Published: Thursday, 23rd October, 2008 10:30am

Teens fight intolerance

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A GAY rights campaign led by two Musselburgh teenagers is to receive air time in a new Channel 4 documentary.

Former Musselburgh Grammar School pupils, Rachael Thomson, 16, and David Spiers, 18, launched an online gay awareness drive after growing frustration at their peers" intolerant attitudes towards homosexuality.

The couple – who have been together for a year-and-a-half – claim school pupils who "come out" face ridicule and often suffer bullying.

Now, they have been commissioned to produce a short film to highlight their battle against prejudice.

Rachael, a bisexual who lives in the Musselburgh High Street area, said both she and her friends suffered 'a lot' of bullying when they finally opened up about their sexuality.

'We all supported each other when each of us came out, but when someone else at school found out some of us would get bullied quite a lot,' she said.

'For example, at PE things would be said in the changing room like: "Oh be careful, the bisexual"s looking at you," things like that.'

Supportive boyfriend David, a member of Musselburgh and Inveresk Community Council, is backing Rachael"s campaign.

'Homophobia seems to be the only form of prejudice which is still acceptable,' he said.

'I am not gay but you do not have to be bisexual or gay to support better equality.'

The derision Rachael suffered as a pupil prompted her to pioneer an online peer discussion forum for emerging homosexuals and launch a campaign to improve in-school support.

Her gay rights group, "Association Against Homophobic Behaviour", was set up on the social networking site Bebo and has attracted more than 30 members since last year.

The teenage activist said there was 'not a lot of help' in the classroom for young gay or bisexual pupils.

'I think teachers need to be taught what to do,' said Rachael. 'My whole time at school there was only one teacher who really tried to help.'

Channel 4 contacted the young activists after stumbling upon their Bebo campaign and in June the pair were whisked off to London for a meeting with television executives.

They were then provided with film-making equipment for nine months to make video diaries and record interviews with peers. Their footage will be added to a compilation of films by 20 other young campaigners for a programme to be broadcast by Channel 4 in November or December this year.

Much of David and Rachael"s work will appear online at www.battlefront.co.uk – a body sponsored by Channel 4 Education.

The budding new filmmakers hope exposure on television will boost their campaign and lead to parliamentary petitions on gay rights.

Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Youth Scotland (LGBT) communications associate, Inga McVicar, praised the efforts of the young activists.

'These are two very responsible young people who are trying to provide a solution to a real problem. Increasing the visibility of the problem will help work towards eliminating it.'

And she added their campaign echoed ongoing work by LGBT Youth Scotland.

'We get feedback from a lot of pupils that schools are not safe places for homosexual young people and they often suffer homophobic bullying,' she said.

'In a survey of 300 young gay or bisexual Scots, 70 per cent said they had been bullied because of their sexuality.

'We are working with the government to develop a homophobic bullying toolkit for teachers which is expected to be launched by late November.'

An East Lothian Council spokesperson said Musselburgh Grammar School actively 'discourages discrimination' of any nature and operates a 'zero-tolerance' approach to bullying.

She added that the school had supported Rachael when she spoke to them and hoped her film would help others in similar circumstances.