Category Archives: GLBTQ

SOURCE WEEK: PSA’s Done Right


Posted on April 23, 2013 by

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This week it is SOURCE WEEK at The Feronia Project! All week we will be giving you a glimpse into the shining jewel that is The SOURCE. The SOURCE creates innovative theatre, film and videos that directly respond to the needs of youth and young adults. Award-winning, innovative, and provocative, students, educators and administrators consistently evaluate The SOURCE as one of the most effective prevention programs in the nation. The actors in The SOURCE Theatre receive extensive training in theatre, film acting, life skills, and sexuality education in order to give back to the community and the nation by becoming a “source” of life-saving information to their peers.

Aside from live theatre, The SOURCE is also known for it’s powerful and poigant public service announcements. The SOURCE and its fearless leader are never afraid to “go there.” In fact, their motto is: Saving the world – one show at a time (and you can’t save the world by being lame). As you may have read yesterday, the director of The SOURCE (who is also an accomplished writer, producer, editor, actor, and fierce mother bear) has a knack for really listening to what her youth are experiencing in their lives, and then she turns what she hears into PSA’s. Here’s a small sampling of The Feronia Project’s favorite PSA’s:

There Was That Time

Ask Her

To watch other PSA’s by The SOURCE, visit their YouTube channel.

HIV and Trans Women


Posted on April 15, 2013 by

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Nearly a fifth of the world’s transgender women are infected with HIV. A recent analysis compiling the results of 39 studies involving 11,000 transgender women from 15 countries came to this startling conclusion. This number is 49 times higher than the general population, 36 times higher than males and 78 times higher than other females. For the study, transgender women were defined as individuals born as biological males who currently identified as female. Transgender women who engaged in sex work were also significantly more likely to be infected with HIV than male and other female sex workers.

So why are transgender women so much more likely to contract HIV? The authors of the report offered several reasons. They believe that many of the infections occurred through unprotected anal sex. Next to direct blood to blood contact through needle sharing, anal sex is the easiest route for transmission. Anal tissue is more easily torn during anal sex than through either vaginal or oral sex. If they have had a recent vaginoplasty/vaginal construction, they are also at greater risk of infection. Transgender women are more likely to be involved with sexual partners who are infected with HIV and engage in sex work.

transgender_HIVPrevalenceThe stigma, discrimination, and fear of judgement associated with being transgender are significant factors that lead to many women avoiding routine health screenings. And to make matters worse, few health care workers, HIV counselors, and physicians are trained in transgender women’s health care issues.

Hopefully, this study will help open doors to future strategies to help address this overlooked population. To read the entire article, click here.

 

The Rainbow Flag: A History


Posted on April 11, 2013 by

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In 1978, San Francisco artist Gilbert Baker designed the rainbow flag that became synonymous with gay pride. His original design had eight colors: hot pink, red, orange, yellow, green, turquoise, blue, and violet. Baker assigned a meaning to each color.

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By 1979, when demand for the flag grew after Harvey Milk‘s assassination, the flag no longer had hot pink and turqouise. Today, rainbow flags are seen everywhere from parades to car bumpers to decals on the windows of inclusive businesses like Planned Parenthood. It is a symbol for inclusiveness, diversity, and hope. The rainbow flag you see below is so much of a LGBT cultural icon, in fact, that I can’t see a rainbow anywhere and NOT think of gay pride.

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Interestingly, variations of the rainbow flag have been used throughout history in various cultures and movements. Do you proudly display a rainbow flag? Where? What does it mean to you?

Human Rights Campaign Turns Red


Posted on March 27, 2013 by

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blueI don’t know about all of you but my Facebook feed turned red yesterday. I couldn’t be prouder! The Human Rights Campain, who’s usual icon is this blue/yellow equal sign, encouraged their Facebook followers to show their support for LGBT equal rights by turning their Facebook photo to this red/pink one. redIn case you haven’t heard, the Supreme Court is hearing two cases this week: California’s Proposition 8 and The Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA). In short, both cases deny non-heterosexual couples the right to marry. Many activists see gay rights as the civil rights issue of our time and many people and organizations are weighing in – President Obama, Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, Republican Senator Rob Portman, and pretty much the rest of America.

Our nation’s highest court is working to determine whether Prop 8 and DOMA are unconstitutional. Slavery? Unconstitutional. Denying women the right to vote? Unconstitutional. Banning gay marriage? Unconstitutional. Here’s the Constitution and the Bill of Rights in case 8th grade Social Studies is a little fuzzy for you. The Feronia Project is on the right side of history. Are you?

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What Does “Queer” Mean Anyway?


Posted on March 25, 2013 by

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After I wrote the post from a few weeks ago defining intersex, I got asked to write another one about the term ‘queer’. I agreed happily, since it’s a word with a lot of different aspects and quirks, and I really love talking about its nuances, history, and use. Once I sat down to write this, though, I realized that I needed to rein myself in quite a bit!

So – the short answer is that queer is often used to refer to those of us who are part of the LGBTQIA community (lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans*, queer and questioning, intersex, asexual). However, it’s not a term that’s universally accepted: some members of the community actively reject it as a description, and using it when you’re not queer yourself can be problematic.

But! Just because it’s not simple, doesn’t mean that it’s not awesome, and terribly useful in the right context. A large part of queer’s complexity comes from its origin as a reclaimed word – it first appeared in English in the 16th century, meaning strange or unusual. By the late 19th century, however, it had become an epithet for non-straight folks, particularly effeminate gay men, and was a widely-used form of hate speech.

In 1990, Queer Nation was formed, and marked the beginning of the reappropriation of the term. As the academic field of Queer Theory took shape later in the ’90s, queer  became more widely used by individuals, and was often used to specifically evoke a more critical, activist stance on LGBTQIA issues.

tshirtHaving a term that emphasizes the coalitional aspect of groups that work against issues of homophobia and discrimination is great. Also, a lot of people like having a term that makes it clear that they aren’t a part of mainstream straight, cisgender culture, but which doesn’t require labels that discuss specific aspects of their anatomy and/or sexuality, and which includes identities that may be represented in LGBTQIA or other acronyms (two-spirit, pansexual, etc.). It also provides a way to talk about queer issues without the rather unwieldy acronyms, while not oversimplifying the label to ‘gay and lesbian,’ as can often happen.

However, there are a number of people who really dislike it – if someone hasn’t described themselves as queer, you can’t assume that they’ll identify with that label. While there are absolutely older individuals who embrace it (my 65-year old neighbor has described himself as queer for decades), many people who were called queer as an insult see no reason to use it themselves. There are also younger folks who don’t like the connotation of ‘strange’ or ‘unusual’ – there are a lot of people who want to be part of mainstream culture, and not position themselves outside of it.

There are a lot more aspects to the term queer that just can’t fit into this already overlong post: genderqueer people who challenge binaries and queer gender! Then there’s the discussion of how poly and kinky people intersect with queerness: those identities are definitely not part of mainstream heteronormative culture, but they’re also very distinct from LGBTQIA identities, and face very different challenges when it comes to legal discrimination.

Given the activist roots of queer’s rebirth, it’s only fitting that it defies easy classifications and pat definitions – here’s to challenging norms and sparking discussions for years to come.

VAWA: We’ve Passed It, But Now What?


Posted on March 6, 2013 by

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(Editor’s Note: We are thrilled to have a great public policy student interning with us this semester. This is the first of her posts, but you’ll see more soon!)

Image found here.

Image found here.

Last Thursday, Congress voted to reauthorize the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) in a bi-partisan vote of 286-138. YES! VAWA now provides protection for immigrant and Native American women, as well as the LGBT community. It will also increase funding for non-profits assisting survivors of sexual assault as well.

The prevention of domestic violence and assault against women has recently become a global movement with the One Billion Rising event that occurred on Valentine’s Day last month, all over the world. Although One Billion Rising only addressed violence against women, it was a powerful statement that the world is not willing to accept this violence any longer. (Watch all the videos at http://www.onebillionrising.org/livestream).

The national and international media coverage on sexual assault recently has developed the movement to protect women, whether in the streets of India, or on tribal lands in the U.S. As this movement grows, its power needs to be harnessed to protect all survivors of intimate partner violence and sexual assault. The reauthorization of VAWA is a great victory, and has increased the possibilities of legal recourse and prevention of discrimination, but wait, what next?

VAWA’s exclusion of men and boys who suffer from domestic violence and sexual assault is troubling. Although the majority of domestic violence occurs against women, it is important to recognize that violence and sexual assault it not limited by sexual orientation or gender identity. It can literally happen to anyone. Another shortcoming of VAWA is that the term LGBT is used instead of LGBTQ, which will continue to exclude Americans who identify as queer.

Future legislation needs to include all survivors of intimate partner violence and sexual assault. As Democratic Leader, Nancy Pelosi, stated, “Let’s… ensure that no woman is ever forced to suffer in silence in the face of domestic violence and abuse.” We have an opportunity to ensure this internationally as well. As John Kerry, newly-appointed Secretary of State, comes into office, it is essential that he continues to integrate women’s health programs into U.S. foreign policy and we’ll be here to remind him of that, no matter what.

Links We Love in Sex & Health: Thursday Edition


Posted on February 7, 2013 by

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Brendon Ayanbadejo, Feronia's new hero. Photo copyright Keith Allison.

Brendon Ayanbadejo, Feronia’s new hero. Photo copyright Keith Allison.

Happy Thursday, Feronians! We’re sharing some of the best links in love and sex that we’ve found around the web:

What have you seen lately that’s interesting in love and sex? We’d love to hear about it! And do you love Brendon Ayanbadejo or what?

Links We Love in Sex & Health: Thursday Edition


Posted on November 29, 2012 by

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Gender-Neutral Swedish Toy CatalogueHappy Thursday, Feronians!

Today, we’re sharing some of the best things we’ve found around the internet, running the gamut from serious to amazing.

And in the land of awesome:

National Coming Out Day


Posted on October 11, 2012 by

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When I first sat down to write a post on National Coming Out Day this year, one of the things I started thinking about was how much it seems to have changed since starting in 1988. I first heard of it in my freshman year in college, and most of the campus activities focused on people who wanted to come out to their families. That year, I began my longstanding appreciation for Parents, Families and Friends of Lesbians and Gays (PFLAG) and the support that they can provide for people on all sides of those conversations.
In addition to the individual focus, though, there was also a broader social aspect of hoping to change the climate so that more people in the public eye would come out. It was the mid-’90s, and aside from a few athletes (Martina Navratilova, Billie Jean King, Greg Louganis) and a handful of actors, most of whom weren’t out during their lifetimes (Rock Hudson, Montgomery Clift), the broader landscape was pretty empty when it came to public figures who were known to be queer.
So on the one hand, I was all ready to embrace an ‘it gets better‘ type of post; when it comes to public visibility, things have changed tremendously. In only a decade and a half, we’ve got so many out actors, artists and musicians in our society that it’d be hard to even list them all.
Then I read this post over on Autostraddle, about Orlando Cruz being the first male boxer to come out – ever. There are still no out athletes within the NBA, NFL, MLB and NHL, though a few have come out after retirement. There are certainly gay athletes who are currently competing, and allies who are speaking out for inclusivity, but the locker room closets are still very, very full. It’s important to celebrate how far we’ve come in the last 16 years, but we’ve got a long ways to go, yet.
I’m looking forward to the day when our society incorporates diversity in sexual orientation seamlessly, and when we can see ‘coming out’ in this way as a strange, archaic custom. Until then, I’m going to appreciate the fact that since we still really need National Coming Out Day, I’m glad we have it.

When Celebrities Come Out


Posted on September 11, 2012 by

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Can you imagine your sexual preferences splashed across the cover of US Weekly? Can you imagine if you felt that you had to issue a public statement about your sexuality? What if the headline of your “coming out statement” got 43,383 likes on Facebook in just one week?

People in the public eye are constantly under scrutiny, especially when it comes to their sexuality. Remember when everyone already knew that Ellen Degeneres was gay, but finally said so on TV? She lost her job, got blacklisted for a while, and suffered unnecessary and unwanted media intrusion into her personal life. In the end, she came out on top. When celebs go public with their GLBTQ status, I often think, “Who the hell cares? Why are they doing this?”

When I saw a headline on Facebook that actor Jim Parsons (two-time Emmy winner and Golden Globe winner of The Big Bang Theory) is gay, I clicked through to read the story (I’m a HUGE fan of the show). What struck me most about the story was not that he’s gay, nor that he’s been in a long-term relationship longer than I’ve known my husband, but that he’s 39 years old! I thought to myself, “39!?!. He can’t be – he looks too young for 39!” Then I thought (because in my head, I’m friends with him): “Jim, why do you (or the media) feel the need to expose this side of your personal life to the world?” I mean, would his life be any different if he read a public statement about my sexuality? Of course not! Again, who the hell cares?

After considering the answers to these questions for a long time, here’s the conclusion I’ve come to: in the grand scheme of things, no one actually cares about a celebrity’s sexual preferences. But here’s why I think they come out publicly anyway: people who are marginalized inevitably become ambassadors for their cause. Let’s go back to Ellen. By coming out, Ellen has successfully managed to get people (fans AND haters) to see her for the kind, loving, funny, smart, successful person that she is, not the lesbian that she is. People can finally see the forest for the trees, or the person for the lesbian, if you will. When a person learns of Jim Parson’s 10 year relationship, I hope they think, “Huh, for the past 10 years a gay man has had a successful relationship that didn’t affect my heterosexual relationship, my life, my job, my hopes and dreams, or my thoughts, even One. Tiny. Bit.” When celebrities come out, these “ambassadors” allow us the opportunity for personal growth, an opportunity to love one another, an opportunity to evolve.

I can’t wait for the day when people can openly talk about their sexuality the same way people openly talk about which grocery store they prefer. Until we arrive at that place as a society, here are three things YOU can do to make all kinds of sexuality “normal” and accepted:

1) If you don’t know, ask. If you aren’t sure which pronoun to use, ask. If you aren’t sure how to introduce someone, ask. Here’s an example: my brother-in-law’s partner (a woman) does not like to be introduced as his “wife” – she prefers “partner.” Meanwhile, my female co-worker prefers that I introduce her partner (a woman) as her “wife.” Instead of making an ass out of yourself, just ask.

2) Call others out. When you hear someone saying, “that’s so gay” or making homophobic comments, call them out on it. I do this to my own family. You don’t have to be mean about it, just correct them and tell them why it bothers you when they use that kind of language.

3) Believe. Believe deep in your heart that all people really do deserve equal rights. Believe that what you say, how you act, and what you teach your children really does matter, because it does.

4) Advocate. If you accomplish #3, this will happen naturally.