The Intersection of Racism,
Heterosexism, and Transphobia:
School Leadership Opportunities
Jim Hanson, M.Ed.
Jeffrey Poirier, Ph.D. Candidate, M.A.
Miriam Bearse, M.A., M.Phil., MACP
National Association of School
Psychologists Convention
February 13, 2013
Seattle, Washington
Introductions
Jim Hanson, Co-Chair, NASP GBLTQ Committee,
National Association of School Psychologists
Jeffrey Poirier, American Institutes for Research
(AIR), Coordinator of SAMHSA’s National Workgroup
to Address the Needs of Children and Youth Who Are
LGBTQI2-S and Their Families
Miriam Bearse, King County (Greater Seattle)
Mental Health, Member of SAMHSA’s National
Workgroup to Address the Needs of Children and
Youth Who Are LGBTQI2-S and Their Families
Welcome, Bienvenido
NASP frameworks & position papers
 Native American LGBT, two-spirit youth
 Latina/o youth
 How this fits in school practice
 Strategies and recommendations
 Discussion

Native American Communities
Strengths








Resilience
Generations
Traditions
Cultures
Languages
Spiritualities
Land
Indigenous ways
of knowing
Wisdom of the Elders:
Discovering Our Story
(2012). Portland, OR.
Author
Youth Voice
“Michael Red Earth describes his time as a
youth at the Sisseton-Wahpeton reservation
where his step-grandmother permitted him to
learn her beadwork and elders described him
respectfully as a winkte.Yet during adolescence
he encountered homophobic messages from
Native peers [who said that] LGBT people had
no place in Native communities.
Yet after learning from two-spirit organizers
about historical Native sexuality and gender
diversity he felt able to return to their rural and
urban Native families and communities to seek
renewed acceptance.” (Morgensen, 2008)
Osh-Tisch (Finds them and
Kills Them) Crow bade, 1877
Latino Community Strengths
Five prominent values in
Mexican and many other
Hispanic cultures:
 Education
 Family
 Helping family and
friends succeed
 Loyalty to people
 Religion
From Discovering and Developing
Talents in Spanish-Speaking Students,
by Smutny, Bolanos, Haydon, and
Estrada, 2012 by Corwin Press
LGBTQI-2S Community Strengths
LGBTQ youth are
capable of developing
methods to keep
themselves safe and find
support from their
environment.
 School psychologists
should work to identify
and build strengths and
resilience in LGBTQ
youth.

National Association of School
Psychologists. (2011). Lesbian, gay,
bisexual, transgender, and
questioning (LGBTQ) youth
(Position Statement). Bethesda,
MD: Author
88
Foundations of School
Psychological Service Delivery
Diversity in development and learning

Knowledge of individual differences, abilities, disabilities, and
other diverse characteristics; principles and research related to
diversity factors for children, families, and schools, including
factors related to culture, context, and individual and role
differences; and evidence-based strategies to enhance services
and address potential influences related to diversity
Examples:
•Provide culturally competent and responsive
services
•Promote fairness and social justice in school
policies and programs
Cultural and Linguistic
Competence
Combination of capacity (e.g.,
knowledge, skills), attitudes,
and commitment to work
effectively in different contexts
 A focus on enhancing
equitable access to quality
services/care for all cultural
groups.

10
NASP Position Statements
Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender
Youth (2011)
 Racism, Prejudice and Discrimination (2012)
 Bullying Prevention and Intervention in
Schools (2012)
 Effective Service Delivery for Indigenous
Children and Youth (2012)

An Indigenous Conceptual Framework: Guiding School
Psychology Practice with Native American Youth, Families
and Communities
Native American LGBTQI /
Two-Spirit Youth
Two-Spirit Identity
Two-spirit was a term created by Native American LGBT
people in 1990 as an “umbrella term” to include many of the
tribally specific terms used to refer to those who are “not male
and not female” or who “take on” the other gender as well as
those Native Americans who identify as LGBT. It comes from a
Northern Algonquin word “niizhmanitoag” (two-spirits). (Anguksuar,
1997)
Some identify as Two-Spirit, others identify themselves using
traditional terms, others identify as Native and LGBT, or LGBT
and Two-Spirit…
Tribal histories, languages around “Two-Spirit” people vary
greatly, and individual family/clan histories and responsibilities as
well as personal spiritual experiences may contribute to how
people choose to identify themselves, and to whom.
Some Traditional Terms and Roles:
Nadleeh (Navajo)
Kwido (Tewa)
Winkte (Lakota Sioux)
Dubuds (Pauite)
Aayahkwew (Cree)
Ogokwe (Ojibwa)
Nadleehe (Dine’)
Winkte (Lakota)
Alyha (Mohave)
Ihamana (Zuni)
Mexoga (Omaha)
Achnucek (Aleut/Kodiak)
Ira’muxe (Zapotec)
He Man Eh (Cheyenne)
•
•
It is estimated that 168 (remaining) Native languages have terms
for people who are not exclusively male or female (Garrett 2003)
Many cultures had or have distinct spiritual or social roles for
individuals who are two-spirit, including marriage brokers,
preparers of the dead

Pine Leaf (Crow) 1800s Dressed as female; Warrior with four wives

Running Eagle (Piegan) 1800s Warrior woman; belonged to a men’s
society; had a spiritual vision that forbid her from marrying a man; had a
woman partner

Lozen (Apache) 1850s-1889 Dressed as male, was a prophet; healer,
warrior; had a vision to live as a man; could detect movement of enemies
(NACE webinar K. Walters 2/18/12)
Contemporary Two-Spirit
Definition
The term is a “contested compromise to
move forward the debate in eliminating
culturally inappropriate terms,” and includes a
wide variety of Native persons: “crossdressers, transvestites, lesbian, gay, transgender,
or “those otherwise ‘marked’ as ‘alternatively
gendered’ within tribes, bands, and nations
where multiple gender concepts occur” (Jacobs and
Thomas 1994:7)
“But gay people, being both
male and female, were seen as
both warriors and caregivers.
Gay people could do anything.
They were like Swiss Army
knives!
My grandmother had no use
for all the gay bashing and
homophobia in the world,
especially among other
Indians. "Jeez," she said, who
cares if a man wants to marry
another man? All I want to
know is who's going to pick
up all the dirty socks?” ―
Sherman Alexie, The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time
Indian (p. 155)
Example: Mojave Hwames
The Hwame“was said to have dreamed her
role in the womb and took up the lifestyle
of a boy during her childhood. Hwames
were generally respected as good hunters,
warriors, shamans and sexual partners…
The role of the Hwame was so fully
accepted that Mojave society
institutionalized it, providing an initiatory
ritual that included the conferring of a name
along with marriage rights (the Hwame’s
wife retained the ordinary female status). It
was not until the effects of colonization had
taken root that the Hwame’s status began to
decline” (Smith 1999)
Colonization: ‘Two-Spirit’ People
When the colonists arrived on Turtle Island and began killing
Native Americans, many missionaries and colonists targeted
two-spirit individuals in tribal communities for death since
they were considered offensive to the church’s sensibilities.
 Many Native communities hid their two-spirit individuals
from the colonists. In some communities two-spirit people
and their roles went underground, in other communities
they were destroyed.
 Many anthropological texts record two-spirit life prior to
colonial alteration or destruction, and in some communities
elders still recall the old traditions.
 Conformity to European and Christian norms around
gender and sexual identity were enforced in reservations
and boarding schools.

Historical Trauma and Healing

Many communities now are not aware of their own two-spirit
people and traditions, or have adopted a colonial or missionary
perspective shared by the dominant society that sees two-spirit
people as shameful.

This has created loss and trauma not only for individual twospirits, but also for communities.

Providing acceptance to people who are two-spirit and recalling
their traditions helps strengthen communities and reclaim
traditional values.
Multiple Discriminations
Racism in non-Native LGBTQI communities
Objectification or eroticization of Native images
Invisibility in community settings
Heterosexism in Native communities
Denial of history and existence
Belief that same-sex relations and gender
differences are only a part of White European
culture
 Shunning or being kicked or harassed out of
communities or ceremonies
 Avoidance of the topic






Youth Voice
“I heard that (Aboriginal
Trans-people) were
teachers, medicine people,
artists, counselors, dream
interpreters, people with
open arms who don’t
push anyone away. I was
reading that some of
them were wives of chiefs
and accepted. I thought I
was the only kid like me
and everyone says that.
None of us knew about
two-spirit or trans stuff”
(Two-Spirited People of the First Nations 2008)
Youth Risks
Homelessness
 More than 50% of the homeless and runaway youth
population identify as LGBT
 Urban centers attract youth who are two-spirit from
reservation communities, who run away or are thrown out of
their homes
 These cities are also often relocation areas from the federal
Indian relocation program (1960s, etc.)
Foster care
 Native Americans: twice the rate of non-Natives
 Non-straight youth in foster care (70%) report increased
levels of physical violence (Mallon, 2001).
Mental Health Risks

LGBT/two-spirit identity and their
Native identity; both groups experience
higher rates of violence exposure
compared to the general U.S. population.

Comparing two-spirit and non-Native
LGBT persons, higher rates of physical
assaults (36% vs. approx. 7%) and sexual
assaults (29% vs. approx. 4.5%).6,7
Mental Health Risks

As a result of historical trauma, bias, stigma and abuse or isolation
that can result from these experiences, many youth who are twospirit have mental health and wellness needs.

In one study, Native men under age 25 who identified as “not
heterosexual” had a high risk of suicide (25% versus 8%).4

Two-spirit adults surveyed reported lifetime attempted suicide rates
by over 50% of respondents, more (66%) if they had been in foster
care, or experienced boarding school (82%) (Walters, Simoni, and Horwath,
2001)

Because Native American youth as a whole have an increased risk of
suicide (5-14 times the risk) and LGBT youth have an increased risk
of suicide (twice the risk) = youth who are two-spirit are
particularly vulnerable compared to non-Native youth.
Trans Native Americans
Injustice at Every Turn (2012): National Transgender
Discrimination Survey:

American Indian and Alaskan Native transgender and
gender non-conforming people:
◦ 3.24% reported being HIV positive and an additional 8.53%
reported that they did not know their status.
◦ 2.64% for transgender respondents of all races, and 0.60%
of the general U.S. population.

Fifty-six percent (56%) AI/AN transgender attempted
suicide compared to 41% of all study respondents.
Who Are Two-Spirit People Today?
We are relatives, friends,
partners, brothers, sisters,
clients, co-workers,
community members
Two-Spirit Life Today

Retraditionalization: In urban settings in particular, participation in
two-spirit groups and in accepting Native groups has helped
strengthen identity and connection to cultural heritage. Identifying
as two-spirit can be a part of that retraditionalization process. (Straus
and Valentino 2001).

There are groups in almost every urban area, either formal or
informal, and Internet support resources.

70% of Native people live off reservation or off tribal lands, with
65% living in cities; some two-spirit individuals reside in cities, some
in reservations, and some move “back and forth.”

Some are still recognized and raised in traditional ways as twospirit (or related term) in their tribal community.
Youth Voice
“When you’re two-spirit you’re
different and unaccepted and
everybody in the family wants to
make sure that fact is hidden. The
only way you can be yourself is to
leave the place, essentially [stop
being] Native, which is to leave your
family and try to find something
elsewhere.
Or you try to abandon that part of
you, you drown it. And literally
drown it. I think a lot of people
drown themselves in alcohol, to try
and suppress it and not to think.” (twospirit focus group participant, Brotmanet al 2002)
Challenges in Identifying
Native youth often have particular challenges speaking
openly about their identity, due to:

Potential rejection from family, and therefore exclusion
from the extended family unit of support and identity

Concerns about violent reactions

Word getting around in a small community

Lack of positive two-spirit role models as well as
negative images of Natives in LGBT subculture and
negative stories/images of LGBT people in Native
communities
National Native American Aids
Prevention Center (NNAAPC) “It
Gets Better” Video

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kNRvUMDkdo&feature=player_embedded
Native Youth Visionaries
Heather Purser, a 29-year-old seafood diver for Washington's Suquamish Tribe,
spent four years pushing for her tribe to adopt a law recognizing same-sex
marriages. Out since she was a teen, Pursser decided after college to
approach her tribal council and ask for the change. Members said they'd
consider it. Years later, she returned and asked again — this time reportedly
demanding a voice vote, according to the Associated Press.
"Everyone said aye. No one said nay," Purser told the AP. Her family was in the
audience, beaming proudly.
On August 1, 2011, the Suquamish Tribe extended marriage rights to same-sex
couples on its reservation (more than a year before the state voted on marriage
equality). It was only the second tribe in the U.S. to do so (Oregon's Coquille Tribe
first recognized same-sex marriages in 2005), and everyone admitted it wouldn't
have happened without Purser standing up for her beliefs. (11/12)
PROCLAMATION OF
THE OGLALA SIOUX
TRIBE
IN SUPPORT OF TWOSPIRIT DIGNITY &
HUMAN RIGHTS
http://nace.samhsa.gov/blog/post/OGLALASIOUX-TRIBE-e28093-ISSUESPROCLAMATION-FOR-TWO-SPIRITSe28099DIGNITY-HUMAN-RIGHTS.aspx
https://graduate.lclark.edu/programs/indigenous_ways_of_kno
wing/tribal_equity_toolkit/
Latina/o LGBT Youth
• Latinos comprise approximately 17% of the U.S.
population; this proportion will grow
• Latina/o youth experience challenges with
issues of racism and bias because of gender
identity/expression and sexual identity
Latina/o LGBT Youth: A Cultural Lens
• Family may be very important to the coming
out process within Latino culture
• “Familism”: Cultural emphasis on responsibility
to provide economic and emotional support to
immediate and extended kin
• Family can be a significant strength for LGBT
Latina/o youth
Partly adapted from Bienestar Human Services, Inc., “Coming Out—A
Family Affair, A Latina/o Perspective, presented at Creating Change 2013
Latina/o LGBT Youth: A Cultural Lens
• Experience of gender expectations and roles that
are culturally rooted (Marianismo & Machismo)
• Collectivist cultural values versus individualistic
social values
• Sexuality is rarely discussed in Latino families,
especially in the presence of women
Partly adapted from Bienestar Human Services, Inc., “Coming Out—A Family
Affair, A Latina/o Perspective, presented at Creating Change 2013
Race and Sexual Identity

http://articles.washingtonpost.com/201210-15/local/35502731_1_groups-formalliance-civil-marriage-gay-rights-groups

http://www.washingtonblade.com/2012/08
/08/maryland-advocacy-groups-partneron-same-sex-marriage-dream-act/
42
Latina/o LGBT Youth Coming Out
Process
• Research on coming out LGBT youth of
color…some commonalities and differences with
White LGBT youth*
• How would a more culturally responsive, healing
coming out process look for an LGBT Latina/o
student?
* See http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16817058; http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15311975
Rich Diversity Among Latina/o LGBT
Families and Students
• There is deep diversity within Latino culture, for
example:
◦
◦
◦
◦
◦
◦
◦
◦
Level of acculturation
Language
Country of origin/ancestry
Generation in the U.S.
Experience of stigma
Geographic location and rural/urban differences
Socio/economic status
“Mixed” racial/ethnic identity
Latina/o Family Story: Somos Familia
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HLtHcbmvjAg
Latino Youth Coming Out Story
“When I decided to come out I was really nervous. I
wanted to tell my two sisters first since we have a very
strong relationship; I consider them my best friends. If I
were to tell anyone I was gay it would be them since we
talk so much. When I did tell them, it was fine. I am still
uneasy about telling my parents. My mom and I have
always been extremely close and she is the nicest person,
so I don’t anticipate a horrible reaction. I feel my dad is
more unpredictable. He still holds some conservative
ideas about gender and sexuality, but has become more
open. I’m not sure if would be okay with his son being gay.
I know they are both extremely proud of my academic
and career accomplishments, so I know regardless of their
initial reaction they will still love me. It’s my own
uneasiness or fear that holds me back from telling them
I’m gay, not necessarily their reaction.”
46
STRATEGIES AND
RECOMMENDATIONS
Strategies for Implementing Standards of
Care for LGBT Youth
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Assessment and
quality improvement
Nondiscrimination
policies
Staff knowledge
Processes: Intake,
data collection,
information sharing
Safe, supportive
environments
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
Practices that support
identity
Healthy, supportive
peer connections
Family connections
Access to affirming
services and supports
Community outreach
Assessment and Continuous
Improvement Efforts
 Conduct
a school/community needs assessment
 May be part of a PBIS survey
 Understand capacity of teachers and staff to
provide culturally competent supports to LGBT
students
 Aim to determine teacher and staff strengths and
needs
 Don’t stop with the assessment…infuse results
into school improvement efforts
Develop Staff Capacity
 Build
staff capacity by using training curricula that
effectively inform them about LGBT youth and
address:
◦
◦
◦
◦
◦
◦
Key terms/concepts
Myths/stereotypes
Developmentally appropriate concerns
Importance of supporting students (e.g., safe spaces,.)
Approaches to working with families of LGBT youth
School and community resources
 Involve
all staff, including bus drivers, security staff,
and cafeteria staff
Infuse Knowledge/Skill Development
into..
PBIS
 Anti-bullying efforts
 Suicide prevention
 Character Traits Education
 Equity work
 LGBT History Month
 Day of Silence
 National Coming Out Day

51
Ask Students Too…
Delaware PBS School Climate Survey
Student Version
1. School Name: ______________
2. Mark which you are:
__Boy __Girl __Genderqueer
3. Mark your race:
__Black
__White
__Hispanic/Latino __Asian
__Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander
__Multi Racial
4. Mark your grade:
__ 6 __ 7 __ 8 __ 9 __ 10 __ 11 __ 12
5. Room # you are in now:
This survey is about how you feel about your school. Please fill in one circle that best shows how you feel about each item. Do
NOT give your name. No one will know who answered this survey. Please answer every item.
PART I: ABOUT ME AND MY SCHOOL
IN THIS SCHOOL…….
Disagree
A LOT
Disagree
Agree
Agree
A LOT
1. Most students pay attention in class.
2. Teachers treat students of all races with respect.
3. The school rules are fair.
4. This school is safe.
5. Rules in this school are made clear to students.
52
Lincoln High School Climate

How many times per day do you hear a
comment that would be offensive to:
◦ Ethnic/racial groups
◦ Individuals who are not heterosexual (“sexual
minorities”)
◦ Women
◦ Individuals with different abilities
Student Survey Results
2003
2008
2012
Race/ethnicity
3.5
3.1
3.3
LGBTQ
9.0
4.2
3.4
Women
4.0
2.8
2.5
Different ability
3.0
3.1
2.1
Promote a Safe, Supportive and Culturally
Responsive Environment
 Encourage
LGBT students to participate in
enhancing school policies, procedures, and
practices
 Involve LGBT students and student allies on
school-based teams
 Display symbols that positively
represent the LGBT community,
including racial/ethnic groups,
throughout the school
 Foster and identify “safe spaces”
Lincoln Gay Straight Alliance
Members Day of Advocacy in
Salem
Family Acceptance Project Findings
Compared with LGBT young people who were
not rejected (or were only a little rejected) by
their parents/caregivers because of their LGBT
identity, highly rejected young people were how
many times as likely to:
8
o
Have attempted suicide?
o
Report high levels of depression?
o
Use illegal drugs?
3
6
Strengthen Family Connections
 Share
information about LGBT identity with
families; access and provide resources in Spanish
and other languages as needed
 Increase family knowledge about needs and
perspectives of LGBT youth and the importance
of family connections for their child’s well-being
Encourage families to allow students to
participate in family activities—especially
important where cultural identity/connection is
prominent in a student’s life
 Work with cultural brokers as needed
Family and Community
Cardinal Families Health Action
Network Courageous Conversations
Compassionate communication
 Designer drugs
 Marijuana and the teen brain
 Race and ethnicity
 Sexual orientation/identity
 Stress and anxiety
 Suicide prevention
 Transgender identity

Honor Youth Identity
Ensure confidentiality
 Support youth efforts to integrate their
multiple identities
 Respect what youth term themselves (queer,
transgender, intersex, two-spirit, etc.)
 Don’t assume gender pronouns
 Don’t assume a trauma history
 Use culturally appropriate trauma screens as
needed
 Connect youth in a positive way to their
culture and cultural history

Recommendations




Become familiar with local tribes and Latino
communities (cultures, beliefs, practices and
history)
Participate in local tribal (open) and Latino
community events
Meet/consult with nearby tribal social service
agencies
Counter isolation/stigma/bias by offering
opportunities for students to connect with
others like themselves in positive settings that
reflect their multifaceted cultural identity
Recommendations
Examine personal biases and stereotypes
 Remember cultural and historical trauma,
not just trauma to the individual
 Recognize cultural diversity and strengths
 Integrate cultural healing approaches as
appropriate
 Ask about spiritual beliefs and practices
(but recognize that some students may
not want to speak about this to you)

(adapted from Pruden, NETSS, 2010)
Recommendations

Pay attention to the issue of family when working with
individuals who are two-spirit. In Native tradition(s) there is a
strong emphasis on “honoring one’s obligation with regard to
becoming a parent.” Consider issues of parents/kinship (birth
and by choice) as well as the youth’s plans for parenting or role
in their family in relation to younger siblings or cousins (Garrett
2003).

Facilitate access to traditional health practitioners, “most
Aboriginal concepts of health are holistic and consider an
individual as being in good health when the emotional, physical,
mental and spiritual aspects of being are in balance…health
professions need to know that when negative experiences
[such as bias] are not addressed appropriately in health care, it
can result in limited use of or avoidance of health services
altogether.” (Two-Spirited People of the First Nations, 2008)
Youth Voices: Recommendations
I want my teachers to teach about people of color and other cultures, and about
gay and lesbian people and about women and the prejudices people have faced
and, like, how they overcame them, something I haven’t seen before. But they
should do it to help stop the problems, and the violence. What are we learning
about every time except for what white people do? Teachers should mix it up,
for real, like, queer it up, gay it up, black it up, whatever it up. – marcus
They might think, well why should I do that? Because most people are not that
way. They probably don’t want to seem too liberal and like they are doing, I don’t
know, something off the track instead of the real, the regular history. – marcela
I feel that racist speech would be reacted to much more forcefully than anti-gay
speech at my school. It would be a really big deal. Whereas this—how people talk
about queers—gets more like a mild warning or it is ignored completely. –
amanda
Queer Youth Advice for Educators
How to Respect and Protect Your Lesbian,
Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Students (2011)
Lincoln High School Student Supports
RTI
PBIS/SEL 2011-2012
Evidence-Based Interventions for
Behavior/Social Emotional Learning
Triangle of
Support
Programs
All SEL Program
interventions are listed
in NREPP as evidencebased programs or have
been identified as Best
Practices by major
professional
organizations
*Research-based
methodology; LHS
effectiveness studies
underway
Tier Three
Dialectical Behavioral Skills Training
Social Skills for Daily Living*
Social Thinking Curriculum*
Prolonged Exposure Skills
Interventions for Academic Support
and On-Time Graduation
Tier Three
TIER 3
Indicated
Interventions
TIER 2
Selective
Interventions
** Proposed 2013-2014
program
SST, One-one Student Advocate*
Tutoring* Green Sheets
AcP Identification ELD Support
Credit Recovery/Night Classes
Schedule Modifications
Academic Support Classes
Early Parent Conferences
Study Skills Support**
5%
15%
* LHS effectiveness
studies underway
** Proposed 2012-13
program
Tier One
Tier One
RESPONSE Suicide Prevention
Student/Staff Anti-Bullying*
Research Based Health Curricula*
Collaborative Problem Solving
LHS Character Traits**
504/SPED Accommodations
SPED (Navigator, Language!)
Dialectical
Options Behavioral
Conference
Tier Two
Tier Two
Mentoring* Peer Mediation*
Reconnecting Youth
Project Options (D&A)*
Reaching Empowering All Students*
Peace Club*
Discovering Our Story**
Student Unions-Diversity Clubs*
Advocate
• Counseling
STAR, BSC, C3, Credit Recovery,
• Case Management
ELD Instruction
• Green Sheets
TIER 1
Universal
Interventions
FLEX Progress Reports
Parent/Teacher Conferences
EdBox Gradebook
Student Manual/Planner
Counseling Resources
Peer Mentoring Writing Center
Differentiated Instruction
100%
DISCUSSION
How can you best provide leadership in your school and
profession to support Native and Latino/a LGBTQI2-S
Youth?
66
Resources
Advocates for Youth: http://www.advocatesforyouth.org
 Bienestar: www.bienestar.org (based in Los Angeles)
 Findyouthinfo.gov: http://findyouthinfo.gov/youth-topics/lgbtq-youth
 Gay, Lesbian, and Straight Education Network (GLSEN):

www.glsen.org


Safe Schools Coalition: www.safeschoolscoalition.org
Technical Assistance Partnership for Child and Family
Mental Health:
http://tapartnership.org/content/education/publications.php?id=topic15#topic15;
and http://tapartnership.org/COP/CLC/lgbtqi2s.php

The Trevor Project: www.thetrevorproject.org
Thank You, Muchas Gracias
Please feel free to contact us:
Jim Hanson:
 Jeff Poirier: jpoirier@air.org
 Miriam Bearse:

AIR’s Human and Social
Development (HSD) Program
Purpose:
We promote well-being and improve outcomes for children,
youth, families, and communities by building individual,
workforce, and organizational capacity.
Approaches:
We work within and foster collaboration across systems–mental health/substance
abuse, juvenile justice, child welfare, health, and education–strengthening their capacity
to use evidence-based strategies.
 Using research and data, we plan, transform, and evaluate policies and practices and
design new studies to measure impact and generate new knowledge.
 We engage stakeholders and consumers, enabling their voices to shape the policies
and services that affect them.

http://www.air.org/focus-area/human-social-development/
References
1) Braveheart, 2000
2)Spirituality: A Pathway to Well-Being among Two-Spirit Native Americans (2006, March). Fieland, K.
C. Paper presented at the Society for Applied Anthropology,Vancouver, B.C.
3)Saewyc, E. M., Skay, C. L., Bearinger, L. H., Blum, R. W., & Resnick, M. D. (1998). Sexual
orientation, sexual behaviors, and pregnancy among American Indian adolescents. Journal of
Adolescent Health, 23(4), 238-247.
4)Paul, J. P., Catania, J., Pollack, L., Moskowitz, J., Canchola, J., Mills, T., et al. (2002). Suicide
attempts among gay and bisexual men: Lifetime prevalence and antecedents. American Journal
of Public Health, 92(8), 1338-1345.
5)Balsam, K. F., Huang, B., Fieland, K. C., Simoni, J. M., & Walters, K. L. (2004). Culture, trauma,
and wellness: A comparison of heterosexual and lesbian, gay, bisexual and two-spirit Native
Americans. Cultural Diversity and Ethnic Minority Psychology, 10(3), 287-301.
6)Walters, K. L., Simoni, J. M., & Horwath, P. F. (2001). Sexual orientation bias experiences and
service needs of gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgendered, and two-spirited American Indians.
Journal of Gay and Lesbian Social Services, 13(1/2), 133-149.
7)Herek, G. M., Gillis, J. R., & Cogan, J. C. (1999). Psychological sequelaeof hate-crime
victimization among lesbian, gay, and bisexual adults. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology,
67(6), 945-951.
8)Monette, L., Albert, D., & Waalen, J. (2001). Voices of two-spirited men: A survey of aboriginal twospirited men across Canada.Toronto: 2-Spirited People of the 1st Nations.
Design on two-spirit slides (beaded belt): http://www.coyotesgame.com/beadbelt1.html