The All-Inclusive Activity Booklet by Hugh Wooding Law School Human Rights Law Clinic

The All Inclusive Activity Booklet

Title

Table of Contents

Page Number

Introduction

Foreword

My Rights

My Responsibilities

Human Rights and the LGBT Community

Story Time 1

Question and Answer 1

Word Search

Story Time 2

Question and Answer 2

Crossword

Story Time 3

Question and Answer 3

Finish the Sentence

Reflection Time

The Jokes That Do Not Last (Poem)

Introduction Why discuss Lesbian, Gay, Bi-sexual and Transgender (LGBT) issues with children? It is not a surprise to know that social media and internet usage is on the rise among children around the world and here in the Caribbean. Whether they are liking photos on Instagram, watching Netflix all day or subscribing to various channels on YouTube, children are exposed to an overabundance of information, some of which they may not understand. A young child may happen to stumble upon a video of two girls kissing each other or even a news clip about a child having two fathers. The problem arises when many children ask either their parents or teachers for explanations of what they would have seen on the internet. Regrettably, adults often evade any discussion on the topic. Therefore, while in the Caribbean children are not seeing these things happening in public, they are exposed to members of the LGBT community through the internet and in most cases, are not given any explanation on what they would have seen. Â Why create an activity booklet? This brings us to why we created an activity booklet for children ages 10-16. The Human Rights Law Clinic is tasked with advocating for the rights of the victimized groups within our society. One of these groups is the LGBT community, who have been unfairly treated for years. By educating children on the LGBT community with our activity book, they will better understand some of the problems this group faces in our society, such as for example, bullying in school. Our goal at the end of the day is to inform children about the LGBT community and if by creating this activity booklet, we succeed in educating one child on what it means to be a member of the LGBT community, the challenges which this group faces and how to live in harmony with our fellow brothers and sisters, we will have succeeded in our goal.

Foreword I am delighted to pen the foreword for this activity booklet done by Brian Blackman, Asante Braithwaite, Ashelle Edwards and Adora Howell. It represents a much-needed intervention for kids between the ages of 10-16 as they learn about what it means to be lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender and learning to navigate the challenges that come with being different. As kids, we were all taught that being different isn’t something to make fun of but rather it was a God-given blessing to know and cherish someone of a different age, colour, size, family setting or anyone with special needs. It’s not okay to be mean or to bully someone who is bigger in size or not of the same race and it isn’t okay to make fun of a kid in a wheelchair or a child that doesn’t have the newest and nicest clothing or other material belongings. We all want our kids to learn to be kind to each other and accepting of the differences among them as we would want them to be treated. However, we still allow for kids who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender to be treated unfairly and unkindly, sometimes even by our own children. Would we want our own child be subjected to such bullying if they were different? Bullying in any form or fashion must be tackled and all children deserve the right to an education free from fear and violence. That is why we are happy to have worked with this team of students from the Human Rights Law Clinic at the Hugh Wooding Law School to begin to address the problem of anti-gay bullying in our schools. Kids should be taught to be kind and accepting of each no matter their differences. We hope this booklet goes a long way into building the braver and kinder society that we each want in Trinidad and Tobago as well as the Caribbean. Jeremy Steffan Edwards Executive Director The Silver Lining Foundation

My Rights To be treated fairly To have my rights protected Right to an Identity Right to give my opinion Right to express myself Right to choose my own religion & beliefs Right to Privacy Right to be protected from being hurt & mistreated Right to be protected from any kind of exploitation

My Responsibilities Responsibility to treat others fairly Responsibility to help protect other people's rights Responsibility to respect other people's identity Responsibility to respect other people's opinions Responsibility to allow other persons to express themselves Responsibility to respect other people's religion and beliefs Responsibility to respect other people's privacy Responsibility not to hurt and mistreat people Responsibility to protect persons from any kind of exploitation

Human Rights and the LGBT Community LGBT is an acronym for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender. The 'LGB' refers to sexual orientation which is defined as the pattern of emotional, sexual and/or romantic attraction of men to women, women to men (heterosexual), of men to men or women to women (homosexual) and of men or women to both sexes (bisexual).

The 'T' in LGBTÂ stands for transgender and is an umbrella term for people whose gender identity does not conform to that typically associated with the sex to which they were assigned at birth. For example, someone who has biologically been born a girl at birth but later in life identifies and lives as a male because he feels like one. American Psychological Association Discrimination is defined as any form of differential treatment that places vulnerable groups in a disadvantaged position. In the context of human rights and sexual orientation or gender identity, discrimination occurs when you are treated unfairly because of your sexual orientation or gender identity. An example of such discrimination is that a restaurant may refuse to sell food to a man because he likes other men or a church may refuse to allow a female into their place of worship because she was biologically born a boy. We have the responsibility to treat people of the LGBT community fairly and help protect them from exploitation.

Story Time 1 Characters:

1. Joshua Peters Joshua Peters, aged 15, has just started to discover that he does not like girls but is in fact attracted to boys. As a result, he is ashamed and afraid to talk to his friends and family about it. 2. Quincy James Quincy is Joshua’s best friend and they attend the same school. Quincy is also 15 years old. However, Quincy has always been attracted to girls and talks about them all the time. Joshua confides in Quincy and he was quite supportive of his friend. 3. Ms. Patel Ms. Patel is Joshua’s class mistress at his school. She is quite dismissive of Joshua when he confides in her one day and confesses to her his secret. She decides to report him to the Principal. 4. Mrs. Jones Mrs. Jones is the principal of the school Joshua and Quincy attend. Ms. Patel indicated to the principal that Joshua realizes that he is attracted to people of the same sex and suggests that Joshua should possibly find another school since this school does not tolerate ‘such lifestyles.’ Disclaimer: This is a work of fiction. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.

Amidst the buzzing and hobnobbing of students chattering and playing, Joshua and Quincy sat together eating a potato pie and chatting with their other classmates. The natural light of the sun filled the classroom and illuminated around everyone. There was a gentle breeze. Quincy, noticing his friend looking lost asked, ‘Joshy boy, wake up na, stop day dreaming. What’s up with you?’ Joshua, recognizing that he had once again gone into waking slumber assures his friend that everything is alright and he is just thinking about his theatre project that is due next week. Quincy doesn’t believe him but he accepts his friend’s explanation. It’s no excuse to Quincy though. He knows something is up with Joshua and is determined to find out. The truth is, Quincy and the other classmates were busy chatting about all the girls they were attracted to and who they were going to the movies with the upcoming weekend. The guys were really excited but Joshua did not feel the same level of enthusiasm that the other guys felt. He would often torment himself with questions. ‘What is wrong with me? Why do I feel like this? Why am I not attracted to girls? Steups, forget it yes. I going and become a nun… a male nun. Or maybe I’m just a late bloomer. But I really don’t find girls attractive, I like guys.’

Later that afternoon, while sitting in a maxi on their way home, Quincy decides to confront Joshua. ‘Joshy, I been paying close attention to you in recent times, for about a year now and to be honest, you not acting like yourself. You know you can talk to me, I am your friend and you can trust me.’ ‘Trust me boy, I good. I know what I am telling you.’ ‘No Joshy, boy. I not taking that. That is real nonsense. You ain’t see what I seeing. Something you hiding. Come on na, as man, what really going on?’ ‘Aight, I will tell you because I know you would never give up unless I tell you the truth. The truth is for the past few months something has been bothering me. While you and all the other boys at school are always talking about girls you like, well, I find it difficult to relate.’ ‘What you mean relate? So what if you don’t like the girls in school. It have a whole country full of girls for you to like.’ ‘No Quincy, I don’t mean like that. I am attracted to other guys Quincy, not girls.’ ‘You serious? I mean, you was always into theatre and performing but I never thought you be… you know… gay?’ ‘Well I’ve discovered this some time now but does this mean we won’t be friends anymore?’

‘No Joshua, you will always be my friend and I’ll always be there for you regardless of who you love. You are my friend and I’ll never scorn or discriminate against you. Have you told anyone else?’ ‘No boy, I can’t dare tell my family this or they will put me out and disown me. But I really need to talk to someone to help me navigate this.’ ‘Maybe you should talk to a teacher or the principal. They could help you.’ ‘You know what, you’re right.’

Question and Answer 1 1. How do you think Joshua felt before he admitted to his friend Quincy that he was gay? _____________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________

2. Do you think Quincy’s response to Joshua when hearing that Joshua was gay was the right response? State your reasons: ___________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________

Word Search

Story Time 2 The following day, Joshua got to school and saw Quincy and the other boys chatting in the class room. Quincy walked across to Joshua to greet him and Joshua told him about overhearing a conversation with his family last night, which made him even more afraid of coming out to anyone. Joshua: ‘I overheard my dad and brother talking about gays last night and that they would beat anybody in their family who came out and said they were gay. Then my brother said that if any family of his came out and said that they were gay or whatever he’ll disown them… right after he beat the devil out of them. Quincy: Whoa! That real extreme boy. How are you? Joshua: Honestly, my whole heart sank because what if they find out? What would they do to me? I mean, who do I even turn to if I can’t even confide in my own family without the fear of some kind of harm?’ Quincy: I think you need to talk to a teacher. How about you talk to Ms. Patel? She seems like an open minded teacher and she’s really nice.

Joshua: I’d probably talk to her during lunch time. Later that day during the lunch period, Joshua approached Ms. Patel and asked to speak with her. He told her that it was a personal matter and that he preferred to speak to her in private. Ms. Patel agreed to speak with him in the empty computer room as it was the only place that was empty during the lunch period.

In the computer room, Joshua and Ms. Patel sat facing each other. The thought of finally coming out to someone other than his best friend terrified him but he decided that he should just get on with it. Joshua: Ms., I wanted to speak with you today because I’ve been going through some stuff recently. It’s really hard to speak about this to anyone because I am afraid of the backlash that I may receive, but I really need your help. I think I may be gay. I don’t find myself interested in girls at all and it’s scary for me.’ Ms Patel: Well Joshua, that is quite the assertion to make about yourself. If you do think that you are gay then I suggest you see a psychiatrist or psychologist or a priest or something. This is not normal and I don’t think your parents are going to be happy to hear that. Have you told anyone else? Joshua, beyond shocked at his teacher’s response, timidly told her that he only told Quincy and that Quincy told him that he should speak with her. Ms. Patel’s response deepened his fear and embarrassment of ever having his secret revealed. Ms. Patel continued berating him by telling him he’s a risk to the other boys in the school and that it’s best he stays far away from anyone, less he contaminates anyone else with his ‘disease’.

Joshua could not have felt any smaller than he felt in that moment. Ms. Patel decides to report him to the principal.

Question and Answer 2

1. How do you think Joshua felt when he overheard his father and brother’s conversation about ‘gay people?’ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________ 2. Do you think the comments made by Joshua’s father and brother were appropriate? State reasons why it is/is not appropriate. ____________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________ 3. How do you feel about Ms Patel’s reaction to Joshua? Do you think she handled it well? ____________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________ 4. If you found that her reaction to Joshua was not appropriate, what advice would you give to Ms Patel? ____________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________

Crossword

Across 3) Attracted to 2 or more genders 4) Being attracted to all genders and/or do not concern gender when attracted to someone 5) A reclaimed slur for anybody in the LGBT community or who do not identify as cisgender and/or hetersexual/heteromantic. 6) When you only experience sexual attraction after forming a strong emotional bond first or a romantic bond 8) The attraction to a gender different from their own 10) An umbrella term referring to people who have, or are open to having, consensual relationships with multiple people at the same time 12) People who have, or are open to having, relationships with only one other person at a time. 13) When you are attracted to many genders 14) This refers to people who feel romantic attraction to both men and women. Sexual attraction and romantic attraction are two completely different things. Down 1) Not experiencing sexual attraction 2) This refers to someone who feels an equal amount of attraction towards everyone. They don't actually prefer one gender over another. 5) People who are debating their own sexuality/gender 7) Being attracted to only one gender 9) People who are open to experiment with genders that are not only their own, but do not know if they are open to forming any sort of relationship with multiple genders. 11) The attraction to a gender the same as their own

Word List for Crossword: Bisexual Asexual Pansexual Omnisexual Queer Questioning Demisexual Homosexual Heterosexual Bicurious Polyamorous Monosexual Monoamorous Polysexual Biromantic

Story Time 3 Soon after his meeting with Ms. Patel, Joshua went back to his class fighting every urge to not run away and never show his face in school again. The depth of embarrassment and shame he felt as a result of his teacher’s hostility could not be described. As he sat down he felt his phone vibrate. It was an email from the principal’s office requesting an urgent meeting with him. The room swallowed him, his head began spinning, the fear gripped him. He took a deep breath and walked to the principal’s office. On his way, he spotted Quincy and asked him to accompany him to the principal’s office. When the boys got to the office, they saw the principal seated at her desk and Ms. Patel standing with arms folded next to the principal. The principal greeted the boys and asked them to have a seat. Principal: Good afternoon gentlemen, I asked Joshua to meet with me after I received some disturbing news from Ms. Patel. How come Quincy is here? I take it he is your ‘partner?’

Joshua: No Ms. Jones, I asked Quincy to be here just for support.

Principal: Ok. Well I’ll get straight to the point. Joshua, Ms. Patel came to me with some very disturbing news after a meeting you two had today? At the very least I am disappointed and quite disturbed. As you know this school has strong moral values and we do not support such ‘lifestyles’ in this school. While I don’t have proper grounds to suspend you, I will caution you that you are to either change your ways or find another school. This is not normal and if there is no change, we will have no choice but to alert your parents and have you removed from the school. Shocked by what he just heard, Quincy chimes and pleads with the principal to be understanding of his friend’s dilemma. He tried to convince her that he is not a threat and that there was nothing wrong with him but that it has been difficult for him to come to terms with it and just wants support. He also told her that to threaten to put him out of school amounts to discrimination and is not fair to Joshua. The principal was neither moved nor convinced by Quincy’s pleadings and dismissed them.

Question and Answer 3

1. The principal cautioned Joshua that unless he changes his ‘lifestyle’, he would be required to leave the school.

a. What human right is being infringed? _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ b. Does this amount to discrimination? State reasons for your answer. ________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________ 2. Was the reaction by the principal appropriate? State reasons. ________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________ 3. If you found that the principal’s reaction was not appropriate, what advice would you give to the principal to ensure that she deals with the issue better? _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________

Finish the Sentence 1. If I saw two males holding hands, I would feel .................................... 2. If I found out that my best friend was lesbian/gay I would feel ............................................................................................................. 3. If I found out that one of my teachers was lesbian/gay I would feel ............................................................................................................. 4. If I saw my friends tease someone because they were lesbian/gay I would ................................................................................................... 5. If I heard my friends say bad things about homosexuals I would ............................................................................................................. 6. If my friends refused to interact with another student because they were lesbian/gay I would .............................................................................................................. 7. When I think about children being raised by lesbian/gay parents I feel ...............................................................................................................

8.Â What makes me uncomfortable about homosexuals is .............................................................................................................

Reflection Time Congratulations!!! You have completed all of the exercises.Â Now it is time for you to reflect on everything you have learned in the booklet. Draw a picture or write a story about something you learned below:

The Jokes That Do Not Last He sits and looks at others play, Laughs with them then looks away Their jokes don't last that long But he must be strong To carry on Â His dreams, his life, his own way He doesn't see him looking He too is watching, laughing at the jokes that do not last. But he sees the way he sits and stares And he knows he thinks no one cares. He waves and smiles. Their friendship builds and grows But the world remained outside of their secret zone. Â At home the fear was real Dinner talk said it all Secrets will spill, doors will close forever. Let's look for help they thought. So sad, what happened next The ones in charge With hearts so large we think. Were in fact the ones that made them sink. Listened to the cry for help support and care And gave in instead to fear

The two were made to feel ashamed As if they were a disease. Scoffed at, scolded, reprimanded. Oh the weight of all that shame and blame. Asked to stand aside, not to sit beside You two are not like the rest. You two must be suppressed. You must change, change you must, change and pray, pray to change, there must be change! So leave. And they left her there, spewing her wrath And walked away Into a world of laughter Worlds away from them Sitting together Two souls who decide they do not need toÂ fight to fit Laughed at the jokes that do not last And with a look from one to one A nod, a look, a shake of hands They each felt ready to resist - Eva Sankar

Created by: Brian Blackman Asante Braithwaite Ashelle Edwards Adora Howell