Christian School Children Face Bullying in Scotland for Their Pro-Marriage and Pro-Life Views
A representative of the Roman Catholic Church in Scotland has told the Scottish parliament that Christian children are being verbally assaulted in schools for speaking in favor of traditional marriage and preserving the life of the unborn.
Anthony Horan, director of the Catholic Parliamentary Office of the Scottish Catholic Church, told the Equalities and Human Rights Committee of the Scottish Parliament in a recent hearing that "a culture of fear prevents people from being open about their faith," the Independent Catholic News reported.
Horan provided Members of the Scottish Parliament with evidence on the bullying and harassment incidents taking place in schools with Christian school children as victims, pointing out that this is rooted in anti-religious prejudice.
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The lawmakers also heard evidence from other community representatives, including those from the Church of Scotland, Muslim community, Jewish community, and the Scottish Secular Society.
Horan told Members of the Scottish Parliament that "the culture of fear" in the nation's schools "makes people feel, at best uncomfortable, and at worst totally frightened to be open about their faith."
He cited the case of one student who was forced to drop a subject to "avoid the harassment."
One Catholic girl was told she "wasn't a real woman" because she did not support abortion, he said, according to The Christian Institute.
Another student was told she was a "disgrace" for "promoting this kind of hate" when she said she supported marriage between a man and a woman.
Meanwhile, a student revealed that she and her friends in school were verbally abused on Facebook over their Christian views on marriage and abortion.
These incidents show "disturbing levels of bullying" in school, Horan said.
Following the hearing, the Scottish Parliament published its report on bullying and harassment in schools and referenced the evidence from the Roman Catholic Church.
Last year, the Scottish government expressed its "whole-hearted" support to a controversial LGBT schools campaign called the Time for Inclusive Education (TIE). The campaign seeks to make it compulsory for children to receive teaching on same-sex relationships and pro-LGBT sexual health education.
The Rev. David Robertson, founder of the Solas Centre for Public Christianity, assailed the campaign, describing it as a "Trojan horse to impose an ideological perspective on all pupils."
