Clergy Call for Equality

This May 22-24, we encourage you to join HRC’s Religion and Faith Program and hundreds of fellow religious leaders from across the country to build the faithful movement for LGBT justice.  Now more than ever we need religious leaders like you to keep equality at the forefront of our nation’s conscience.  Sign up now for the 2011 Clergy Call for Justice and Equality in Washington, DC and gather with colleagues from Ohio and beyond to organize, learn, worship and bring your witness for justice to Capitol Hill.  Learn more at www.hrc.org/clergycall.

 http://keystothecloset.blogspot.com/

Coming Out About Smoking

Coming Out About Smoking: A Report from the National LGBTQ Young Adult Tobacco Project

Reduction of tobacco use among youth and young adults in the United States is an important public health issue. Emerging data from national probability samples suggests that young adults are smoking at significantly higher rates than their heterosexual counterparts. However, beyond smoking prevalence rates, little else is known about tobacco use among this under-served subpopulation of youth. In the summer of 2009, the National Youth Advocacy Coalition (NYAC) was funded by the American Legacy Foundation’s Small Innovative Grants program to conduct a nation-wide research project focusing on tobacco use in the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, questioning, and intersex community of young adults, ages 18–24.

As a national organization dedicated to serving LGBTQ youth and youth service providers, NYAC was uniquely position to take the lead in conducting one of the first national studies of tobacco use in this population. The overall objectives of the project were to address gaps in the extant literature about tobacco use among LGBTQ youth including characteristics of smokers compared to non-smokers, smoking related behaviors of current smokers, attitudes about tobacco use among smokers and non-smokers and barriers and facilitators to smoking cessation. The project was also aimed at building a network of community-based organizations committed to tobacco control and prevention among LGBTQ young adults. The results of the project have important implications for future research on tobacco use among young adults and the development of culturally appropriate prevention, treatment and public policy initiatives aimed at reducing tobacco use disparities based on sexual and gender identities.

From http://wiki.nyacyouth.org/w/Coming_Out_About_Smoking published on http://keystothecloset.blogspot.com/

Update on National Youth Advocacy Coalition (NYAC)

As the chair of the Board of Directors of the National Youth Advocacy Coalition (NYAC), I’ve seen firsthand the impact our work has on improving the lives of LGBTQ youth. We are the only national LGBTQ youth organization that works directly with inspirational young leaders and the organizations that support them all year long. In 2011, we’ve already accomplished so much:

• Our YouthKICKS! committee convened to begin creating their own social marketing campaign to lessen the impact of smoking in the LGBTQ youth community.
• Over 60 youth from across the country attended our Youth Summit at The National Conference on LGBT Equality: Creating Change, and discussed strategies to create more avenues for youth leadership in the LGBTQ movement and other movements for social justice.
• We launched a Spanish-language version of our award winning HIV prevention social marketing campaign, You Know Different, in San Diego, and billboards for We Know Different /Sabemos Que No Es Así took over downtown.
• We have re-launched the NYAC Network, which provides membership opportunities to receive training, technical assistance and resources to youth activists and organizations that support LGBTQ youth.
• We now have 6 youth our Board of Directors, including talented fundraising professionals, Executive Directors and media makers.

TransOhio offers Youth Support Groups

COLUMBUS, OH, March 5, 2011 -- TransOhio is pleased to announce the start of support groups for Transgender, Gender non-conforming/questioning youth ages 5-11 and 12-17. Regarding the importance of these groups, board member and facilitator Erin Upchurch, MSSA, LSW states, “It is necessary that we begin to reach out and affirm our children; they need to know that they are not alone and that their gender identity and form of expression is as valid as any other.” Upchurch continues, “This is an exciting time for our youth. We are excited to facilitate affirmation and community through conversation, education, and the arts.” 

 

TransOhio Founder and Chair, Shane Morgan says that “The addition of these two groups is important to our community. There are resource gaps for Trans and gender non-conforming youth of these ages and we’re thrilled to be able to offer a few new opportunities to youth and their parents.”

 

Groups begin in April 2011 for $10/session-a sliding fee scale is available. Groups will meet in Columbus. As need for these groups grow, we’ll start other youth groups across the state of Ohio. Youth will meet within their appropriate age group and parental/guardian consent will be required. Please contact Erin Upchurch with questions at erin@transohio.org. 

 

TransOhio serves the Ohio transgender and ally communities by providing services, education, support and advocacy which promotes and improves the health, safety and life experience of the Ohio transgender individual and community.

 

For more information contact:  Shane Morgan, shane@transohio.org , 614-441-8167, http://www.transohio.org/

Safe Schools Amendment Act

The Safe Schools Improvement Act (SSIA), a federal anti-bullying bill, is on the verge of introduction in the U.S. House and Senate. You can take action now to ensure it gets passed!

This bill will require schools and districts receiving federal funding to specifically prohibit bullying and harassment, including conduct based on a student's actual or perceived race, color, national origin, sex, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity or religion - and based on association with anyone of those identities. If we all work together, we can make schools safer for students with lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgeder, and queer parents - and ALL students!

Click here to take action now!

SAFE SCHOOLS IMPROVEMENT ACT
(Casey, Kirk)

Bullying and harassment of students is widespread and affects millions of students every year. The Safe Schools Improvement Act of 2011 (formerly S. 3739/H.R. 2262) is designed to help schools address this problem by ensuring that no child is afraid to go to school for fear of unchecked bullying and harassment.
What is the Safe Schools Improvement Act?

• Requires schools and districts receiving federal funding to specifically prohibit bullying and harassment, including conduct based on a student’s actual or perceived race, color, national origin, sex, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity or religion.
• Ensures that schools and school districts focus on effective prevention programs in order to better prevent and respond to incidents of bullying and harassment both in school and online.
• Requires that states report data on incidents of bullying and harassment to the Department of Education

Why is this needed?

• A 2009 U.S. Department of Education study found that bullying and harassment affects nearly one in every three American students between the ages of 12 through 18.1 Another study estimates that 60,000 students in the U.S. do not attend school each day because they fear being bullied.
• Research shows that bullying and harassment have adverse long-term consequences, including decreased concentration at school, increased school absenteeism, damage to the victim’s self-esteem, and increased social anxiety.
• While we do have federal laws to provide support to promote school safety, there is nothing currently in place to comprehensively and expressly address issues of bullying or harassment.
• Awareness of the problem is growing. According to a recent poll, 85 percent of Americans strongly support or somewhat support a federal law to require schools to enforce specific rules to prevent bullying.2

What is the history of the Safe Schools Improvement Act?

• In the 111th Congress, S. 3739 had the support of seventeen bipartisan cosponsors in the Senate. Companion legislation in the House of Representatives, introduced by Representative Linda Sánchez (D-CA), was supported by 131 bipartisan cosponsors.
• When Congress last took up the reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA, or No Child Left Behind), both the Senate and House Education Committees included the core principles of the Safe School Improvement Act in their draft bills.

Who supports the Safe Schools Improvement Act?
Numerous education, health, law enforcement and youth development organizations support SSIA, including the American Association of School Administrators, American Federation of Teachers, American School Health Association, Learning Disabilities Association of America, National Association of School Psychologists, National Down Syndrome Society, National Education Association, National Parent Teacher Association, American Association of University Women, Asian American Justice Center, the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network, COLAGE, Human Rights Campaign, Trevor Project, and National Council of La Raza.

Planned Parenthood, more than abortions but a queer issue

 Last week, the House of Representatives voted to bar federal funding for Planned Parenthood.  Want to learn more about what this means or wondering what you can do, click here for the Planned Parenthood Take Action website. Wondering how it's a queer issue? Check out shay's blog post here.
http://plannedparenthoodaction.org/positions/2011-congressional-attacks-womens-health-care-1024.htm

 For more info see: http://blog.nyacyouth.org/

Transgender Lobby Day Scheduled Mar. 13-15 in D.C.

Each year, transgender people, our families, friends and allies join us in Washington, DC, as we go to our members of Congress to share vital information with them about transgender people and our families. We will also have great opportunities to talk with policy makers in the Administration whose work directly impacts our lives. Please join us as we make strides to bring transgender equality to our nation's capital.
Make your plans now to join us on March 13-15, 2011 for an exciting conference and the opportunity to educate your member of Congress about vital issues for transgender people. Our goal is to make this our largest and most diverse Lobby Day to date. Will you help us?

Registration is now open for Lobby Day 2011. Go to Registration.