Dimensions of a Safe Space: Assessment of Gay-Straight Alliances in Greater Vancouver, British Columbia

• In Event: Perspectives on Schools, safe Spaces, and Reporting Criminal Victimization

Abstract

Current research on gay-straight alliance (GSA) groups has focused on the development, implementation and impact of these “safe spaces” within a high-school setting. However, as noted in a recent article by Tina Fetner and her associates (Canadian Review of Sociology, 2012), little academic attention has been given to conceptualizing a safe space and how these GSA groups actually support queer students and their allies. Building on Rachael Sullivan’s (2012) doctoral research on safe spaces at the University of British Columbia and other universities and also Rebecca Haskell and Brian Burtch’s book on high-school bullying (Get That Freak, 2010), we discuss how GSAs can offer social support for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and questioning (LGBTQ) high-school students. Using a qualitative interview approach with high school administrators, teachers, and students who have participated in GSA programs in Greater Vancouver, B.C., we explore the dimensions of a safe space and ways in which expressions of homophobia and transphobia can be addressed. This research is also situated within the evolving framework of safety nets for gender-variant youth and the critical framework of peacemaking criminology.

Authors

• D. Kyle Sutherland, Simon Fraser University

• Brian Burtch, Simon Fraser University

• Sheri Fabian, Simon Fraser University