For many people, religion can be a source of comfort, hope, and community. But for others, religion has been a source of bullying and pain.
The Tyler Clementi Foundation is standing up to end religion-based bullying through our True Faith Doesn’t Bully campaign, which includes:
- www.LGBTQnotAsin.com provides a mechanism for people to use their power and voice for good. This is a petition-based initiative where people can sign onto a letter that calls on all non-affirming faith leaders to start the process to make their faith tradition affirming and welcoming to LGBTQ+ people, and to affirm the truth that it is not a sin for people to live according to their gender identity and/or sexual orientation.
- “God Is On Your Side: A Statement from Catholic Bishops on Protecting LGBT Youth” is an invitation for Catholic Bishops in the United States to join with us in standing up against violence, harassment, and bullying of at-risk LGBT youth by signing their name onto the statement.
- Letters of Affirmation is a letter-writing campaign to educate Pastors of the Southern Baptist Church to the pain and harm of teaching young people that they are broken, less than, or separated from God, because of who God created them to be or who God created them to love. Send us your letter sharing you story of how these teachings impacted you. Also please help amplify the impact of these stories by sharing the Letters of Affirmation with your friends, family and loved ones on your social media platforms.
- #Day1 toolkits are also available for Christian Faith Communities and Jewish Faith Communities.
Check out our Faith Blog and Faith Challenge for more on ways you can help.
What is religion-based bullying?
Bullying, broadly defined, is unwanted and harmful verbal, physical, psychological, sexual or social acts by an individual or group, as well as any real or perceived threat or imbalance of power. When individuals or groups use religion to demean or harass people, to exclude them, to make them feel bad about themselves, or to harm them in any other way, this is bullying.
LGBTQ individuals are particularly vulnerable to religion-based bullying because of the history of religious groups condemning LGBTQ people. Treating LGBTQ people as less valued, preaching at LGBTQ people, and calling LGBTQ people’s sexual orientation or gender identity “sinful” are all potential examples of religion-based bullying.
We believe that all people should have a place in their chosen faith communities, and that no person should be made to feel that who they are is a sin, whether or not they belong to a faith community.
Help us stop religion-based bullying and spread the lifesaving message that True Faith Doesn’t Bully
Learn how you can make a difference
You can help end religion-based bullying and take a stand that True Faith Doesn’t Bully.
- Take the Upstander Pledge and the Faith Challenge.
- Speak up anytime you hear people using religion to belittle or exclude others—whether that’s in your family, at work, at school, in your place of worship, or anywhere else.
- Sign the letter at www.LGBTQnotAsin.com
- Share your Upstander story with us and let us know how you’re standing up against bullying—or how someone else has changed your life by being an Upstander.
- Share a video on why and how you have changed your doctrine/theology.
Your voice matters….