All children will likely get teased at some point while growing up, and
sadly, there isn’t much that their parents can do about it. However,
when a child has gay parents, it often opens the door to teasing that is
much more targeted and intense, and that can prove difficult to manage.
Learning how to handle teasing can help boost confidence and empower a
child to seek help from a trusted adult.
If you’re a gay parent who is concerned that their child is getting teased, encourage your child to:
- Be confident: No matter what the reason is for
being teased, it is far less fun for the teasers if the person getting
teased is comfortable with themselves and their situation, and doesn’t
come across as bothered by the teasing. - Understand their situation: Urge your child to talk
to you about any questions that they might have about your
relationship. The more children understand their family, the more
comfortable they can be in their own skin. - Ignore the teasing: Encourage your child to just
ignore the teasing; the teasers are obviously trying to get a rise out
of the child using whatever methods it takes. If they think your child
is embarrassed about their parents being gay, then they are going to
latch on to that and tease your child to provoke a reaction. - Be open: Encourage your child not to hide who he
is. If having gay parents is not a big secret, the kids will spend less
time teasing your child about it. - Be educated: Many children are uneducated about gay
couples and may feel like they are the only children with gay parents.
Help your child to learn about other gay families and be educated enough
to answer common questions that may arise. - Speak to a teacher: There are rules against
bullying in schools today. Make your child aware that teasing or
bullying him because his parents are gay is a hate crime and one that
will not be tolerated in the school. - Encourage education at school: Support your child
in speaking to the principle to inquire about having a speaker come in
and discuss diversity with the student body. Make sure that gay
parenting is covered as one of the ways that people are diverse.
Education will often open the eyes and hearts of a lot of people. Kids
can be pretty open-minded when they are given the facts. - Lead by example: Make sure that your child knows he
should not be discriminating against anyone else. If you have a
diverse set of friends, your child will grow up learning to be accepting
of others. - Find or start a support group: It’s important to
have people in your support system that understand what you are going
through. Encourage your child to join a support group and if there isn’t
one at school, encourage him to start one. This group can be for anyone
that has experienced teasing. Your child can ask the school counselor
for help with this task. - Find an online forum: If you are in an area that is
not open to gay rights and you feel like you are trapped with small
minded people that don’t understand you and don’t want to understand
you, encourage your child to reach out and connect with others over the
Internet.
Many children who tease others do so because they are afraid of what
they don’t understand, and to cover their lack of knowledge they tease
rather than to admit that they are ignorant. Helping your child learn
to deal with teasing can help him to grow stronger and more confident in
who he is as an individual.
Source: http://www.becomeananny.com/blog/10-tips-for-children-of-gay-couples-that-get-teased/