Pride Prince proud that he’s ‘coming out’
Young gay people today told of the 'isolation' they felt growing up in Northern Ireland
| I have just started coming out and I want to show that I am proud of the way I am. |
The 18-year-old Prince of Belfast Pride said the festival had been an excellent way to promote being gay.
"I have just started coming out and I want to show that I am proud of the way I am.
"Everyone is different in other ways. Everyone has their own wee quirks. Some people have different coloured hair and others stand out in different ways," he said.
The Prince, like many other young homosexuals in the province, faced serious difficulties and challenges growing up being different to other teenagers.
Vulnerability, isolation, being bullied and feeling less valued as a person are among the problems faced by young gay people.
According to a 1999 survey carried out by the male gay health organisation, the Rainbow Project, 64% of gay men who faced bullying in school considered suicide.
Robert, a 17-year-old, said: "People still have a lack of understanding and I think they are scared of gay youths." He waited until he was about to leave home before he told his mother he was gay. Last year he told his father.
"He didn't have much of a problem with it because I think he always knew. But if I were to go back I would do things differently and tell them in a much different way." Sinead Collins, of the lesbian and gay helpline Cara Friend, said Northern Ireland was slowly becoming more tolerant of homosexuality.
"I know that it is slightly more acceptable now than five or 10 years ago - but I think we have a while to go yet.
"I think men feel threatened by gay men because their masculinity is threatened. Again it's back to fear and ignorance.
"We live in a very heterosexual environment. Sex education is very much based on male/female relationships. There is no mention that someone in the classroom might be gay.
"But one in seven people are lesbian or gay. They are automatically being isolated when male and female relationships are being discussed. The word 'gay' is not brought into it," she said.
About the team
This article was produced by editor Colin Moore, 17, and reporter Amy Magowan Green, 11.
