Bill Proposed to Address LGBT Homeless Youth

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Wisconsin democrat representatives Mark Pocan and Gwen Moore introduced legislation to increase funding, support and research on the nation’s lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) homeless
youth Aug. 1.

The Runaway and Homeless Youth Inclusion Act would amend language in current legislation addressing homeless and runaway youth. The legislation was last reauthorized in 2008 and is up for reauthorization this year; however it could be renewed without LGBT-specific provisions.

The proposed bill would expand the services that federal grant recipients can provide for families of LGBT youth. Grant recipients will be required to prove their staff has been trained and has the “cultural competency” to serve diverse populations such as LGBT individuals.

Darla Bardine, Policy Director of The National Network for Youth and a co-author of the bill, said the reforms are crucial to the services homeless youth need and efforts to reconnect estranged youth
with their families.

“It’s important for there to be family work that is specific to each family’s situation. Having the program staff trained and best practices in place to address that is something this legislation could facilitate,” Bardine said.

The legislation was informed by testimonies of LGBT youth who faced discrimination or lack of care in shelters or other service providers due to their sexual orientation, according to Steffany Stern, legislative director for Rep. Moore.

The bill bans homeless shelters from discriminating against individuals on the basis of sexual orientation or gender.

“We heard from youth about discrimination and a lack of awareness at providers. Some of these youth had been forced out of their houses due to rejection after they came out and then went to a shelter only to find that [staff] didn’t have the training or the competency to address their needs,” Stern said.


Issues |LGBTQ

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