Category: LGBTQ+ Support

It’s OK To Use “They” To Describe One Person: Here’s Why

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It’s OK To Use “They” To Describe One Person: Here’s Why

Has someone ever asked you to refer to them as they instead of he or she? Or, are you hedging because you can’t possibly refer to one single person as they? What if we told you that they has been used to refer to just one person since at least the 1300s?

Lexicographers have determined that as far back as the 1300s, they has been used as a gender-neutral pronoun, a word that was substituted in place of either he (a masculine singular pronoun) or she (a feminine singular pronoun), e.g., Each student should get their supplies ready for class.Each student is singular, but we don’t know (or need to know) the gender/sex identity of each student in this situation, so their is perfectly handy. Even Chaucer, Shakespeare, Jane Austen, and other beloved writers of the English literary canon used singular they.

Click here to read the rest of the article.

Gallup: In U.S., Estimate of LGBT Population Rises to 4.5%

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Gallup: In U.S., Estimate of LGBT Population Rises to 4.5%

  • Rise in LGBT identification mostly among millennials
  • LGBT identification is lower among older generations
  • 5.1% of women identify as LGBT, compared with 3.9% of men

WASHINGTON, D.C. — The percentage of American adults identifying as lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender (LGBT) increased to 4.5% in 2017, up from 4.1% in 2016 and 3.5% in 2012 when Gallup began tracking the measure. The latest estimate is based on over 340,000 interviews conducted as part of Gallup’s daily tracking in 2017.

Read the full article here:  https://news.gallup.com/poll/234863/estimate-lgbt-population-rises.aspx

Important Title IX Info from PFLAG National

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Important Title IX Info from PFLAG National

In light of Monday’s decision by the Supreme Court not to hear Gavin Grimm’s case, I wanted to share with you this especially timely note from retired university president and PFLAG National Board member Chuck Middleton.

From the desk of…

Charles R. Middleton, Ph.D.

Retired University President

Why Title IX, the federal law which prohibits sex discrimination in schools, matters to all of us

After five decades working in higher education, including 13 years as president of a private university in the third-largest city in America, there’s one thing I know: fear and lack of understanding can create an environment that compromises safety and inhibits learning. This is just one reason why Title IX protections are especially important to LGBTQ students. All students should be assured that their safety and protections against discrimination are unquestionably guaranteed.

As the country’s first openly gay male university president, I am acutely aware of what it’s like to be marginalized and discriminated against. It’s remarkable how instinctively cautious you remain on personal matters, even when there is broader acceptance in society at large, if you learn early in your life that sharing your truth has potentially bad consequences for you personally as well as professionally. Imagine the stories our children are writing today when they have to fight for basic rights and dignities that everyone else takes for granted. Their bravery in standing up for their rights is truly inspirational. Now, they need our help.

I’m so proud of the work PFLAG is doing, specifically around Title IX and ensuring that all students, parents, teachers, coaches – everyone! – understands and knows how to #ClaimYourRights on behalf of the students they care about. Whether you’re transgender, gender expansive, know a student who is, or you want to ensure that your school or university is doing the right thing, visit pflag.org/ClaimYourRights to learn about this initiative which will ensure no student ever has to choose between getting an education and their personal safety.

Best always,

Charles R. Middleton, PFLAG National Board Member

Beth Kohm

PFLAG National
COPYRIGHT © 2016 PFLAG NATIONAL, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
1828 L ST NW STE 660, WASHINGTON, DC 20036-5112

PFLAG National Statement: PFLAG National and GLSEN Relaunch #ClaimYourRights Campaign – Everything You Need to Know

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PFLAG National Statement:  PFLAG National and GLSEN Relaunch #ClaimYourRights Campaign – Everything You Need to Know

Today, GLSEN and PFLAG join together to re-launch our #ClaimYourRights Campaign, to help anyone affected by or witnessing anti-transgender discrimination in our schools file a complaint with the Office for Civil Rights at the Department of Education. Secretary DeVos clearly needs to better understand the extent of the daily pain and real barriers to wellbeing that the original Departmental guidance was designed to address and eliminate. We must see if her actions will live up to her words, and to the promises made by federal law and the United States Constitution.
GLSEN and PFLAG will do everything in our power to see to it that they do. What can you do? Here are handy tools and resources for you and your chapter, at your fingertips:

Thank you for everything you do to create a community where diversity is celebrated and all people are respected, valued, and affirmed inclusive of their sexual orientation, gender identity, and gender expression.
Beth Kohm
Interim Executive Director
PFLAG National

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“Local Families Start PFLAG Chapter” Article in the Capital Gazette

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“Local Families Start PFLAG Chapter” Article in the Capital Gazette

The Anne Arundel County and Annapolis chapter of PFLAG, a national nonprofit organization, celebrated its launch at a picnic at Crofton Park on Sunday, August 7, 2016.

The group started meeting in May 2016 and obtained its nonprofit status this summer.

Read more here:  http://www.capitalgazette.com/news/ph-ac-cn-pflag-annearundel-0808-20160807-story.html.

“Dear Megan: A Letter to My 13-Year-Old Self” by Megan Rapinoe for The Bleacher Report

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“Dear Megan: A Letter to My 13-Year-Old Self” by Megan Rapinoe for The Bleacher Report

Olympian and U.S. Women’s National Team midfielder Megan Rapinoe published a touching “Letter to My 13-Year-Old Self” on The Bleacher Report Friday, just 24 hours before her team took the field for their second match of the Olympic Games in Rio.  Below is an excerpt:

“If you knew then what you know now, maybe you would have felt better about branching out on your own a little more. Maybe you would have realized that it was totally OK that you didn’t quite know how to wear the right clothes or whether you were supposed to think the boy sitting next to you in class was cute. Maybe you would have realized that you were gay. And funny. And outgoing. And one of the best soccer players around.”  

Read more here:  http://thelab.bleacherreport.com/dear-megan/?utm_source=twitter.com&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=programming-national.

“Annapolis PFLAG to Hold First Major Event” Article in the Washington Blade

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“Annapolis PFLAG to Hold First Major Event” Article in the Washington Blade

The recently formed Annapolis chapter of PFLAG will hold a “Colorful Kickoff Cookout” this Sunday, August 7, 2016, which represents the chapter’s first major event. It will take place between 4 and 7 p.m. in Crofton Park, 2285 Davidsonville Rd., in Gambrills.

Though initial meetings have taken place beginning in May, the chapter was officially titled in June by PFLAG National. It joins other Maryland PFLAG chapters that have been established in Columbia, Westminster, Frederick, Chestertown, Bethesda, Bel Air and Salisbury.

“We’d really like to get to different parts of the county to show that support is available and let the community members show each other that their community is a safe and supportive one,” Alyssa Fenix, a member of the chapter’s steering committee and one of the lead organizers of the cookout, told the Blade. “This having a history of being a conservative county, the LGBTQ community here needs to know that they can access resources without having to travel to surrounding counties, and that we are dedicated to making sure everyone knows how and where they can find supports and information.”

Read more here:  http://www.washingtonblade.com/2016/08/03/annapolis-pflag-hold-first-major-event/.