By Anna Boulet-Alips, Year 12
For those unaware, SAGA stands for Sexuality and Gender Awareness/Acceptance Club. LGB has been its host for many years now, and it has seen generations of students willing to learn more about the LGBTQ+ community and the issues they might face. For example, the numerous sessions held on Fridays during the morning break in GB111 include the benefits and disadvantages of labels, the queer-baiting issues that specific entertainment industries have been facing recently, as well as certain fatal homophobic shootings which have occurred in the past year across the world. SAGA strives to fight these inequalities as well as raise awareness on how to face them ethically at LGB.
Firstly, what made you decide to lead SAGA this year?
“When I was in year 9 and had just joined high school I felt very lost. My group of friends was amazing, however, they didn’t really understand the issues I was having with my own identity. They lacked understanding of how overwhelming it was to question something that had been blatantly accepted your entire life. I then went to SAGA and made new types of friends, friends that could relate and understand with that part of me. SAGA was a place for me to feel normal and understood, where I could explore my sexuality in a safe environment.”
Why do you think SAGA is an important club to host at LGB?
“SAGA is important as it represents the ideals of the school by just existing. It’s also important that LGBTQ+ students who are predisposed to higher suicide rates have a safe environment to go to to talk or to just sit and listen.”
What do you wish to achieve through SAGA within the next couple of months?
“I wish for higher group participation and planning towards and for Pride month.”
What issues do you feel are still upheld within the LGB community which might complicate the inclusion of certain members of the LGBTQ+ community?
“The issue LGB has is forgetting that just because being queer in LGB doesn’t make you too much of a minority, people at LGB forget that it is important to talk about issues that you may not see or be able to imagine. Members of the LGB community also tend to forget to empathize with how scary realizing that who you are doesn’t fit the “norm”, even if it doesn’t cause any struggles socially. Just because being gay in Geneva doesn’t cause many problems or controversies, it does NOT mean that it’s easy to accept on an internal and personal level. Nonetheless, in common places such as gay bars in the USA, hundreds of individuals died in the past year being shot up and held at gunpoint. It’s important to not forget that our fight for equality is far from over, for example, in 2022 a remaining 67 countries still legally criminalize homosexuality. Furthermore, in 13 of these countries, homosexuality is still punishable by the death penalty and those things aren’t ever talked about. ”
What advice would you give to someone who is tempted to join SAGA, but, for whatever reason, feels held back to do so?
“SAGA is a group of teenagers that have discussions about issues ranging from the psychology of people who commit hate crimes to more personal discussions on how each member is doing and coping with everything surrounding their sexuality. SAGA isn’t about committing to anything or accounting yourself as anything, it simply means you’re seeking a safe place to talk to people you might not have talked to before yet who you share a lot of things in common with.”
Special thanks to Sylvie Wainwright for her cooperation in the making of this article. If you have any questions regarding SAGA or wish to join, please contact her at: sylvie.wainwright@learning.ecolint.ch
Exclusive Interview with SAGA’s Leader: Sylvie Wainwright
