"Family Voice Australia" - denies gay bullying in schools

The NSW gov recently put together a trial in the states schools, called the Proud Schools program. This was it's goals (from the gov website):

The $250,000 Proud Schools program aims to build a culture of understanding and respect in NSW public schools through the professional development of school staff, student and parent workshops and the development of resources to assist schools build their capacity to support same-sex and gender questioning young people.

Recent national research highlights the impact of homophobic attitudes on young people, including the fact that about two in three same-sex and gender questioning young people reported they had been verbally abused, and that one in five had been physically abused.

The research, conducted by La Trobe University, also showed that the majority of those young people were abused at school and that once the abuse had taken place they no longer felt school was a safe place for them.

Young people who had been abused were also found to be three time more likely to think about harming themselves.more

Well there doesn't look anything wrong with that surely. 

Unless of course you're a hyperventilating Christian group going by the rather misleading name of "Family Voice Australia". Then it's time to protest! In this case they sent an open letter to the NSW Premier Barry O'Farrell. You can read the whole thing here (pdf). If you want a good laugh, or to see an example of extreme paranoia. But here are just a few tasty little morsels from it:

Homophobia is a term of abuse used to intimidate into silence anyone who believes homosexual conduct is unnatural, unhealthy or immoral.

Transphobia is another term that should not be used, for the same reason. 

Heterosexism is another term of abuse, used to condemn anyone who holds the view that men and women are complementary and that sexual relations between men and women are the norm. 

Students who are “smoking-attracted” should not be encouraged in an unhealthy habit. Neither should same-sex attracted students be encouraged to embrace a lifestyle associated with serious health risks. 

We don’t want NSW school students to be exposed to a program aimed at normalising homosexuality. Please cancel the Proud Schools program immediately. more

Fuck, I feel like they've politicised my whole sexuality. Once again, Christians don't care about LGBT young people. They even go so far in the letter to state that gay bullying isn't much of an issue in public schools. Well where did the gov get it's very reliable info on it then that completely disagrees with that?

It never ceases to amaze me the lengths these religious groups will go to to try and stop people discovering who they are.