education minister Tim Loughton, as well as the deputy leader of UKIP and education spokesman Paul Nuttall. Both found that integration was the answer to the problem.

Meanwhile, Tara Hewitt, a Tory political activist from Wirral, who is transgender, launched a petition on change.org against the proposal to create the school.

Tara questions the very idea of following the American example of managing intolerance against LGBT students in the education system, calling the American society "one of the most segregated in the West", "with racial and sexual tensions that we [in Britain] have moved past".

For her, it is diversity that is key to overcoming the prejudice:

"The answer to these challenges is […] not to create a segregated space for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Trans (LGBT) people to be hidden away at the expense of the taxpayer and funding taken away from other mainstream schools, but for more effort to be put into making our entire education system inclusive and a positive experience for children from all backgrounds, including those who are LGBT."