Suicide of Hamed Nastoh

Nastoh was born on December 18, 1985, in Abbotsford, British Columbia. His parents, Nasima and Karim, had moved from Afghanistan to Canada a year prior to escape the Soviet-Afghanistan War. Nasima, who had a degree in psychology, worked at Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada, while Karim, a professor of geography and history, sold Persian rugs. Nastoh attended Enver Creek Secondary School in Surrey with his brother, Abdullah. Nastoh was described as an intelligent student with a passion for horror movies, literature, dance, and music. Nastoh, then 14 years old, was bullied in person. In a note, he mentions to his parents that high school was terrible for him, everyone in his school would call him "gay", "fag", "queer", "four-eyes" and "big-nose" because his average grades were above 90 percent. He left a suicide note saying "I hate myself for doing this to you," he wrote to his parents. "I really, really hate myself, but there is no other way out." == Investigation ==

After finishing his shower, Abdullah noticed that Hamed was gone. He phoned his parents, and Kirim hurried home to investigate. Upon finding the note Hamed had left, Kirim contacted the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP). == Aftermath and impact on schools ==

Homosexuality issues high school course Hamed's suicide prompted the Government of British Columbia to introduce the Grade 12 Homosexuality issues course. This course was developed in 2007 and is considered an elective course for Grade 12 high school students. This course was meant to prevent a trial in court before the British Columbia Human Rights Tribunal, which made the agreement to listen to a gay couples complaints that secondary schools in British Columbia are blameworthy of prejudice by not talking about sexual identities as how the curriculum expects. His mother states her message is clear and simple: "Suicide is not the solution." Using her son's suicide note to show how much he suffered in high school before committing suicide, Nasima hopes to give support to teenagers and the community and assure them they are not alone. Nasima said, "Seek help. If you don't talk about it nobody can hear," noting that children and teenagers are afraid of having discussions about being bullied if they notify their parents or teachers. Nasima says that Hamed Nastoh's Anti-Bullying Coalition has given her confidence to overcome her agony and misery. == See also ==