Are schools in Israel safe for LGBTQ youth? The percentage of students who came out to educational staff dropped from a peak of 33% in 2012 to a low of only 11% in 2024, according to the latest survey by the Magnus Hirschfeld Institute of the LGBTQ organization IGY. According to the survey, fewer students today come out to their parents, and more students are exposed to LGBTQ-phobic remarks from educators. For the transgender community, the situation is especially severe: surveys and studies have found that 71% of trans students experience comments and bullying due to their gender identity, and 48% of them miss classes because of a sense of insecurity. All of this is taking place while the LGBTQ community is accused of promoting a progressive agenda that has no place in the education system.
When I came out 25 years ago during high school, my sexual and gender identity existed on the margins of society, and I never imagined that a school was supposed to provide me with a safe and protected space. Even at an arts high school in central Israel, I felt unsafe. School was a place you had to survive, to deal with prejudice, and to decide whether coming out was worth the cost.
It took more than 20 years before the Ministry of Education adopted, in 2022, a set of guidelines for providing a sense of safety and appropriate support for LGBTQ children and teenagers in the education system. The document was written by senior professionals in the field, but it is important to note that it was never formally adopted as a Director General’s Directive and was not fully implemented across the education system.
The school year has ended, but thousands of LGBTQ children and teenagers in Israel do not know whether next year will be safe.
An investigative report by Channel 13 revealed that, under pressure from anti-LGBTQ organizations, Education Minister Yoav Kisch and his ministry decided to reconsider those guidelines and established a confidential committee on the issue.
A psychologist was appointed as advisor to the process, who, according to the investigation, expressed views rejecting diverse gender identity during adolescence, instructed parents not to affirm their child’s gender identity, and directed them to consult figures known for their opposition to the LGBTQ community and for promoting “conversion” therapy.
This is not a controversial position, but one that stands in complete contradiction to the professional positions of expert bodies in Israel and around the world, including the American Psychological Association and the Israel Psychological Association. The Ministry of Health also has a Director General’s Directive prohibiting the practice of conversion therapy.
But it appears that this psychologist was appointed to this sensitive role not despite her positions, but because of them. This development is not happening in a vacuum. In the decades since I came out as transgender and have been active in the community, I have never experienced such an intense level of coordinated and well-funded campaigning against the trans community.
In recent years, in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia, there have been waves of legislation and policy that restrict the rights of the transgender community, focusing mainly on children and youth. The narratives are identical everywhere: citations of debunked studies, clinical language intended to mask harm under a veneer of legitimacy, and funded campaigns presented as professional debate.
The transgender community, which makes up around 1% of the population and has almost no political power while being increasingly dependent on institutions, has become an easy target. Donald Trump won the U.S. election with a clearly anti-trans platform, and in Israel as well there is a persistent and concerning effort to confront the trans community and undo years of work toward acceptance and tolerance.
As the shadow of elections in Israel lengthens, it is important to recognize this familiar pattern and not mistake it for a neutral social or cultural debate.
I have had the privilege of closely accompanying hundreds of boys and girls across the trans spectrum. The impact of the anti-trans campaign is clearly evident: the boy who stopped speaking with his homeroom teacher, the girl who refuses to go to school, the parents who seek professional support and cannot find it. The space to exist and live with well-being is steadily shrinking. This is not something abstract; it is the difference between a good and supportive life and a life under the threat of queer-phobia, with its severe consequences for mental and physical health.
In two months, the next school year will begin. Children and youth will return to classrooms. Will they know this is a safe place whose purpose is to nurture them toward learning and growth? Or will it, as in my experience a few decades ago, once again become a space that encourages shame, bullying, and violence toward those who are different in their sexual orientation or gender identity?
The education system has a clear role in the lives of our children. The Minister of Education must make the right choice and declare a commitment to the safety of all children and youth. The road to an education system based on equality, tolerance, and inclusion is still long, and this is not the time to retreat.
The author is the CEO of the Gila Project for Trans Empowerment and a clinical social worker.