Mockery, rejection and a sense of not belonging are part of the everyday reality of many children in schools, and the scenario depicted in the film The Boy in Pink Trousers is not far from our own reality, it was assessed today at the matinee discussion “Who Is Afraid of Pink Trousers and How Do Schools View Diversity?”, organised by the Centre for Civic Education (CCE).
The discussion was held as part of the 16th FAST FORWARD Human Rights Film Festival Montenegro 2025, inspired also by the film based on the true story of fifteen-year-old Andrea from Italy, who, after prolonged peer violence, committed suicide, and it all began as a “joke” about the colour of his trousers.
The interlocutors of Miloš Knežević, Development Coordinator at the CCE, were Staša Baštrica, Executive Director of Queer Montenegro, Al-Ammar Kašić, psychologist and psychotherapist, and Nikola Latković, pedagogue at the “Lovćenski partizanski odred” Primary School in Cetinje.
Al-Ammar Kašić pointed to the depth and complexity of the problem of violence, emphasising that change is not possible if we convince ourselves in advance that it cannot be achieved. “We must never think something cannot be done, no matter how few of us there are,” he said, stressing that violence permeates the entire social structure and is shaped by often invisible currents such as gender, class and race. He underlined that, when dealing with the problem, we must leave space to examine its deeper roots. “We often tend to address only the symptoms on the surface. And when we talk about violence, we are talking about human nature, our evolution and something that runs through our genes and shapes the entire world we live in,” he explained.
He noted that this problem cannot be solved quickly and that patience is required. “We must nurture the capacities to endure discomfort when things are difficult,” Kašić said, adding that changes do not happen abruptly nor within one generation. “It is important to plant the seed in a timely manner, which will be nurtured through future generations, and to leave them the task of continuing to resolve this problem as a legacy,” he concluded.
Staša Baštrica considers that peer violence against LGBTIQ+ youth is not an individual problem, but a systemic one that persists due to ignorance, prejudice and the silence of adults. She emphasised that it occurs daily in schools, leaving deep and long-lasting consequences.
“If we want safer schools and a supportive environment, we must work on educating and sensitizing teaching staff, parents and representatives of institutions, so that they can recognise, name and prevent violence before it causes lasting harm,” she said, adding that only in this way can the culture that tolerates discrimination be changed and an environment built in which every child is safe, visible and accepted as they are.
Nikola Latković emphasised that a classroom can be a safe place only if, from the very first day, norms based on respect, safety, and every child’s right to be who they are clearly established.
„Children learn the most from what adults do, which is why modelling acceptance is a key task of teachers,” he reminded, while also pointing to the necessity of rapid response to any discrimination, as well as cooperation with parents in order to build shared messages of support and openness. „The most important thing is to strengthen the self-confidence of children who stand out and to create an atmosphere in which no one feels they have to hide in order to be accepted“, Latković concluded.
One of the participants who attended the matinee discussion, Una Perazić, underlined the importance of opening space for young people to talk about peer violence. „Young people are ready to talk about this topic; they just need to be given space by adults and the education system itself“, she said. She stressed that the heterogeneity of the group is not an obstacle, but that „the most important thing is to talk about it and to gradually build an environment based on tolerance”.
The film The Boy in Pink Trousers will be available for the Montenegrin audience to watch as part of the Festival’s main programme, on Saturday, 13 December, at 18:45, at the Montenegrin Cinematheque.
The event is part of the project “Through the Kaleidoscope of Diversity – Better Perspectives for LGBTIQ Rights”, implemented by the CCE with the support of the Ministry of Human and Minority Rights.
Jovana Radulović, Project Assistant