LAST Friday, the La Trobe Shepparton Students Association hosted a barbecue lunch and ceremony to celebrate International Day Against Homophobia, Biphobia, Intersexism and Transphobia (IDAHOBIT).
“The day was all about community support for young LGBTQIA+ people and to create a wider understanding about the issues they face on a daily basis”, said Georgina Poort, Community Development Worker for Uniting’s Diversity Project based in Shepparton.
“Australian statistics for young LGBTIQA+ people are alarming,” said Georgina, “75 percent of youth experience some form of discrimination, 61 percent experience verbal abuse and 19 percent experience physical bullying. These are just some of the distressing statistics that affect young Australian LGBTQIA+ people.”
As well as lunch, the day also included a rainbow flag raising ceremony, with lots of people wearing rainbow colours to support the LGBTQIA+ community and to celebrate IDAHOBIT Day.
