Bullying led gay teen to attempt suicide Call for an end to anti-gay harassment

From The Vancouver Sun: http://www.vancouversun.com/entertainment/Bullying+teen+attempt+suicide/6224921/story.html

Call for an end to anti-gay harassment

By EVAN DUGGAN, Vancouver Sun
February 29, 2012

Before it got better, life for David Levitt, a gay 15-year-old from Richmond, got so bad he tried to hang himself with strings from his brother’s guitar.

“I took an old guitar string from a case my brother had and I wrapped it around my neck [and] tried to hang myself, but it snapped,” Levitt said. “I tried two more times with different guitar strings.” They snapped too.

That was three years ago. Now, with support from his parents and the local youth lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender (LGBT) community, the former victim of homophobic bullying has transformed into an advocate.

At a news conference at King George secondary school on Tuesday, Levitt and other students joined NDP MLA Spencer Chandra Herbert to urge the B.C. government to rid schools of homophobic and transphobic bullying. The event was tied in with today’s Pink Shirt Day, a national campaign against bullying.

Only about 25 per cent of B.C. school districts have an explicit sexual orientation and gender identity policy, and Levitt and members of the Vancouver District Students’ Council said they want that to change.

Levitt’s experience with bullying mirrors that of many gay youth in this province, according to the council.

Read more: http://www.vancouversun.com/entertainment/Bullying+teen+attempt+suicide/6224921/story.html