Gender Justice Leadership Programs (GJLP), a collaborative project between Genders & Sexualities Alliance Network and Transgender Law Center, today released No Pride Without Trans Youth, a community report that will uplift the voices of transgender and non-binary young people at a time when more than half of state legislatures in the United States have introduced or passed bills to limit their rights and access to healthcare and athletic programs in schools.
“We have witnessed an overwhelming wave of anti-trans bills during the 2021 Spring Legislative Session that has sought to stoke fear and divide us,” said Juniperangélica Cordova, Associate Director of Gender Justice Leadership Programs. “Trans and non-binary youth have been working to build their collective power and, as this community report highlights, will show up ready for the next legislative session to keep fighting for our liberation.”
No Pride Without Trans Youth includes stories from nearly a dozen trans and non-binary youth who share reflections on how the current political narrative has personally impacted their everyday lives and to express their hope for the future.
“There are students in schools right now that are being targeted because of their identity. They can’t just enjoy their life as a young person, as a kid,” said Jayy Covert, a National Trans Youth Council Member who participated in the report. “I want to be able to imagine a world where our identities are not just seen as ‘other’, but are a part of the diversity of what people can be, and look like, and act like, and love like.”
The release of No Pride Without Trans Youth coincides with the start of Pride Month, a moment when many within the LGBTQ+ community are celebrating the collective achievements of the movement. The community report aims to create visibility and awareness of the political reality that trans and non-binary youth are currently living through, and to prepare our community to take action in the organizing and advocacy efforts that lie ahead in the upcoming legislative session.
Read the full community report: No Pride Without Trans Youth
Genders & Sexualities Alliance Network (GSA Network) is a next-generation LGBTQ racial and gender justice organization that empowers and trains trans, queer, and allied youth leaders to advocate, organize, and mobilize an intersectional movement for safer schools and healthier communities. In California, GSA Network connects over 1,000 GSA clubs through regional summits and youth councils. Nationally, GSA Network leads the National Association of GSA Networks which unites statewide networks of GSA clubs, as well as the GSAs Unite!, an online campaign and petition platform supporting youth organizers across the country.