Pride Month - Resources for Students, Families, and Educators

This June marks the 50th Anniversary of the Stonewall riots, the uprising at a gay bar in New York City's Greenwich Village, that marked the beginning of the gay rights movement in the U.S. Out of this event has grown the Pride Movement, encompassing a broad array of individuals; both Presidents Clinton and Obama issued Presidential Proclamations declaring the month of June to be Pride Month.

The Pride Movement has expanded over the years and now seeks to promote education, legal rights, acceptance, and self-fulfillment for individuals who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, questioning, or gender non-conforming (LGBTQ).

Advocates for Children of New York has created an excellent LGBTQ Education Guide, setting out the rights of LGBTQ students in New York City Public Schools. The Guide is very detailed, giving specific contact information and covering such topics as bullying and harassment, transfers for safety and other reasons, the rights of students who do not live with their families, and how students can change their names. This is a valuable resource for students, parents, and educators.

Still another helpful resource is from our colleagues at The American Academy of Pediatrics, which has a Section on Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Health and Wellness. In a section of the AAP website dedicated to Adolescent Sexual Health, there are links to excellent resources for physicians and other health providers and a link to a policy statement that includes ways to make medical care welcoming to all young people and for pediatricians to obtain and share needed information to help support LGBTQ young people (and parents) and to provide them with the care they need.