Source: French to English Tester Published on: 2026-05-16
Source: The Conversation – France in French (3)– By Arnaud Alessandrin, Sociologist, University of Bordeaux
May 17 is the International Day Against Homophobia, Transphobia and Biphobia. A French study conducted with 400 LGBTQIA+ youths aged 14 to 18 notably documents the discrimination experienced during schooling.
School is often presented as a space for emancipation, socialization, and protection. Yet, for many LGBTQIA+ youth (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, intersex, asexual), it remains a place of learning… fear. Mockery, insults, harassment, invisibility, isolation: the discriminatory experiences faced at school have profound consequences on mental health, educational paths, and self-confidence.
In the collective workThe mental health of young queers, which we led, we wanted to bring these issues back to the heart of the public debate. Because before being seen as vulnerable youth influenced by a so-called LGBT lobby, these LGBTQIA+ young people are above all exposed to specific and repeated violence.
A school still affected by LGBTphobic violence
Discrimination experienced by young gay, lesbian, bi, trans, or non-binary individuals at school is not limited tophysical assaults. They often take more diffuse forms: humiliating remarks, exclusion, rumors, gender assignments, refusal of the chosen first name, daily insults, or even adults’ silence in the face of violence.
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These lives disrupted by “anti-gender” dynamics in Europe
European studies show the extent of the phenomenon. According to the European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights (2023), 91% of LGBTQIA+ people say they have heard degrading remarks or observednegative behaviors towards students perceived as LGBT during their schooling. UNESCO already estimated in 2019 that nearly one in two LGBTQIA+ young people in Europe had experienced school bullyingrelated to their sexual orientation or gender identity.
These acts of violence are not incidental. They take place within a school climate where certain hegemonic norms of masculinity, femininity, and heterosexuality remain valued. Students who deviate from these norms then become prime targets for stigmatization.Trans youth are particularly exposedwithin the LGBTQIA+ community.
In several testimonies collected during our investigation, conducted for the research associationARESVIwith the support of theDILCRAH(Interministerial delegation for the fight against racism, antisemitism and anti-LGBT hatred), insults, rejections and school humiliations appear as foundational experiences of a lasting malaise.
This overexposure is statistically proven. Between 2024 and 2025, we collected more than 400 responses from young people via questionnaires (between 14 and 18 years old; one third gay boys, one third lesbian girls, and as many transgender and non-binary individuals, all social categories combined, including 30% living in rural areas). In total, 24% of the LGBTQIA+ youth we surveyed experienced threats because of their sexuality and 48% because of their gender identity. While these data show that middle school remains a space of lesser violence, they underline that “coming out” (voluntary and assumed announcement of a sexual orientation or gender identity) mainly takes place in high school.
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What does the rejection of gender minorities by our society tell us?
To these direct acts of violence is added another phenomenon: invisibility. Few openly LGBTQIA+ teachers, few inclusive educational materials, few positive representations. Institutional silence also has effects. As researcher Caroline Dayer reminds us,“silence stifles the possibility of existing and projecting oneself”. In other words, when institutions (school or family) do not allow an identity (gender or sexuality) to be expressed, it is experienced as a secret, a taboo, or a shame, and thisdegrades mental healthgender and sexual minorities.
When discrimination damages mental health
If we isolate school experiences from other phenomena (such as discrimination suffered within peer groups of the same age or within the family), we notice that the psychological consequences of these experiences are massive. LGBTQIA+ youths presentmore depression, anxiety, self-harm, and suicidal behaviors than their heterosexual peers.
The figures are particularly worryingamong young trans peopleand non-binary. Thus, in our survey, more than one in two LGBTQIA+ youth reported having had “dark thoughts” or suicidal thoughts as a result of the discrimination they experienced. Still in the same survey, this figure reaches nearly 60% among trans youth and over 63% among non-binary youth.
The concept of “minority stress”developed by psychologist Ilan Meyer, helps to understand these discrepancies. It shows that the mental health difficulties of sexual and gender minorities do not stem from their identity itself, but from repeated exposure to discrimination, rejection, and the constant anticipation of violence. In other words: it is not being gay, lesbian, or trans that causes suffering, but being humiliated, invisible, rejected, or even ostracized because of that identity.
These discriminations, insults, or ostracisms also affect self-esteem and social relationships. In our survey, nearly two-thirds of LGBT respondents report having lost confidence in themselves after discriminatory experiences at school. One in five young people declare having stopped certain activities or avoided social relationships.
Lasting effects on educational pathways
These violences also have direct consequences on studies. When school becomes a space of insecurity, some young people develop avoidance strategies: absenteeism, school phobia, dropping out, withdrawal from social interactions. And yet again, overall, it is transgender young people who report massive deteriorations in their school experiences (as shown in the table below).
In our survey, nearly one in five young trans people report having dropped out of school or their studies as a result of experienced discrimination. Many also mention a decline in academic performance (19%), sleep disorders (32%), or suicidal ideation (59%).
The hostile climate directly affects learning abilities. Repeated micro-aggressions decrease motivation, concentration, and the sense of personal effectiveness. Some young people even end up “self-censoring” in their choice of orientation, avoiding fields perceived as too masculine, too normative, or insufficiently inclusive. However, since the work ofBernard Charlot, we know that “The student only learns if he finds meaning in what he learns.” Academic success strongly depends on the meaning the student gives to the learning and to his academic path. When a student is directed into a path that he has not chosen or in which he does not recognize himself, the risks of failure multiply.
The consequences then go far beyond the school environment. Dropout, isolation, and psychological difficulties can lead to trajectories of long-term precariousness: difficulties with professional integration, economic vulnerabilities, weakening of social ties. And this has direct consequences: on average, 22% of surveyed LGBTQIA+ youth report that after their coming out, at least one family member has cut ties with them. Among them,49% of people report having had suicidal thoughts during the year.
Make the school a protective space
However, school can also become a major protective factor. Theresearchshow that adult support, the presence of positive role models, anti-bullying policies, and the recognition of gender identities significantly improve the mental health of LGBTQIA+ youth.
Also to read:
School and transgender identity: the French delay
The problem is therefore not the existence of sexual and gender minorities at school. The problem is the violence they continue to suffer there.
Training the educational community, fighting against LGBTphobia, making positive representations visible, protecting transgender students in their schooling, or truly integrating gender and sexuality issues into educational policies: these challenges today concern as much education as public health.
Because a more inclusive school not only protects LGBTQIA+ youth, it improves the school climate for everyone, it is time to consider the link between school, social relationships, and the mental health of LGBTQIA+ youth.
Arnaud Alessandrin received funding from the DILCRAH
Johanna Dagorn received funding from the DILCRAH
–ref. When school does not protect queer youth from violence and discrimination –https://theconversation.com/when-school-does-not-protect-queer-youth-from-violence-and-discrimination-282593