User:Kham88/Media representations of queer youth of colour

Media and LGBTQ Youth of Colour



Media and LGBTQ youth of colour is a topic of discussion around the portrayals of LGBTQ youth of colour in various forms of media and LGBTQ youth can use media as a form of activism and a narrative telling device.

LGBTQ Youth of Colour

Queer youth of colour refers to the social discourse around a variety of issues that surround specific marginalized adolescent minorities within the LGBTQ community. There are a lot of broad social issues that are related to LGBTQ orientated youth and also to LGBTQ orientated youth of colour such as: homelessness, cyberbullying, physical abuse, verbal abuse, sexual abuse, suicide, drug addiction, street violence, immigration surveillance, engagement in high risk sexual activities, self harm, and depression. There is discourse regarding the rights of LGBTQ youth of colour, and that they are not being addressed in discussions of sexuality and race in the larger context of LGBTQ rights.

There is research that highlights issues that specifically pertain and address LGBTQ youth of colour, mainly stemming from the study of intersectionality. There are studies that suggest that LGBTQ youth of colour can experience multifaceted types of discrimination such as sexism, homophobia, transphobia, racism, heterosexism, white supremacy, poverty among other social issues, sometimes happening all at once. These intersections highlight problems of concern for marginalized individuals within an already marginalized community, such as cultural competency, the School to Prison Pipeline (STPP), and school push-outs are examples of issues that particularly apply to LGBTQ youth of colour.

A study released by the GSA Network has highlighted several school policies that have fostered discriminatory practices towards LGBTQ youth of colour through: zero tolerance policies, exclusionary discipline, increasing police presence and surveillance of visible LGTBQ youth minorities, biased harsher school discipline towards LGBTQ youth of colour, racial profiling and blaming for their own victimization. Research has shown that LGBTQ youth of colour that have supportive school staff, access to school resources and clubs that address LGBTQ issues while supporting extracurricular LGBTQ activities contributed to a more positive learning environment for the students.

Mobilization of LGBTQ youth of colour activities aimed to provide safe spaces and support generally take place in: libraries, schools, non-for-profit agencies and designated community spaces. The spaces outreaching to LGBTQ youth who have found success, provide support and education for LGBTQ youth through providing practical, pro-sex sexual education, mental health support, empowerment and role models for LGBTQ youth of colour. Many spaces such as these require state grant funding under the umbrella of HIV/AIDs prevention.