Lesbian, gay and bisexual adolescents singled out for punishment more often than others their age, study says

Lesbian, gay and bisexual adolescents can become easy targets for school bullying. But a new study suggests that schools and police may be unfairly singling out lesbian, gay and bisexual adolescents too.

The Hartford Courant reports that lesbian, gay and bisexual students were 40% more likely to be expelled from school, arrested, stopped by police and convicted than other youths their age. The findings are based on a Yale University study that will appear in the January issue of Pediatrics.

“Of all the punishments looked at in the study, police stops were the most out of balance. The lesbian, gay and bisexual adolescents were stopped 50% more than other youths,” the story says. Read the full story and the original study.

Why is this happening? These findings likely will lead to a closer examination of this issue. But there’s already lots of information about the consequences of what happens when gay and lesbian youths are singled out by their peers.

Here’s what Mental Health America says about the harsh and sometimes deadly toll bullying and harassment take on gay youth. And here are videos from the It Gets Better Project aimed at offsetting bullying.