Boy attacked by classmate who thought he was gay because of his hobbies
A 15-year-old boy was brutally attacked by another student because he thought he was gay.
Jaiden Muniz-Walls, who attends Pensacola Catholic High School in Florida, was left with a black eye and a broken nose.
He was also called homophobic slurs by the perpetrator.
Muniz-Walls, who does not identify as gay, was attacked in his classroom but didn’t fight back, instead putting his arms up to protect himself.
He was reportedly targeted because of his hobbies, which include dancing, the Pensacola News Journal reported.
The student who attacked Muniz-Walls is facing a misdemeanor battery charge, but the victim’s mother says she wants more to be done to protect other children at the school.
A high number of LGBT teenagers experience bullying (Pexels)
“I want to do the right thing by my son, I want to do the right thing by all of it,” she said.
“I don’t feel like this should just go unnoticed, there’s no telling how many kids in that school are feeling the same way and are feeling unsafe but are scared to talk about it.”
Earlier this year, a survey of young people in the UK has found 62 percent of LGBT youth have experienced suicidal thoughts as a result of bullying.
The Annual Bullying Survey, carried out by the charity Ditch the Label, found 43 percent of people within the LGBT community questioned have been bullied in the last 12 months.
More than 9,000 people aged between 12 and 20 were surveyed.
LGBT+ youth are at risk of poor mental health (Pexels)
Of those within the LGBT community, nearly a third – 31 percent – had attempted suicide because of their experiences and half of the respondents said they had self-harmed.
A separate study found two in five schoolteachers who identify as LGBT have experienced bullying and harassment because of their identity.
The survey was carried out by the Centre for LGBTQ+ Inclusion in Education, based at Leeds Beckett University, filled out by 650 LGBT teachers and 250 school leaders.
The survey revealed that 30% of LGBT teachers said their experiences had a negative impact on their mental health, while 40% did not think that their school promoted a culture of LGBT inclusion.
