Research for action: Challenging homophobia in Slovene secondary education

ABSTRACT

Research has highlighted that during school, European lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) youth experience significantly higher levels of discrimination and verbal, physical, and sexual violence in comparison with their heterosexual peers. Slovenian youth are not exempt from this experience. While the educational system is exclusively heteronormative, change on the ground is obstructed by the reluctance of decision makers to acknowledge homophobia in schools and introduce mechanisms safeguarding LGBT students. In response to this challenge, Information Centre Legebitra, a Slovenian LGBT rights and advocacy organization, has addressed school homophobia through evidence-based practice. We used a reflective narrative to explore the factors that have generated, supported, and challenged the emergence and development of LGBT advocates in the Slovenian educational system. In particular, we reflected on the role of research on increasing the effect of Legebitra's work and the credibility of organizational advocacy message with external partners, funders, supporters, and membership. We also analyzed our experience within the larger context of nongovernmental organizations and social movements, which use research to advance their cause.

KEYWORDS:

• Homophobia
• lesbian and gay youth
• research for advocacy
• secondary schools
• Slovenia

Acknowledgements

The author gratefully acknowledges the support of Dr. Roxana Anghel, Anglia Ruskin University, Cambridge, for several revisions of this article, without which this article could not have been completed. We would also like to extend our gratitude to three anonymous reviewers who provided extensive and useful guidance on the very first draft of this article.

Notes on contributors

Jasna Magić is a PhD candidate at the Faculty of Social Work at the University of Ljubljana. She is one of the co-founders of Information Centre Legebitra, where she worked as a youth group coordinator (1998-2007) and a project manager (2007-2013). Jasna was also a chairperson of IGLYO (2003-2005) and a board member of ILGA-Europe (2013-2015). She has (co)authored several publications on challenging homo/transphobia in education, LGBT hate crime and LGBT domestic violence and is also a SOGI expert for the Council of Europe.

Simon Maljevac is a sociologist and has been involved in LGBT rights activism since 2003. He was the co-chair of IGLYO (2007-2009) and has been, since 2006, a managing director of Information Centre Legebitra. Simon has led several European Union funded research projects focusing on homophobia and transphobia in education and has been involved in LGBT advocacy work in Slovenia and internationally. He is also a published author.