NYC takes new action for gay youth
New York City is trying out a new initiative aimed at preventing LGBT homelessness, Mayor Michael Bloomberg and City Council Speaker Christine Quinn announced Monday.
The New York City Commission for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and Questioning Runaway and Homeless Youth will address the problems of LGBTQ teens before they resort to …
Tags: Address, Christine Quinn, Council Speaker, Gay Bisexual Transgender, Gay Youth, Homeless Youth, Homelessness, Initiative, Lesbian Gay, Mayor Michael Bloomberg, Michael Bloomberg, New York City, New York City CommissionIn UK, New initiative launched to tackle homelessness among LGBT youth
Four leading LGBT charities have announced the launch of a new initiative to reduce homelessness among young LGBT people.
The initiative, known as ‘Jigsaw’, brings together the legal advisers Stonewall Housing, youth homelessness and support charity the Albert Kennedy Trust, the mental health organisation PACE and Galop, which supports victims of homophobic crime.
A joint statement from the groups said: “Despite the greater legal recognition of LGBT people, social acceptance is far from universal.
“Even in London today, many young LGBT people face rejection from their own family, persecution from their own communities, and even physical attack.
“Furthermore, most offenders of homophobic hate crime are aged between 16 and 20″.
Michael Nastari, the co-ordinator of Jigsaw, and a director of LGBT Youth Homelessness Prevention Network, commented: “The effects of homophobia and transphobia on young people’s lives can be devastating. As a result, they can fail to succeed in education, miss out on employment and training, and suffer a range of mental health issues.
See New initiative launched to tackle homelessness among LGBT youth
PinkNews.co.uk
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Report Shows LGBT Health Disparities
A new report on the non-HIV health and human service needs of LGBT people in New York state shows significant disparities compared to non-LGBT people, reflecting national trends exacerbated by lack of adequate data and homophobia.
The state-sponsored report, the first of its kind for New York, was prepared by researcher Somjen Frazer and published by the Empire State Pride Agenda. It is based on government data, interviews with 60 LGBT health and human services experts, and surveys of 3,500 LGBT New Yorkers.
Key findings of the report, according to Somjen, include the pervasiveness of homelessness, which poses a substantial barrier to service access. Fourteen percent of LGBT people, including one-third of transgender respondents, reported being homeless currently or at one point in their lives.
Lack of culturally competent care also creates hurdles, with 40% of LGBT respondents saying that too few health professionals were adequately trained to deliver services to LGBT patients. Moreover, 27% said they feared they would be treated differently if their health care provider learned they were LGBT.
See Report Shows LGBT Health Disparities
Advocate.com
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California appellate court rules La Crescenta property belongs to Los Angeles diocese
A California appellate court’s June 9 ruling was the latest in a series of recent developments that return disputed church properties to three California Episcopal dioceses.
On June 9, the San Diego-based Fourth District Court of Appeal ruled unanimously that the Diocese of Los Angeles is legal owner of property currently occupied by St. Luke’s Anglican Church. The congregation had cited theological differences when severing ties to the Episcopal Church (TEC) in 2006 and realigning with an Anglican diocese in Uganda.
In unrelated agreements, displaced Episcopalians will return July 1 to two other disputed properties, St. John’s Church in Petaluma, in the Diocese of Northern California and St. Paul’s Church in Modesto in the Diocese of San Joaquin.
“The long history of the Episcopal Church in La Crescenta will continue with new leadership and the potential for sustained growth, and as an open source of full inclusion for all humanity,” Bishop Jon Bruno of Los Angeles said June 9 after learning of the court’s decision.
“It is important that we preserve the essence of St. Luke the healer and the ongoing maintenance of the historic church building. It is a jewel in the crown of La Crescenta, and a blessing to the people of the Diocese of Los Angeles.”
Los Angeles: ‘property held in trust’ for wider church
The appellate court ruling affirmed a 2007 trial court decision that the church, located about 15 miles north of Los Angeles, was held in trust for the mission of both the local diocese and the wider church. In issuing the ruling, the ten-member panel cited a January 5, 2009 California Supreme Court decision, which returned St. James Anglican Church in Newport Beach to the diocese. Attorneys in that case, New v. Kroeger, have appealed the decision to the U.S. Supreme Court.
John Shiner, chancellor for the Diocese of Los Angeles, said a timeline for transition will advance in accordance with court procedures.
The Rev. Rob Holmann, rector of St. Luke’s Anglican Church, declined to comment June 10. “I know the general direction of the ruling, but I am withholding all comment until I see it” and until he could speak with attorneys, he told the Episcopal News Service.
A few days earlier, Holmann had told the Glendale News Press that he and the 200-member congregation “would very much like to stay” in the 83-year-old river-rock building, considered a cultural, architectural and historic local landmark.
Bruno said the future mission of St. Luke’s, now under his direct pastoral control, will be to focus on “deepening our understanding of what it means to be reconciled, welcoming and healthy people of God.”
Petaluma and Modesto: Episcopal congregations set to return July 1
After a bitter split and three years of “homelessness,” members of St. John’s Episcopal Church in Petaluma are returning July 1 to the 118-year-old church, the Rev. Norman Cram said in a telephone interview June 10.
“We are jubilant, overwhelmingly jubilant,” said Cram, priest-in-charge. “We celebrated our homelessness and we overlooked the inconveniences of living and worshipping out of a laundry basket but now that these things are almost behind us, it’s almost overwhelming.”
Citing disagreement over the ordination of a gay bishop, a majority of the 250-member congregation in December 2006 had voted to sever ties with the Episcopal Church and the Diocese of Northern California but declined to vacate church property. They formed St. John’s Anglican Church, displacing about 55 continuing Episcopalians who initially met in homes.
The Rev. David Miller, rector of the Anglican congregation, had sought a transfer of his canonical residence to the Argentina-based Anglican Province of the Southern Cone and was eventually deposed by the Rt. Rev. Jerry Lamb, then bishop of the Diocese of Northern California.
Miller did not return ENS telephone calls June 10. Mike McIntosh, parish administrator for the disaffiliated group, said a news release would be issued eventually, but declined further comment. The congregation’s last service in the church will be Sunday, June 28.
The continuing Episcopal congregation eventually began meeting on Sunday evenings at the Elim Lutheran Church in Petaluma who “magnificently sheltered us,” said Cram. He added that he hopes: “to present a healthy Christian perspective of love, compassion and kindness to our community, to be the yeast for the values of unity and inclusiveness in Petaluma.”
Meanwhile, Bishop Jerry Lamb of San Joaquin told ENS that discussions are underway with St. Paul’s Church in Modesto for return of that property by July 1, which several years ago affiliated with the Anglican Mission in America.
The Rev. Michael McClenaghan, rector, did not return ENS calls.
Lamb was already planning an organizational meeting, seeking lay leaders to begin the work of transition. “I have been making calls this week to laity who are or have been members of St. Paul’s and have signaled their desire to remain in the Episcopal Church,” he said in a statement posted on the diocesan website.
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LGBT asylum seekers ‘facing high levels of homelessness and discrimination’
Gay, lesbian, bisexual and trans asylum seekers are suffering from high levels of discrimination, homelessness and exploitation, a report has claimed.
The Over Not Out report, from Refugee Support, the refugee services arm of Metropolitan Support Trust (MST), suggests that support services for LGBT asylum seekers are frequently poor, resulting in individuals facing harassment or discrimination in their accommodation.
It was found that mental ill-health and prostitution were particular problems, and that many LGBT asylum seekers do not report instances of hate crime.
A gay Iranian man in his thirties told researchers: “I’m gay and these kinds of problems happen to me all the time in any shared accommodation where I go. If I want to avoid trouble I just have to go to my room, just lock myself in. And it’s not a life… Yesterday I saw a guy who has been on Section 4 support for nine years. I don’t know, it might happen to me. I cannot lock myself into my room for nine years…”
The report, launched yesterday in Westminster, recommended further training and funding for LGBT voluntary and community organisations in regards to asylum seekers, along with new requirements for landlords to protect them harassment. See
LGBT asylum seekers ‘facing high levels of homelessness and discrimination’
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Queercents: Steps to Avoid Homelessness
NEWPORT BEACH, Calif. — Foreclosure rates continue to rise, and more Americans are on the brink of homelessness every day. Unfortunately, members of the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender community are at a higher risk for becoming homeless. Youth are particularly vulnerable. Some estimate that between 40%-60% of homeless youth are lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender.
Queercents (http://www.queercents.com/), a personal finance blog serving the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community, has provided several tips for people who may be on the verge of becoming homeless. Author Alex Taylor shares advice based on personal experience to help readers avoid becoming permanently homeless.
The story is available at http://www.queercents.com/2009/04/28/my-financial-implosion-avoiding-homelessn ess/
“Don’t be afraid to ask for help,” says Taylor. “It’s important to recognize when you need assistance from others. Contact friends, family and social service agencies if you need help.” Most importantly, Taylor advises that “if the loss of your home is imminent, make avoiding homelessness your full time job. Look for new work, be persistent in your search for help, and do not give up. Once you fall into homelessness, it’s much more difficult to work your way back.”
About Queercents:
Established by Nina Smith in 2006, Queercents originated the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender personal finance blog concept by aggregating financial tips from the distinct writings of several money bloggers.
Queercents . . . we’re here, we’re queer, and we’re not going shopping without coupons.
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Original source : http://gay_blog.blogspot.com/2009/05/queercents-st…
