Washington, D.C. — When schools implement LGBTQI+-affirming policies, a new analysis from the Center for American Progress finds that it strongly correlates with decreased reports of school bullying among all students. However, the policies championed by Project 2025 and the far right would harm LGBTQI+ students and likely increase the overall risks of school bullying.
Key findings from CAP’s analysis include:
- Policies that decrease risks of bullying include respecting use of they/them pronouns; incorporating LGBTQI+ topics into curricula; and providing online resources for LGBTQI+ students.
- If all the schools in any given state adopted these policies, the number of bullying reports in that state would decrease by as much as 12.2 percent across all students—not just LGBTQI+ students.
- If Project 2025 banned these policies, an average 20.1 percent of students in any given state would report having been bullied on school property over the course of a year.
“Every student—regardless of their race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, or gender identity—deserves a high-quality education in a safe learning environment,” said Cait Smith, director of LGBTQI+ Policy at CAP and author of the column. “Project 2025’s policy proposals would lead to the opposite, further jeopardizing the safety of students who are already marginalized. When LGBTQI+-affirming school policies are restricted or even banned, all students are harmed.”
Read the column: “Project 2025 Policies Would Make Schools Less Safe for All Students” by Cait Smith
For more information or to speak with an expert, contact Mishka Espey at [email protected].