Wellbeing has been busy preparing for Bairnsdale Secondary College’s 6th year of participation in IDAHOBIT Day (International Day Against Homophobia, Biphobia, Intersexism and Transphobia. Celebrated annually on May 17th, IDAHOBIT marks historic movements for the LGBTQIA+ community - the date itself honouring the date of when homosexuality was removed from the Classification of Diseases by the World Health Organisation.

The College strives to support all of our students and its success is guided by our core values of Respect, Responsibility and Resilience. Without doubt, our observance of IDAHOBIT is a wonderful time for us to celebrate respect for all and our rich diversity of community here at our College.

The Wellbeing team is active in observing IDAHOBIT at Bairnsdale Secondary College and are very thankful to have contact with numerous students who are passionate about the event. We are working hard to ensure this day is filled with activities for all and we cannot wait to see students’ smiling faces on the day ..... stay posted for more details!

What is an LGBTQIA+ ally, and how can I be a good one?

As well as tagging each other in memes and going out for food, being a good friend also sometimes means being an ally – and that’s a whole different story. An ally is someone who stands up for, supports and encourages the people around them. It’s a term that gets used a lot in the LGBTQIA+ community. In this case it refers to someone who is heterosexual and/or cisgender, but who tries to make the world a better place for people who identify as LGBTQIA+.

Being an ally means:

supporting equal rights for everyone – regardless of race, sexual orientation, gender or religion
doing what you can to call out discrimination and to fight for equality
trying to make the world a better place for anyone who identifies as LGBTQIA+

So, how can you be a good ally? Here's how to get started!

Learn about issues that are important to the community

Talk to people who identify as LGBTQIA+, read books and other publications, listen to podcasts, and visit businesses or websites run by people from the community. Immerse yourself in their world as much as you can, and get a sense of what it’s like to live in their shoes.

Be visible and support the community as much as you can

This means going to rallies and events, calling out homophobia, transphobia or queerphobia wherever you see it, and supporting businesses, charities or other initiatives owned or operated by LGBTQIA+ people.

Take care of the people in your life who need support

Whether it’s friends, family, classmates or workmates, keep an eye on the people you know who are part of the LGBTQIA+ community. Part of being an ally means being there for people when they need you. Offer your shoulder to cry on, give them space to vent or rage, or spend time with them doing something they enjoy, to keep their spirits up.

Be aware of the space you take up

If people ask you questions about the community or for your opinion on an issue, recommend LGBTQIA+ books, magazines, podcasts or social media accounts they can follow. This allows everyone to hear the people in the community speak for themselves.

Talk to the people around you and support them to be an ally, too

The great thing about being an ally for one group of people is that it can open your eyes to be an ally for everyone. People don’t fit into just one box. ‘Intersectionality’ is a term used to describe all the different identities or social categorisations a person has. If someone who identifies as LGBTQIA+ is also a person of colour or also lives with a disability, they might be discriminated against because of each of these identities. So, when you stand up for one marginalised group, you’re standing up for them all.To be an effective ally, we have to be intersectional – which means we can’t just fight for the rights of LGBTQIA+ people. We have to be fighting for equality for everyone, regardless of their race, gender identity, disability or sexual preference.

You now know more about being an ally, and the steps you can take to become one. Try choosing one action to start with: go to a rally or an event, educate yourself on issues that are important to the community, or check-in with your LGBTQIA+ mates after a particularly bad news day.Remember: you really can make a difference to other people.

*Article credit ReachOut Australia.

SEXTING AND TEENAGERS

Helping your child with difficult sexting situations.

If you and your child have open and honest conversations about sexting, your child is more likely to feel they can talk to you if they:

• get an image that bothers them

• are worried about an image they’ve sent.

You can help your child feel comfortable about talking to you if you tell your child you won’t be angry if they’re in a difficult situation because of sending a nude.

Your child gets a sext: what to do

If your child gets an unwanted sexually explicit image or message, talk through how to respond:

• If the sender is your child’s friend, ask your child to delete the message and tell the friend not to send any more messages like that. Encourage your child to practise saying no in ways that feel comfortable.

• Tell your child not to forward the message.

• If your child doesn’t know the sender, ask your child not to respond and to block the sender.

• Contact your child’s school if your child is getting sexts from someone they don’t know and you think the person is connected to the school.

• Ask your child to tell you or another trusted adult if they keep getting unwanted images.

If you think it’s a criminal matter, especially if an adult is contacting your child, you can report it to the eSafety commissioner or police. For example, it’s a crime if someone sends your child an unwanted naked picture. If this is the case, ask your child not to delete the messages because the police will need to see them.

Your child sends a sext: what to do

If your child has sent a sexually explicit image or message that they regret, it’s important to support your child and reassure them that together you’ll deal with it:

• Ask your child about the context of the message: did your child feel pressured to send the sext, or was it consensual to start with?

• Check on the content of the sext and who your child sent it to.

• Advise your child to delete the sext from the phone, computer or wherever it’s stored.

• Encourage your child to ask the person who received it to delete it.

• If your child uploaded a sexual image to social media, encourage your child to delete the image. Show your child how to delete the image or contact the app to get the image deleted.

• If you’re worried about a sexual image your child has sent, consider legal advice. A lawyer can help you with getting images removed or deleted. You might be able to get free legal assistance.

If you think it’s a criminal matter, you can report it to the eSafety Commissioner or police. For example, it’s a crime if an adult has asked your child to send a sexually explicit image.

Your child’s sext gets shared: what to do

It’s important to stay calm if a sexual image of your child has been shared. Images that are shared among peers are rarely uploaded to public websites or apps. Your child needs your support and reassurance that together you’ll deal with it:

• Reassure your child that it’s not their fault that the image was shared.

• Ask your child about the content of the sext and find out who it has been sent to.

• Ask your child’s school for help identifying people who might have the image and places where it might be posted. Help your child ask these and other people to delete the image.

• If the image has been uploaded to social media or websites, help your child find out where it is and contact the apps or websites to ask for it to be removed. The eSafety Commissioner can help with this.

• Encourage your child to block anyone who makes offensive comments or asks for unwanted images. Show your child how to block unwanted senders.

• If you’re worried about a sexual image of your child that has been shared, consider legal advice. A lawyer can help you with getting images removed or deleted. You might be able to get free legal assistance.

If you think it’s a criminal matter, you can report it to the eSafety Commissioner or police. For example, it’s a crime if someone shares – or threatens to share – a nude or sexual picture without permission. If this is the case, ask your child not to delete the messages because the police will need to see them.

Your child shares someone else’s sext: what to do

If your child has shared a sexually explicit image of someone else, it’s important to support your child and reassure them that together you’ll deal with it:

• Ask your child about the context of the sext: who sent the sext, and why did your child share it?

• Check on the content of the sext and who your child sent it to.

• Encourage your child to ask the person or people who received the sext to delete it. You can help your child do this.

• If your child uploaded the image to social media or websites, help your child to contact the websites to ask for the image to be removed.

• If your child sent the sext to someone at school, speak to your child’s school to ask for help to make sure the image isn’t shared.

• Help your child contact the person who sent the sext to tell them that it has been shared and that they’re sorry they shared it.

It’s also a good idea to encourage your child to ask themselves these questions:

• Did the person in this picture mean for it to be shared?

• If someone else sent the image, did that person have permission from the person who’s in it?

• How would I feel if somebody shared something like this with me in it?

It’s important for your child to know that sharing sexual images without a person’s consent is a type of sexual harassment or image-based abuse and your child can get into legal trouble. If you think it’s a criminal matter, you can report it to the eSafety Commissioner or police. For example, it’s a crime if your child was forced into sharing one or more images, or if there’s an adult involved.

*Article credit raisingchildren.net.au

Student Artwork