Blog

Authors Making a Difference: Celebrating Women’s History Month with a Panel of Women and Gender-Expansive Authors

Seeing ourselves in stories can be incredibly powerful. The Trevor Project’s editorial team invited three authors — Lamya H, Sarah Cypher, and Becky Albertalli — to talk about the importance of seeing women’s and LGBTQ+ experiences in books, and how they can help us better understand ourselves and be better allies to each other. Considering recent bans of LGBTQ+ books in school libraries, these authors show us why sharing authentic stories can help affirm young people and why reading mainstream LGBTQ+ books can be an act of resistance. Lamya H (she/they) is a queer Muslim writer and organizer living in…
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Being There For LGBTQ+ Young People With Disabilities

An estimated 3 to 5 million LGBTQ+ people in the United States have disabilities. It would be wrong, then, to assume that someone’s disability could dictate their gender or sexuality. Still, as we enter Developmental Disability Awareness Month, we encounter a lot of stigma and misinformation surrounding LGBTQ+ young people who have a disability (or more).  First, let's talk about what a disability is. A disability can be defined as a physical, mental, cognitive, or developmental condition that impairs, interferes with, or limits a person's ability to engage in certain tasks or participate in typical daily activities and interactions. But…
Ieasha Jackson
Community

Black@Trevor Spotlight: Ieasha Jackson

At The Trevor Project, we create intentional spaces, called Affinity Groups, that allow members of Team Trevor to connect with each other around their different intersectional identities. Over the next few months, we’ll feature member spotlights from across Trevor’s Affinity Groups. This month, we’re proud to spotlight Digital Supervisor and Black@Trevor member Ieasha Jackson (she/her). As one of The Trevor Project’s pioneering Affinity Groups, Black@Trevor leads with a mission to create spaces and resources for employees who identify within the Black Diaspora (and their allies) to connect, grow relationships, and build community. What’s your favorite thing about working at Trevor?…
Show Up for Black LGBTQ Youth Illustration
Blog

What Supporting Black LGBTQ Young People Really Looks Like

Being Black is hard. Due to the unique historical and current systems of oppression we face, the simple feat of continuing to exist and thrive in this country is an act of sheer rebellion for Black people. Countless scholars have illustrated myriad challenges to physical and mental health that Black people face, all stemming from systematic discrimination and racism. Mental health care providers and researchers alike have long been sounding the alarm about the mental health crisis among Black young people, specifically pointing to increasing rates of suicide. Still, in many ways reflective of our tenacity, Black people are incredibly…
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Celebrating Aromantic Spectrum Awareness Week

Aromantic Spectrum Awareness Week is a great opportunity for all of us (aromantic or otherwise) to learn more about aromanticism, and to dust off any cobwebs of misconception around what it means to be aromantic. It’s important to define what it means to be aromantic: Aromanticism is a romantic orientation that describes people who do not experience romantic attraction. This does not mean that aromantic people do not experience any kind of attraction at all; they may still experience platonic, aesthetic, or sensual attraction. Being aromantic is not a choice, like any other orientation. Aromantic people are perfect exactly as…
Jae Rice
Blog

Making Brave Spaces For Black LGBTQ Young People

Brave Space Alliance, the first Black trans-lead LGBTQ center in Chicago, was born on a March evening in 2017 during the Trans Liberation March in Chicago’s city center, which at the time was the largest demonstration for trans rights in the history of the Midwest. Now, Brave Space’s focus is on providing culturally equitable resources to Black, Indigenous, and Brown trans folks and operate several programs including identity-based support groups, gender-affirming resources, and mutual aid. Their work is sustained by dedicated activists, fixtures in the ballroom scene, and people engulfed in Chicago’s queer Black community.  Their critical services reach the…