Advances in Research with LGBTQ Youth in Schools

Over the past decade, there has been an increase in scholarship devoted to the topic of sexual and gender minority youth in schools (e.g., lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, or questioning; LGBTQ). In this special section, we highlight this group of LGBTQ youth, a group that needs as many allies as possible, a group that lacks the social standing, the financial capital necessary, and the rights afforded to adults to directly influence the political climate in ways that affect their lives. Collectively, these seven data-driven articles are reflective of the innovation that is occurring in our field as we continue to study the experiences of LGBTQ youth in schools. They also highlight how there is room to expand our research efforts to better ensure that the social, educational, and developmental needs of LGBTQ students are met by our schools

Towards a More Responsive Philanthropy: Grantmaking for Racial Equity and LGBTQ Justice

In 2007, Funders for LGBTQ Issues (Funders) launched its LGBTQ Racial Equity Campaign, a multi-year initiative to increase grantmaking to and strengthen lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) people of color (POC) organizations and communities. This effort was a natural next step for us after updating our mission the previous year to include advancing racial, economic, and gender justice as integral to achieving LGBTQ equality and rights. Our intent was to forge a conversation among funders about the critical intersection of racial equity and LGBTQ justice and how institutional structures and grantmaking practices impact the resources available to diverse communities.This report marks another step in our continuing effort to advance work at the intersection of racial equity and LGBTQ justice by offering the stories of five foundations that have made an intentional commitment to do this work with their grantees. We present their innovative efforts hoping that they'll encourage others who are engaging in or considering similar efforts. This work is not always easy. It requires time, diligence, dialogue, and resources. Yet, as these stories reveal, it can yield tremendous impact -- on organizations, individuals, and the various communities of which they are a part

Coming Out, Stepping Up: Organizing to Build the Power of LGBTQ Youth

Over the past three years, we have witnessed unprecedented changes in the United States and around the world, spanning incredible victories and major crises. We saw the historic election of the first black president of the United States while in the backdrop we braced ourselves for the worst economic conditions since the Great Depression. We also witnessed the legalization of same sex marriage in some states and the subsequent amendments barring the rights of same sex couples to marry. We also saw the rise of homelessness and increased rates of HIV infection amongst lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) youth of color. History has taught us that crisis presents opportunities for change if people are organized and mobilized in large numbers. Within the LGBTQ community, the decline of sustained organizing and long-term leadership development in favor of strategies consisting solely of legal advocacy, litigation, and services presents the serious danger of losing ground we have already made and threatens to leave the most marginalized in our communities out of the picture. This report is not only about highlighting the major problems facing LGBTQ youth, but also a call to action to the LGBTQ movement to invest in organizing as an essential strategy for change in general, and particularly amongst LGBTQ youth of color. The opportunity to organize for the change LGBTQ youth desperately need exists. As a movement, we do not have the time or luxury to let it slip away

In/Visibility of LGBTQ People in the Arab Spring: Making LGBTQ Voices Heard

LGBTQ use of the internet is a growing area of study. However most studies focus mainly on the US and the UK, and none pays much (if any) attention to the experience of LGBTQ people in countries where it is illegal to be LGBTQ. The events of the Arab Spring, significantly, signal the possibility that change may be possible in these countries, yet there seems to be little material on what LGBTQ people in these countries are actually thinking, doing, etc, and in\ud particular what role the internet may be playing in this. This is a research-inprogress paper introducing a project which sets out to make a contribution on these lines, by making their voices heard

Battling the big one: LGBTQ inclusive art education during the Trump era

Recently, because of our new political atmosphere, there have been many attacks on lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer, or LGBTQ+, individuals and communities. Even though there have been positive developments in the past few years, homophobia is still a major concern for many people in the Unit- ed States. These issues often manifest themselves to a greater degree within the microcosm of public schools where LGBTQ+ students are forced to deal with hateful speech, heteronorma- tive environments, and rampant homophobia. These strugglescan have harmful e ects on the social and emotional develop- ment of queer youth. Progressive and inclusive art educationthat provides re ective and thoughtful creative projects may aidin identity development, increase self-esteem, and encourage activism, thus helping to improve the lives of LGBTQ+ youth and educators

Discrimination at the Workplace, From Application to Termination

[Excerpt] In the spring and summer of 2013, Make the Road New York surveyed over 250 LGBTQ and gender non-conforming identified individuals about their experiences with gender identity/expression employment discrimination. The individuals surveyed had applied for jobs in a variety of di!erent industries, including retail, finance, and education. We also surveyed more than 100 non-LGBTQ identified individuals. Surveys were conducted at local community organizations, LGBTQ support groups, and public events. Finally, we collected in-depth testimonies from transgender and gender non-conforming identified individuals about their experiences with employment discrimination. Those testimonies are included in this report

More Color More Pride: Addressing Structural Barriers to Interracial LGBTQ Loving

Through an examination of State-supported racial structures, this Essay illustrates that even after the legalization of interracial and same-sex marriages, the State’s control over housing, education, and employment prospects impedes the formation of interracial LGBTQ relationships. This Essay suggests that reducing residential segregation can be a first step in dismantling structural barriers to interracial LGBTQ loving, as truly integrated housing would increase cross-racial contact, lead to better educational and employment outcomes, and give LGBTQ people of color a chance to improve their social capital. This, together with altering how issues of race are framed within the LGBTQ community, will help dispel negative racial stereotypes and facilitate the formation of interracial LGBTQ relationships

A Moral Debate at the Invisible Rainbow: Thoughts about Best Practices in Servicing LGBTQ Students in Special Education

Instead of occupying a marginal space within teacher preparation programs, special education courses and training should promote diversity in servicing marginalized groups such as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and questioning (LGBTQ) students. Within these programs, issues related to LGBTQ students should occupy a meaningful and formative space in the training of future teachers in special education. Often, special education teachers are at a loss about how to educate LGBTQ students with disabilities. Rethinking the role of special education and LGBTQ students with special needs within teacher education programs enables pre-service teachers to cultivate new values and attitudes that can enrich the student/teacher relationship within public schools. As such, this article proposes to explore best practices for servicing LGTBQ students in special education by promoting better ways to train future teachers

Introduction to LGBTQ America Today

l was born in Los Angeles in 1947 and learned from my classmates in seventh grade that boys who wrote with their left hand or wore green and yellow on Thursdays were homos. Because I did both, I knew I was in deep trouble from the start and might have some pretending to do. Such was the atmosphere for LGBTQ folks in the United States throughout the 1950s. Things loosened just a bit in the 1960s, when hippies were shaking society up. Then, in the 1970s, gay folks seemed to be-a lot more visible--disturbingly so, in the minds of many-and lesbian women were suddenly a force to be reckoned with. In the 1980s, gays and lesbians were popping up all over the place: the love that dared not speak its name was shouting from the rooftops. Bisexuals gained a voice; transgendered individuals began the long struggle that is still in its infancy. Queer began to blur the distinctions that had defined the identity politics of these early decades. In short, non-heterosexual America during these decades was as much a part of the civil rights movement as was any ethnicity. Back in 1956, set to Leonard Bernstein\u27s haunting tunes, Stephen Sondheim could write soulful, yearning lyrics that West Side Story put in the mouths of a heterosexual couple ( There\u27s a place for us,/ Somewhere a place for us .... We\u27ll find a new way of living, / We\u27ll find a way of forgiving/ Somewhere ... . ), but by 1990 Queer Nation was stripping away all pretence of quiet compliance, shouting \u22We\u27re here, we\u27re queer, get used to it