June is Pride Month. Pride is a time for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Queer (LGBTQ) people and allies to come together and honor the 1969 Stonewall Uprising in Manhattan and to celebrate LGBTQ history, recognizing the impact that the LGBTQ community has had locally and nationally.
In honor of Pride Month, Fact Not Fiction is sharing a helpful list of Mississippi-focused resources, not only for people in the LGBTQ community but also for people outside of the community who want to learn more but aren’t sure where to get started.
Check out our 2020 Pride Month blog with frequently asked questions about the LGBTQ community, created to dispel false info and provide more accurate information!
Resources for LGBTQ Youth
According to Gallup, 16% of Gen Z identify as LGBTQ, compared to 9.1% of Millennials (born 1981-1996) and 3.8% of Generation X (born 1965-1980). Fact Not Fiction wants teens to have access to the resources they need when they have questions about their own sexual health, including questions related to their sexuality. Having a safe space to ask questions and trusting that they will receive accurate answers is essential when it comes to sex education. Knowing information before it needs to be applied in real life can be helpful in keeping teens more equipped to handle anything they have to face in the future.
The UMMC TEAM Clinic is a medical clinic sponsored by the UMMC Center for LGBTQ Health, providing health care for the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and questioning/queer community. The UMMC TEAM Clinic offers trustworthy, evidence-based, affirming, and multidisciplinary health care to every person who walks through our doors. They offer the following services: Primary care; Gender affirmative medicine, including hormone therapy; HIV/STD screening and treatment; Behavioral health services, including therapy and medication management.
Grace Christian Counseling is a nonprofit professional counseling service addressing issues ranging from marital and family challenges to mental health-related disorders. They provide group counseling services, particularly for LGBTQ-identifying persons, and work to connect and network across the state with organizations and individuals that are allies or who identify as LGBTQ members, so that they can get the word out that they are a safe place to go. They are prepared to provide care, support, empathy and understanding for all persons, but particularly LGBTQ.
The LGBTQ Fund of Mississippi is the first and only grantmaking fund in the state focused on supporting organizations that improve quality of life for LGBTQ Mississippians, the Fund works as a pipeline that fuels and enhances the work of LGBTQ-focused organizations by the professional stewardship of funds and other resources from outside donors.
ACLU of MS offers tons of resources for LGBTQ folks, like the Name Change Guidelines and Gender Change Documents. Information varies by state and by county, so it’s vital to make sure you have accurate information.
Resources for LGBTQ Supporters and Allies
GLAAD offers many tips for those moving toward becoming a better ally to transgender people. When you become an ally of transgender people, your actions will help change the culture, making society a better, safer place for transgender people and for all people (trans or not) who do not conform to conventional gender expectations.
Creating Safer Spaces for LGBTQ Youth is a toolkit for Education, Healthcare, and Community-Based Organizations. This Toolkit highlights challenges faced by LGBTQ youth, offers insight on how they thrive, and enhances the awareness among healthcare staff, educators, and additional youth-serving professionals about the existing disparities in order to provide more comprehensive, competent, evidence-based care and support to this community.
GLSEN offers Educator Resources on how to discuss bullying, gender roles, or family diversity with elementary-aged students, as well as inspire your students of all ages and all identities to be kind, support others, and speak up when they see bullying. Supportive educators save students’ lives. Having just one visibly supportive educator in a school can ensure that LGBTQ students feel safe, welcomed, and encouraged to learn.
At Fact Not Fiction, we want everyone to have the right information, regardless of your age, gender, sexuality, or whether or not you’re sexually active. Whatever you do, with whomever, don’t do it in the dark. And ALWAYS make sure it’s done with consent.
