Tackling homophobic bullying in Jewish schools
Stonewall’s campaign to end homophobic bullying in Britain’s schools has taken a new turn, as the charity’s iconic ‘Some People Are Gay. Get Over It!’ posters were translated into Hebrew for use as a modern language resource in Jewish faith schools.
Stonewall worked with Jewish faith schools, the Jewish lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender equality charity, to translate the posters, which were used for the first time at the Jewish Community Secondary School (JCoSS) in north London last week.
Keshet UK supporter Benjamin Ellis joined Stonewall’s visit to JCoSS and said: ‘Seeing Stonewall’s iconic slogan written in Hebrew had a real impact on me. It marked a space where it is possible to be Jewish and gay, something that I never felt existed growing up as an orthodox Jew.’
Stonewall Chief Executive Ben Summerskill said: ‘We welcome this opportunity to work with the Jewish community to challenge homophobia and promote healthy tolerance among young people. Homophobic bullying affects over half of gay young people. It’s vital that every kind of school works hard to make sure all young people can concentrate on learning without the fear of abuse and humiliation just because of the way they were born.’
Stonewall’s ‘Some People Are Gay. Get Over It!’ campaign is now in its fifth year and has reached every school in Britain. The charity’s famous posters have been translated into nine languages, and have been adapted and used by equality campaigners worldwide.