Aired Apr 27, 2023
As We Wrap Up Volunteer Month, Let’s Celebrate PFLAG Connects: Communities!
PFLAG Connects: Communities (PCC) provide a monthly safe, virtual, moderated space where people with shared experiences can connect to share experiences and find support. As of April 2023, this PFLAG program creates unique spaces for people of Latino, Black/African American, Asian American and Pacific Islander, and Military backgrounds to offer support, build community, and facilitate learning.
We hosted a conversation about this article as a part of PFLAG Connects and Something to Talk About Live on Thursday, April 27. Did you miss it? You can still watch it here!
Article: An anti-discrimination educator on creating queer spaces for people of color
Source: WUSF Public Radio
Author: Daylina Miller
Questions for Discussion:
- Sam Obeid, who is interviewed in this article, notes that queer Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) folks are often protective of their communities and the spaces created to serve them. Has this been true in your experience? How have you found yourself reacting to the protectiveness that Obeid refers to?
- If you were looking for queer BIPOC spaces in your community, state, or region, what resources would you turn to? Where would you go to find more information on a national scale?
- What can advocates and allies do to create more places that are “a space that is safe, a space where your identity is never questioned, a space where your story is always welcome, a space that is non-surveilling, a space that is open to conversation” in our communities?
Bonus Resources: Check out “How to Be an Ally to Colleagues After Violence Against Their Community” from the Harvard Business Review by Melanie Prengler, Kristie Rogers, Nitya Chawla, and Angelica Leigh and learn more about PFLAG Connects: Communities!
One more thing…This week’s article is about BIPOC led and owned queer spaces. While PFLAG Connects: Communities meetings are organized and facilitated by community members, it’s important to note that the program is owned and operated by PFLAG National, which is still a largely white-led organization. You can learn more about PFLAG National’s staff and Board & Regional Directors at pflag.org/about-us.
About Our Guests:
Laura Galeano, PFLAG Connects Manager, PFLAG National
Lupe Howell, PFLAG Connects: Communities, Latino Community
Stacia Kato, PFLAG Connects: Communities, AAPI Community
Cathy Marcello, PFLAG Connects: Communities Military Community
Kalima McKenzie Simms, PFLAG Connects Communities, Black/African American Community
Ways to Watch:
Something to Talk About Live is a series designed by PFLAG National’s Straight for Equality program to create conversation about LGBTQ+ issues. Each week we offer an article on LGBTQ+ topics and suggest a few questions you can use to lead a discussion with your ERG, community group, or PFLAG chapter.