| January E-Newsletter |
| Volume IV / Issue 1 / January 9, 2008 www.respectsacramento.org |
| 2. Next meeting January 9 at The Lavender Library Our regular monthly meetings have returned to the Lavender Library Archives and Cultural Exchange at 1414 21st Street. Our meetings will continue to be held on the second Wednesday of the month at 6:30 pm. Hope you can make it! |
| That's enough for now. Did I leave anything out? Please drop me a line. Do you have an announcement or item that you'd like to include in our newsletter? Would you like to write an opinion piece about something in the LGBT education area? Tell us about what's going on in your GSA! Send complaints, comments, or submissions to admin@respectsacramento.org and I will be happy to place it in our newsletter, which is composed at the end of the current month and sent out in the first week of the subsequent month. Make this your newsletter by contributing to it! See you at our next meeting on January 9 at the Lavender Library, 1414 21st Street at 6:30 pm. Jerry O'Connor Respect Sacramento Board Member Respect Sacramento PO Box 191678 Sacramento CA 95819 (916) 733-2135 info@respectsacramento.org www.respectsacramento.org |
| 1. From the Editor: New Year, new directions, new threats From Respect board member Donna Matthews: Hello! You are invited to participate in a Survey of Parents or Caregivers of "trans" youth (youth who are transgender, transsexual or gender variant and currently 25 years old or younger). This survey is appropriate for all parents/caregivers, including foster parents, shelter staff and extended family members. Click here to download the survey (Adobe PDF form) The goal of this study is to lead to improved mental health services and other supports for transgender youth and their families and caregivers. You may be receiving the survey directly from the researcher (Donna Matthews) or someone may be forwarding this to you because they think you can help. The survey should only take 20 minutes or so to complete since most questions are "check off" questions and only several are written responses. Feel free to print it out and return it and the consent form on the first two pages by mail (see below) or email it to transfamilysurvey@comcast.net. Please return completed materials as soon as possible, but no later than February 15th! (Think: Return it by Valentine's Day latest). Feel free to share this with others. Thanks so very much! -Donna Matthews, MSW Graduate Student, CSUS Donna Matthews/TransFamilySurvey P. O. Box 5083 Sacramento, CA 95817 transfamilysurvey@comcast.net The next Sacramento City Unified School District LGBT Task Force meeting will be held on Monday, January 28 from 4:30 to 6 pm at Hiram Johnson High School's "Little Theater." Anti-gay forces are on the move to roll back student protections. Pay attention to the news and your email contacts as religious extremists are in court challenging The Student Civil Rights Act passed by the legislature and signed by the governor. The Student Civil Rights Act reinforces existing California laws that prohibit discrimination in publicly-funded schools and activities, including discrimination based on religion, race, disability, gender and sexual orientation. EQCA and The GSA Network have filed a motion to intervene in a lawsuit filed by anti-gay organizations that would prevent enforcement of California statutes protecting students from discrimination, harassment and bullying in publicly-funded schools. These organizations want harassment of and discrimination against sexual minority people to be protected activities. Don't let them do it. |
| In this edition 1. From the Editor: New Year, new directions, new threats 2. Next meeting January 9 at The Lavender Library 3. eQuality Scholarships 4. Stanford Home welcomes LGBT foster families 5. GSA Network News |
| 5. GSA Network News Make '08 Great - Run a campaign for unbiased sex ed at your school Is your health teacher willing to answer when students ask questions in class about homosexuality, abortion, or masturbation? In that same health class, are students provided accurate information about contraceptive methods that help prevent pregnancy and STIs AND cover the needs of all students, including LGBTQ youth? Are you allowed to learn about sexual health without first bringing in a permission slip from your parents/guardians? If you answered no to any or all of the above questions, and you are a student in a California public school, you might not be receiving the sexual health education that you need and deserve under law. The California Comprehensive Sexual Health and HIV/AIDS Prevention Act of 2004 (aka SB 71) became law a few years ago and clarified the state's laws on sexual health education. It's there to make sure that sex ed speaks to the needs of everyone. As a student in a California public school, you have the right to sexual education that is medically-accurate, comprehensive, age-appropriate, and unbiased. This means that if your school offers sex ed, you have the right to get your questions answered and to get the information you need to make healthy decisions for yourself. To learn more about the law itself, please read GSA Network's resource sheet which can be found http://www.gsanetwork.org/resources/index.html. |
| 3. eQuality Scholarships The eQuality Scholarship Collaborative awards scholarships to graduating high-school seniors in northern and central California for their service to the LGBT community. In 2008, 10 or more $5000 scholarships will be awarded to assist with post-secondary educational expenses - tuition, books, and supplies. Applications are available from high school guidance counselors throughout Northern and Central California. Applicants must: - be graduating from a high school in northern or central California; - have applied to an accredited post-secondary institution - college, university, or trade school. Completed applications, including transcripts and a letter of recommendation, must be postmarked no later than February 16, 2008. The Collaborative is the joint effort of a group of individuals and organizations based in the San Francisco Bay Area. Organizational members include PG&E PrideNetwork, KP Pride, Genentech Out & Equal, Ally Action, Out & Equal Workplace Advocates, and GSA Network. For more information or to download an application, visit the Collaborative's web site at http://www.allyaction.org/scholarship. |
4. Stanford Home welcomes LGBT foster families
Stanford Home for Children: Foster Family Connections Orientation
If you would like to help the community and improve the lives of children you may want to consider
becoming a foster parent. At Stanford Home for Children’s foster family orientation you will learn the
benefits and challenges of becoming a foster parent as well as the process of becoming a foster parent
through our foster care agency, Foster Family Connections. Light refreshments will be provided. Potential
foster parents must be at least 25 years of age. For more information and to reserve a seat, please call
Christina Cagle at 344-0199 ext. 254
Download the January - June orientation schedule here.
Stanford Home for Children: Foster Family Connections Orientation
If you would like to help the community and improve the lives of children you may want to consider
becoming a foster parent. At Stanford Home for Children’s foster family orientation you will learn the
benefits and challenges of becoming a foster parent as well as the process of becoming a foster parent
through our foster care agency, Foster Family Connections. Light refreshments will be provided. Potential
foster parents must be at least 25 years of age. For more information and to reserve a seat, please call
Christina Cagle at 344-0199 ext. 254
Download the January - June orientation schedule here.