He was quite distressed by this and ended up suffering from severe anxiety and depression to this day and he was dismissed by the Department of Education as being unfit to serve as a teacher.īut he was sent to a Queensland Department of Education psychologist and he was told allegedly that he was a round peg in a square hole, he was too artistic and he should consider opening up a coffee shop. NICOLE BUTLER: Dr Berman says persisting homophobic attitudes mean some gay people are leading harrowing lives.ĪLAN BERMAN: You know, there was an individual who was a school teacher in a regional area and he was subjected to ongoing homophobic abuse by students and it led to physical abuse as well. NICOLE BUTLER: These opinions have been backed up by a multi-university study that shows gay hate crimes are rife in Queensland.Īlan Berman from Griffith University says a survey of 1100 gay, bisexual and transgendered people delivered some shocking but sadly unsurprising results.ĪLAN BERMAN: We found that an overwhelming majority of respondents had experienced some form of abuse, harassment, threats of and actual physical violence. Yeah I think it's quite prevalent - homophobia and transphobia in Brisbane. VOX POP 2: I know a lot of my friends have especially trans friends who have been physically abused. Usually go and getting the call of oh are you a girl or a boy or stuff like that. VOX POP: It is pretty regular to, you know, get verbal abuse, being called a dyke, faggot, anything along those lines. NICOLE BUTLER: Last night in Brisbane an exhibition called Prejudice and Pride was launched to celebrate the history of the gay movement in Queensland but some of those attending the festivities say homophobic attitudes are still all too common. SHANE MCLEOD: We are said to live in relatively enlightened times yet a new study has found that persecution of those who don't fit the heterosexual norm is rife in Queensland.Ī survey of 1100 homosexual, bisexual and transgendered people has found the overwhelming majority have been harassed or abused and most are suffering in silence.