Critical Issues and LGBT-Two Spirit Populations: Highlights from the HONOR Project Study

A health survey of Two-Spirit Native Americans designed to (a) test a theoretically driven stress and coping model among 447 twospirit American Indians via a structured survey; (b) design and test the feasibility of various peer-driven sampling recruitment methodologies to produce a national representative sample; and (c) conduct a qualitative study with 65 leaders to identify major strengths and coping strategies in this population.

Report by the Indigenous Wellness Research Institute at the University of Washington, 2010. 

Fight for Our Girls: Introduction

Through this series, Fight for Our
Girls, the Center for the Study of
Social Policy’s Alliance for Racial
Equity in Child Welfare seeks to radically shift the narrative surrounding girls of color and status offenses from a focus on delinquency and misbehavior to structural discrimination, trauma and youth well-being. This is an introduction to a series of briefs that will promote programs, policies and initiatives aimed at developing a trauma-informed approach to addressing status offenses and supporting the ability of girls of color to thrive.

I Want to Be Like Nature Made Me: Medically Unnecessary Surgeries on Intersex Children in the US

In this report, based on interviews with intersex adults, parents of intersex children, and medical practitioners working with intersex people, interACT and Human Rights Watch document the fall-out from that medical paradigm, and the failure of the medical community to regulate itself effectively. There have been changes in practice in recent years, with many doctors now advising against surgery on infants and young children. But even so, surgery continues to be practiced on children with atypical sex characteristics too young to participate in the decision, when those procedures both carry a meaningful risk of harm and can be safely deferred.

Latinx LGBTQ+ Immigrant Youth: A Provider Fact Sheet

This Each Mind Matters fact sheet was created as a resource for service providers, including nonprofit staff, community-based organizations, health care professionals, and other providers. It provides an introduction to the unique challenges faced by Latinx LGBTQ+ immigrant youth, relevant resources, and best practices. In English and Spanish.

Lesbian, gay, and bisexual (LGB) youth within in welfare: Prevalence, risk and outcomes

The purpose of this study was to estimate the population of sexual minority or LGB (lesbian, gay and bisexual) children and youth involved with the child welfare system, and to compare their health, mental health, placement and permanency outcomes to those of non-LGB youth. Data were drawn from the Second National Survey of Child and Adolescent Well-Being (NSCAW-II), a nationally representative sample of children who were referred to child welfare due to a report of abuse or neglect over a fifteen month period.  Results indicate that approximately 15.5% of all system involved youth identified as lesbian, gay or bisexual, and that lesbian and bisexual females, and LGB youth of color are both overrepresented within child welfare systems. Although no substantive difference in risk factors, permanency and placement were found between LGB and Non-LGB youth, LGB youth were significantly more likely to meet the criteria for adverse mental health outcomes. Implications for child welfare practice and policy are presented, along with recommendations for future research in this area.

Mental Health of Transgender Children Who Are Supported in Their Identities

Transgender children who have socially transitioned, that is, who identify as the gender “opposite” their natal sex and are supported to live openly as that gender, are increasingly visible in society, yet we know nothing about their mental health. Previous work with children with gender identity disorder (GID; now termed gender dysphoria) has found remarkably high rates of anxiety and depression in these children. Here we examine, for the first time, mental health in a sample of socially transitioned transgender children. Results demonstrate that socially transitioned transgender children who are supported in their gender identity have developmentally normative levels of depression and only minimal elevations in anxiety, suggesting that psychopathology is not inevitable within this group. Especially striking is the comparison with reports of children with GID; socially transitioned transgender children have notably lower rates of internalizing psychopathology than previously reported among children with GID living as their natal sex.

Safe Havens: Closing the Gap Between Recommended Practice and Reality for Transgender and Gender-Expansive Youth in Out-of-Home Care

This new report offers the first comprehensive analysis of the troubling lack of explicit laws and policies in most states to protect transgender, gender-expansive and gender non-conforming (TGNC) youth in the child welfare, juvenile justice, and runaway and homeless youth systems (“out-of-home care systems”). The report is co-authored by Lambda Legal, Children’s Rights and the Center for the Study of Social Policy.

Lambda Legal, Children’s Rights and the Center for the Study of Social Policy.

 

Safe Schools Program for LGBTQ Students: Guidance for Massachusetts Public Schools Creating a Safe and Supportive School Environment

All students need a safe and supportive school environment to progress academically and developmentally. Administrators, faculty, staff, and students each play an important part in creating and sustaining that environment. This guidance is intended to help school and district administrators take steps to create a culture in which transgender and gender nonconforming students feel safe, supported, and fully included, and to meet each school’s obligation to provide equal educational opportunities for all students, in compliance with G.L. c. 76, §5 and the state regulations. The guidance sets out general principles based on the law, and addresses common issues regarding transgender and gender nonconforming students. It offers case studies based on experiences of schools and students in Massachusetts, and reflects the need to consider issues on a case-by-case basis. The list of issues is not exhaustive, and the examples are intended to be illustrative, not prescriptive.

Sexual and Reproductive Health of Youth in Out-of-Home Care: A Policy and Practice Framework for Child Welfare

For the past several years, the Center for the Study of Social Policy (CSSP) has been working to bring attention to the unmet needs of youth in foster care who are expecting a child and/or parenting. This document is the cornerstone of a three-part compendium of sexual and reproductive health guidance and resources for child welfare jurisdictions. This document is intended primarily for child welfare leadership and policy makers. The document briefly explores the urgent need for comprehensive sexual and reproductive health care for youth in out-of-home care and lays down nine fundamental principles for action. It provides extensive guidance for jurisdictions as they consider the policies and practices they should have into place to better serve adolescents in or leaving foster care.

Sharing Our Lived Experiences: 22 Tips for Caring for Two-Spirit and Native LGBTQ Youth in the Child Welfare System

This resource is dedicated to Two-Spirit and American Indian/Alaska Native LGBTQ children and youth whose lives are impacted by the child welfare system, and to the child welfare professionals, foster and adoptive parents, caregivers, and community members who strive to support them. The tips contained are meant to support child welfare workers, foster and adoptive parents, and caregivers in working with and caring for Two-Spirit and LGBTQ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and questioning) American Indian/Alaska Native children and youth involved with the child welfare system. These tips may also be helpful to tribal community members that wish to be allies to their young relatives.

Sharing Our Lived Experiences: Eight Tips for Understanding the Two-Spirit/LGBTQ Journey for Native Youth in the Child Welfare System

This fact sheet is intended to assist and support Native youth who may be Two-Spirit and/or LGBTQ (lesbian/ gay/ bisexual/ transgender/ questioning). Native youth in child welfare placements can experience many challenges, including feelings of abandonment, guilt, shame, disconnection from extended family, and many feelings related to unresolved grief and loss due to multi-generational historical traumas.
The goal of this document is to strengthen families in achieving wellness and stability by assisting youth in feeling connected to resources and communities. It is also meant to support healthy identity, healthy development, reduce the risks of suicide and substance abuse, and strengthen ICWA (Indian Child Welfare Act) compliance.

Supporting the Sexual and Reproductive Health of Youth in Out-of-Home Care: A Guide for Caseworkers

This document is one of three in a compendium of sexual and reproductive health guidance and resources for child welfare jurisdictions from a national work group convened by the CSSP. The goal of this document is to provide information and resources to workers to help them effectively support youth (ages 10 to 21) on sexual and reproductive health issues. The other two documents in this series include a policy and practice framework for child welfare leaders and policy makers and practical guidance meant specifically for use by the youth themselves. Both this document and the one designed for youth are aligned with the recommendations on current best practices around sexual and reproductive health policy and practice contained in the policy framework. Includes LGBTQ+ considerations and resources.