School exemptions to discrimination law leave religious LGBTQIA+ teens unprotected

It’s a common misconception that religion and gender and sexuality diversity are at odds with one another.

There’s good reason for this. Some LGBTQIA+ people have had very difficult experiences in religious settings.

But in reality, many LGBTQIA+ people hold religious and spiritual beliefs. Our new research has interviewed gender and sexuality diverse Australian young people about their experiences, including how they navigate school, faith, family and digital media.

Our findings illustrate the urgent need for legislative changes to federal anti-discrimination law, particularly religious exemptions.

We have heard from LGBTQIA+ youth whose school environments were unsafe because their religious schools were exempt from the Sex Discrimination Act. Under the laws, religious schools can discriminate on the basis of their gender and/or sexuality, leaving LGTBQIA+ teachers and students unprotected.

LGBTQIA+ and religious young people are erased in this legislative environment, because it assumes that religious and LGBTQIA+ communities do not overlap. Our research shows this isn’t the case.

Our research

We spoke to 43 people from across Australia about being religious and LGBTQIA+.

Through interviews we asked questions about identity, attachment, faith, gender and sexuality.

We also asked participants to capture, hand-draw, or take screenshots of images that represent emotionally resonant moments connected to gender, religion and/or sexuality. The resulting photo diaries acted as memory prompts to facilitate discussion.

We discovered digital spaces are crucial for LGBTQIA+ and religious young people. These included social media, online groups, forums, queer media and events websites.

These digital resources support self-esteem and self-discovery, facilitating access to ideas and connections that are inaccessible or unsafe to seek out in their day-to-day life.

Crystal, a 20-year-old Christian lesbian who had experienced discrimination at her childhood church explained:

there’s a Reddit community called Gay Christians and it’s actually quite a big community of people and it’s a lovely place to discuss. Having people who I could say, “Hey, I’m queer and Christian” to and not get absolutely condemned for that, and actually start to discuss things, was really helpful.

Offline too, there is a burgeoning scene of alternative spiritual communities and social groups that explicitly include LGBTQIA+ people.

For example, we spoke to young people who are connected to a rapidly-growing queer Muslims community group. M.A., a bisexual Muslim man in his mid-twenties, told us:

I have so many queer Muslim friends now it’s almost scary. The people I’m surrounded by are queer Muslim people and other queer people of faith as well. I love learning about their history and their connection.

Having a safe place to meet other queer Muslims their age to share struggles, discuss theology and connect provides a much-needed sense of belonging.

Neo, a transgender, non-binary lesbian who grew up Christian experienced this sense of belonging during their Jewish conversion classes:

there were about ten of us, and eight of us were trans […] a very big contrast to what my experience growing up was like. We were allowed to be there and visible in who we were. It wasn’t just “you can be here but be quiet and stay at the back” sort of thing. It wasn’t just about being allowed to ask questions, it was actively encouraged.

While religious and LGBTQIA+ communities are often positioned to be in direct conflict with one another, there is a significant crossover between these two worlds shaped by acceptance and care, rather than conflict or exclusion.

Religion as positive change

A commitment to social justice has been another recurring theme with participants sharing their commitment, determination, and successes in making a positive change in the world. Erin, a bisexual Christian woman in her early 20s, explained:

that’s what I like about religious teachings. The way I’ve been raised has affected me like that because it’s very much about helping the less fortunate.

For some, this looked like working within their religious institution to make it a more supportive space for the LGBTQIA+ community. For Francis, a nonbinary lesbian Catholic, who gives guest sermons at their church, social justice is inherent to their religion. They said:

I think everything I write has got that social justice intent behind it, whether it comes through or not. And I think that is very much grassroots Catholicism as I see it.

Our research adds to broader academic literature by demonstrating the creative strategies that LGBTQIA+ and religious young people use to navigate these spaces.

Invisible in the law

While this cohort has previously been considered rare or non-existent, our research challenges this assumption. This has policy implications.

Presently, the federal Sex Discrimination Act allows religious institutions, including schools, to discriminate on the basis of gender and sexuality.

In 2024, the Australian Law Reform Commission released its review of these laws. It concluded the circumstances in which religious educational institutions can discriminate against their students and staff should be substantially narrowed.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese promised to protect LGBTQIA+ students and teachers in religious schools during the 2022 election campaign. His Labor government is yet to implement these changes.

At the state level, Victoria removed religious schools’ ability to discriminate on the basis of gender and sexuality diversity in 2021. This conflict between state and federal laws, however, has led to uncertainty and a dispute is currently before the courts.

As it stands, federal law is also in conflict with Tasmania’s anti-discrimination law, while New South Wales is currently reviewing its legislation.

The disconnect between state and federal laws on this issue needs to be resolved federally so LGBTQIA+ students and teachers can exist in all Australian schools without fear of discrimination, harassment or exclusion.