School District No. 51 (Boundary) is putting in a very thorough GSM policy after school trustees voted it in at the board meeting on June 10 in Grand Forks.
GSM, for those who don’t know, stands for gender sexual minority and it is the latest acronym for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgendered people.
Anyone who went to school knows that kids can be cruel. Any deviation from the norm is usually picked on and picked apart. Bullies will use anything they can to pile on the harassment and abuse to their victims.
Of course, bullying and harassment doesn’t end at grad. You find bullies at college, at the work place, and in every day live; it’s just much more subtle.
The Kootenays is a beautiful place with great, friendly people and some interesting businesses and sights to see.
Unfortunately, it seems the Kootenays falls behind larger centres in B.C. when it comes to inclusion.
Granted it could be that our lack of population makes a minority group even more isolated.
In big cities such as Vancouver, Victoria or Kelowna, you have multiple support groups for different minorities whether it be for sexual identity or race.
Hopefully, things are beginning to change. It’s great to see the school board add a policy that will not only benefit GSM students, but the entire student body.
It would be nice to see the city follow suit with some tangible outreach. Castlegar council has installed a rainbow sidewalk near downtown, while Nelson has their annual gay pride parade.
Why not something in Grand Forks to make everyone feel included?