Don't Stand for Homophobic Bullying!!!

Stand Up! is encouraging all young people to show their support for their LGBT Friends!

Visit www.belongto.org for further information, and become a fan on the Stand Up! page on Facebook.

The week runs from 9th-18th April.

We have everything, from the special screening of Stonewall’s new FIT film, to creating an effective Anti-Homophobic Bullying Campaign for NI, from meeting with the NIABF Coordinator to meetings with Family Ties and Brook Clinic, as well as inviting the Children’s Commissioner to meet the members on May 17th, to mark International Day Against Homophobia and Transphobia.

Over the next couple months, GLYNI will also be planning our participation in Belfast Pride, as well as continuing to update our website and create a fabulous newsletter.

Our drop-in continues to run on Friday nights, with our Peer Educators in training on Friday nights.

It’s all a buzz at GLYNI. So if you’re young (aged 14-25) and L G B or T, or somewhere in between but not quite ‘straight’, feel free to come along. You can join GLYNI through our website!!

The Public Health Agency (PHA) is urging young men to open up and not cover up their problems with a campaign which aims to encourage males to speak out about their feelings before things get out of control.

Don’t cover up your problems, the award winning campaign by the PHA, was developed in response to Protect life: a shared vision. The Northern Ireland Suicide Prevention Strategy and Action Plan 2006–2011, which identified young men as a key target group. Recent figures show that 72% of suicides in Northern Ireland were males and suicides among young men aged 16–24 years were more than three times higher than those among young women of the same age.¹

Health Minister Michael McGimpsey said: “We know that young men have a tendency to hide how they are feeling and bottle up their problems. That is why they were identified as a key target group in the Northern Ireland Suicide Prevention Strategy.

“This award-winning campaign has been so successful because it carries a vitally important message, encouraging young men who are experiencing mental health problems to seek help by opening up and talking to someone. It is important that we reinforce this message to raise awareness of mental health issues among young men and the rest of the population so that people can get the support they need.”
Deirdre McNamee, Senior Manager for Public Health, PHA, said: “Our mental health influences how we think and feel about ourselves and others and how we interpret and deal with situations and events in our lives. Young men can find it difficult to open up and talk about their feelings for fear of it being seen as a sign of weakness. Instead they often choose to mask how they really feel, so we hope this campaign will encourage young men to talk to someone and get help if they need it, before their situation develops into a crisis.”

This particular campaign received the Mind Mental Health Media Award for Raising Public Awareness, which was awarded to the PHA in recognition of its effort to raise awareness of mental health among young men and encourage a more positive attitude to seeking help for themselves and others. It also helps to address the stigma associated with mental health and young men’s tendency to disguise their feelings.

A recent evaluation of the campaign showed that it had been successful in reaching a large proportion of the key audience, with 82% being aware of the campaign and 52% saying the campaign had prompted them to either think, discuss or take action for their own or someone else’s mental wellbeing. ²

While the campaign is aimed at encouraging young men to open up, it also urges the wider public to be more supportive of men, and encourage them to talk about their mental health. A wide range of organisations throughout Northern Ireland address these issues, one of which, Youth Action Northern Ireland, makes a significant contribution to the lives of young people here and, in particular, does a lot of focused work with young men.

Youth Action is a regional voluntary youth organisation that provides opportunities that unlock the potential of young people.

Michael McKenna, Youth Action Northern Ireland, said: “This campaign gets young men’s issues out into the open. The more exposure these issues get in public the better so that young men feel more comfortable discussing them confidentially with their peers, youth workers and teachers. We need to take the time to encourage young men to explore who they are and the everyday pressures they are facing, and develop ways of coping with these.

“Some forms of masculinity look at men as being strong, brave and courageous. We need to use this in our work with young men as it takes strength, bravery and courage to tell someone about the issues they are experiencing and the PHA’s campaign is one way of getting this message out to young men.”

The campaign will run from 1–31 March 2010, incorporating a mix of television, radio, cinema and online advertising. Leaflets and posters will also be distributed to GP practices and voluntary organisations working with young men as well as a range of mental health organisations. For more information relating to a range of mental health issues visit the campaign website, www.mindingyourhead.info

The website Ditch the Label (www.DitchtheLabel.com) was ‘virtually’ launched last Saturday night in a co-ordinated browsing of the new site, after being advertised via its original Myspace and the founder’s personal Myspace sites.

The founder of DitchtheLabel is 17-year old student, activist and part-time model, Liam Hackett.

He developed the site primarily aimed at marginalised teenagers looking to break free from social stereotypes based on race, sexuality or gender.

The site aims to challenge negative stereotypes and provide a forum in which young people can share their experiences of prejudice and social labelling.

Based in Manchester, the prodigious teen first launched the website via Myspace in July 2007 and since then, the Myspace page has attracted more than 50,000 visits.

Liam looked into developing a more permanent website that would allow a greater expansion of the campaign.

The new DitchtheLabel site was conceived after Liam secured a business grant from the local Chamber of Commerce, who recognised the site’s appeal and potential.

He was only the second person under 18 in in his region to obtain a business grant.

Despite its early days, the website looks like it will become a flourishing internet resource for teenagers looking to break outside social stereotypes.

Liam told PinkNews.co.uk his own experiences dealing with his sexuality as a primary catalyst for launching DitchtheLabel and how he wished a similar resource existed when he was younger.

“The campaign hopes to change the negative stereotypes associated with labels of race, gender, sexuality, appearance and lifestyle and together, we believe that we can significantly reduce bullying and therefore, increasing self-confidence and feelings of self-worth
to thousands of young people worldwide,” Liam says.

“I myself have been subjected to bullying due to my sexuality and I grew up believing that being gay was wrong and disgusting.

“Since leaving school and meeting new people, I’ve grown to understand that sexuality is as significant as the colour of your eyes and nobody really cares anymore.”

The site has been met with overwhelmingly positive feedback as it is specifically aimed at teenagers who are coming to terms with their own identities and who are forced to interact with a wide range of people.

At the moment, a majority of the site’s supporters are American.

Liam says that school visits may be planned in the future. He also aims to expand the site so that it is largely more interactive and community-based.

Visit the site or get involved at www.DitchtheLabel.com