Safe Schools is a vital education program that is about inclusion and support. It is an important tool for the prevention of bullying and discrimination. It addresses challenges faced by gender diverse students and students from diverse families, to ensure that all students are able to feel safe and supported in their school community.

The Safe Schools program is supported by parents, students and teachers from all walks of life. While it has broad community support, it also has particular support from our LGBTIQ communities, who know first-hard what it is like to be the victim of homophobic or transphobic bullying or harassment.

Conservative attacks on Safe Schools have been based on scare campaigns and misleading information about what the program involves.

Safe Schools is an evidence-based program created by educators. The materials and resources that make up the Safe Schools curriculum have been approved by the Commonwealth Department of Education and Training. They are designed to promote an environment where all students feel accepted and able to focus on their education.

Research tells us that many young people who are victims of transphobic or homophobic abuse or bullying will attempt self-harm and it is essential that those young people are supported within their school communities. Ensuring that our young people feel safe and included at school is key to their wellbeing.

When our community embraces diversity and celebrates difference, all of us benefit.

Read more about the Safe Schools Coalition at their website.

For more information on the Greens’ position on Safe Schools email [email protected]

Greens NSW MP and acting spokesperson on Sexuality & Gender Identity Dr Mehreen Faruqi has said that the reported conservative push against Safe Schools by a NSW Liberals MP (Daily Telegraph, 23 August 2016) is another example of unwarranted attacks and scare tactics being used on an important education program.

Member for Newtown and NSW Greens spokesperson on Sexuality and Gender Diversity Jenny Leong MP has welcomed the apology made by the Victorian Government to people with historical convictions for homosexual acts.

Published in City Hub, 28 April 2016

“Don’t just take pictures, come and join us!” protesters implored to onlookers as the ‘Keep Newtown Weird & Safe’ Reclaim the Streets rally marched down King Street on a dark Saturday afternoon. A mix of beards, dresses and dreadlocks paraded as mobile speakers blasting tunes kept the rally in step.

Read in Parliament on 9 March 2016:

"I draw to the attention of the House the fabulous 2016 Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras festival, which culminated in the parade held on Saturday night. I congratulate the Mardi Gras staff, board, members and volunteers, and each of the 170 floats and 12,500 participants who danced their way up Oxford Street at the weekend, filling the streets with acceptance, inclusion, love, dancing, rainbows and glitter. I was privileged to be part of the parade, marching alongside many fantastic floats. I give a special shout out to the 78ers who participated, in the wake of the recent and long overdue parliamentary apology.

I also give a special shout out to the No Pride in Detention float that highlighted the terrible circumstances faced by refugees in Australian detention, including lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, intersex and questioning refugees fleeing persecution. I also recognise the many outstanding community and organisation floats—including the ACON Aboriginal Project, Rainbow Families, Gayby Baby, Wear it Purple, Twenty10, various queer student networks, Rainbow Babies and Kids, Parents and Friends of Lesbians and Gays, the Uniting Network, Australian Olympians and Paralympians, and Dykes on Bikes."

Links:

• ACON Aboriginal Project
• Rainbow Families
• Gayby Baby
• Weat it Purple
• Twenty10
• Rainbow Babies
• Parents and Friends of Lesbians and Gays
• the Uniting Network
• Dykes on Bikes

Congratulations to the Mardi Gras staff, board, members and volunteers, and each of the 170 floats and 12,500 participants who danced their way up Oxford Street at the weekend.

The Greens are proud to once again be participating the Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras Parade.

The theme of the Greens’ float this year is ‘Transcend Bigotry, Transform our Communities’, which echoes our commitment to trans rights and equality. The Greens remain passionate supporters of full equality for LGBTIQ people in every regard.

NSW Greens spokesperson for Sexuality and Gender Identity and Member for Newtown Jenny Leong has welcomed the apology from Superintendent Tony Crandell, on behalf of the NSW Police, for the actions of police at Sydney’s first Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras in 1978.

Ms Leong says “We’re pleased to see that the NSW Police have responded to the Greens call for a long-overdue apology, that amplified the community’s long-standing request for recognition of the police actions that have caused real hurt and harm.

The NSW Parliament has finally offered a formal and long-overdue apology to the 78ers, the participants of the first Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras in Sydney on June 24, 1978.

NSW Greens spokesperson for Sexuality and Gender Identity and Member for Newtown Jenny Leong made a speech that called on the NSW Police to join the Parliament and apologise for the violence and intimidation perpetrated by NSW police on that night.

Today the NSW Parliament offered an historic apology to the 78ers, participants of Sydney’s first gay and lesbian pride marches and protests.

NSW Greens spokesperson for Sexuality and Gender Identity and Member for Newtown Jenny Leong is a member of the Parliamentary Friends of LGBTI group that worked with the 78ers to have the formal apology made in Parliament.

In her speech Ms Leong called on the NSW Police to join the Parliament and apologise. She has launched a petition asking Police Commissioner Andrew Scipione to issue a formal apology.