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Discrimination is when a person or group of people are treated differently in a negative way by others for identifying with a sexual orientation other than heterosexuality. Anyone who is not heterosexual is known as 'queer.' Many people are discriminatory towards other sexes, and it mostly happens in someone's adolescent years.

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No one can take the full blame for sexuality discrimination. About 97.5% of the population is heterosexual, meaning they are attracted to members of the opposite gender. This would make it seem like other sexual orientations aren't 'normal.' Lots of people are uneducated, or are unaware that it's not the queer person's fault that they aren't heterosexual.

Many people are either afraid or hateful of the other sexualities, and treat them in a negative way solely because of the sexual orientations.

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A person who is heterosexual may see someone else being discriminated for identifying differently, and not want to come out to anyone or hide their own sexual orientation. They could spend years upon years pretending to be someone they are not. Lying to everyone, including themselves. this will likely lead to the person being very unsure of themselves, and hesitant to try new things. They might miss job opportunities, or shy away from meeting new people, because they never learnt to do so when they were younger.

If a queer person was to be bullied for their sexuality, they may feel that their lives are ruined by something they can't change. These negative thoughts can lead to consequences like suicide or self harm. The dimensions of hauora are also affected. Sexuality discrimination can cause a detrimental impact on someone's emotional, social and spiritual well-being.

Emotionally, that person's self-esteem will be lowered significantly. Negative thoughts will constantly be running through their mind, as this can be too much for people to handle alone. This can link into social well-being, where they ask for help and gain friends. Socially, someone might lose friends, for having rumors about them spread around. However, they could also gain friends, as some will choose to stick up for the person being harassed.

Spiritually, a person could need a way to relieve the stress and anxiety of sexual orientation. They could opt to do this by drinking alcohol or taking drugs. They might do this and act against their beliefs.

A teenager's life can take a serious turn for the worst if bullied or harassed for having a different sexuality.

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How Could A Teenager Prevent This From Happening?

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How Could A Teenager Prevent This From Happening?

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If a teen was to experience discrimination, he or she could report it to a trusted adult. The adult can then talk to the school or the discriminatory person. The offender could get suspended, or given a serious warning, which should lead to them stopping. This is the best shot at preventing discrimination in the future, as there's a high chance that the offender will learn their lesson and not do it again. Sadly, there's no guaranteed way to stop someone from acting against you. There will always be someone who decides to break the rules and still discriminate for no good reason.

You can, however, get help and learn to deal with the discrimination, even if you can't stop it. There are helplines, counselors and people surrounding you who do care. Helplines will give you advice and directions, supporting you all the way until you're back on your feet. A counselor gives you someone to confide with, letting out all your negative emotions and receiving support at the same time. Both of these options are trained professionals, and will ensure that your information is kept confidential.

A teenager could also opt to talk to those close to and surrounding them. This gives a more familiar, trusted environment and can have better impact on some people.

A way to reduce sexuality discrimination is to raise awareness about it. This will ensure that anyone who was discriminating because of unawareness should stop, and only those who do it for pleasure will remain discriminatory.

There's no surefire way to prevent sexual orientation discrimination, but you can have a shot and talk to a trusted adult to get it sorted out. Support and help can be found by trained professionals or very trustworthy family/friends.