Young writers
I think your supplement, Rising Stars, is a wonderful platform for Bangladeshi youth to write and have their voices heard. It is also a good opportunity for our youth to have a first-hand experience in publishing their write-ups.
Most of the writers in Rising Stars are adolescents, and it is clear that many of these young writers are still trying to understand the world around them. They all have young, impressionable minds. They are susceptible to many ideas which may be misguided or politically incorrect.
I am appalled by the sentiments conveyed in the most recent issue of Rising Stars. I have noticed this sort of sentiment conveyed among one or two other Rising Stars writers in the past. While the reason for their homophobia is not quite clear to me, I feel that as a reputable daily newspaper it is The Daily Star's responsibility to not publish these potentially harmful views. Due to the lack of sexual health education in Bangladeshi schools, many adolescents do not have the opportunity to have many of their questions answered, be they related to sexual orientation or other more general questions.
Bangladeshi youth have a particular view of what is "normal" in the realm of love and sex, and anything outside it is strange, unacceptable or something to be ridiculed. In striving to create a more enlightened and tolerant society, I wish you would not have these ideas explored in print (at risk of further marginalising an already marginalised group) but instead provide your writers with the opportunity to have their questions and concerns answered in other ways.
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