In this issue of GSA Network News, you'll find:
GSA Network Highlight
Liberation Ink Posters Have Been Mailed
GSA Network Announcements
+++++++++++++++ GSA NETWORK HIGHLIGHT +++++++++++++++
Liberation Ink Posters Have Been Mailed
Last week we sent posters to 150 GSA throughout California. If you haven't already received the posters you ordered, keep an eye out in the mail this week. We are looking forward to hearing about the impact of these incredible posters at your school-- be in touch and let us know what you think.
You can still order posters and view the designs on the Liberation Ink website: http://www.gsanetwork.org/freezone/liberation.
Seven poster designs are available for GSAs, organizations, and individuals to make change by building a presence of youth voices for justice, peace, and youth empowerment and against hatred, harassment, and discrimination of all kinds. Every GSA in California can receive 30 FREE posters to use at your school. You can order more than 30 for $1 each. From community organizations and individuals we request a donation of $5 each for 1-10 posters, $4 each for 11-30 posters, and large quantity discounts are available. Subject to availability.
+++++++++++++ GSA NETWORK ANNOUNCEMENTS +++++++++++++
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1. Kung Pao Kosher Comedy Show Will Benefit GSA Network
The 10th Annual Kung Pao Kosher Comedy Show will benefit GSA Network!
Come see Jewish Comedy on Christmas in a Chinese Restaurant. Attend a dinner show for $50 or a later cocktail show for $35, Dec. 23 - Dec. 26 at New Asia Restaurant, 772 Pacific Ave., San Francisco.
Visit http://www.koshercomedy.com or call 415-522-3737 for more information or to purchase tickets.
You can also help out by volunteering at the Kung Pao Kosher Comedy Show! Volunteers get free dinner and will be able to see the show. To find out more info about volunteering, contact barbra_schwartz@hotmail.com.
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2. You Can Still Join the OHMY Steering Committee!
Are you interested in planning a youth-led conference?
Do you want to fight homophobia and other oppressions in schools?
Would you like to meet other youth activists and improve your organizing skills?
Then join the team that will plan OHMY 2003, LGBTQQ and straight-ally youth conference!
OHMY (Overcoming Homophobia Meeting for Youth) is an entirely youth-produced conference that brings youth from around CA together to address homophobia and other oppressions in the school environment.
The OHMY Steering Committee is the group of youth responsible for planning and leading the conference. All interested youth are encouraged to join!
The next OHMY planning meeting will be:
Saturday, December 7th
11:00 - 3:00 pm
at LYRIC (127 Collingwood St. in San Francisco)
Save the date! The tentative date for OHMY 2003 is February 15th.
The OHMY conference is co-sponsored by GSA Network and LYRIC.
++++++++++++++++ OTHER ANNOUNCEMENTS ++++++++++++++++
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3. BayPrism Movie Night (Bay Area)
MOVIE NIGHT!
Friday December 6, 2002
8:00 pm - 10:30 pm
SF LGBT Center - Youth Space, 1800 Market St @ Octavia, SF
This is our first official event! Come one come all!
We will have movie, food, and music!
BayPrism is a collaboration of Bay Area GSAs
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4. Rap Group - Being Out During the Holidays
Being Out During the Holidays...
Come join us at C*I*T*Y* Project Friday, December 6th from 6 pm-12am. We will be discussing being out to your family during the holidays. We will also be watching a movie and playing some games.
Take advantage of this exclusive free rap group for GLBTQ youth, where it is safe to discuss these issues.
We will also be raffling off several CD's throughout the night!
Our post-Thanksgiving Dinner will be served at 6, so get there early.
8272 Santa Monica Blvd.
West Hollywood, CA 90046
(310) 710-2434
at the Pro-Care Center by WeHo City Hall
For more information, contact Brigitte @ brigittetolson@yahoo.com,
C*I*T*Y* Project, Co-Chair of Board
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5. Newark Community Forum (Bay Area)
Newark Community Forum, Monday December 9,
Newark Memorial High School, 7:30 p.m. in the cafeteria
In light of the recent murder in Newark of Gwen Araujo, a transgender youth, and the controversy over the Newark High School play, "The Laramie Project", the city and school district are sponsoring a community forum where everyone can express any concerns they may have about the safety of gay, lesbian and transgender youth.
Gwen (Eddie) Araujo lived in Newark, but she did not attend the town's only high school. Instead she bounced from school to school and eventually stopped attending altogether. Did persistent taunting by classmates and anti-gay slurs make Gwen so uncomfortable at school that she stopped making an effort to attend, as her friends contend?
While Gwen didn't attend Newark HS, the young adults charged with her murder did, and are remembered as good students. How is it that good students could do such a thing?
Are there efforts we can all take to prevent such tragedies in the future? What can we do to help sexual minority youth feel safer in our community?
If you have answers to these questions, or even if you just have more questions, you are invited to the community forum to be held on Monday evening, Dec. 9, at 7 p.m. (as reported in the Argus) or 7:30 p.m. (as reported on the city's website).
The following invitation is from the city's website:
"You are invited to a community forum to be held at the Newark Memorial High School on Monday, December 9, 2002 starting at 7:30 p.m. in the cafeteria. The City of Newark and the Newark Unified School District Joint Task Force on Youth Issues will host this forum to identify obstacles to acceptance, valuing, and respect in our community; identify opportunities to promote respect, understanding and inclusion; and identify long-term strategies to promote understanding, respect, and the inclusion of others.
Your input is important. The intent of the forum is to provide the community with a positive opportunity to make suggestions on how the City and School District can promote a positive environment for the entire community."
The high school is on Cedar Blvd., just across from NewPark Mall.
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6. PFLAG Fremont/Newark Holiday Party (Bay Area)
PFLAG Fremont/Newark Holiday Party, December 10, 7-9:30 p.m.
PFLAG Fremont/Newark/East Bay invites you to join the cast and crew of Newark Memorial High School's "Laramie Project," members of local high school Gay/Straight Alliances (GSA), their teachers, friends, and especially their parents at our 7th Annual Holiday Cookie Party at our December Support Group Meeting. Join us for an evening of food and fun. Meet other supportive, loving parents. Mingle with GSA members from other high schools. Gather with them in small discussion/support groups, and gorge yourself on a multitude of holiday cookies.
At our celebration we'll honor the cast and crew of Newark High School's production of "The Laramie Project." Despite the controversy surrounding the play and the emotional difficulty of rehearsing and performing in the shadow of the brutal murder of local transgender youth Gwen Araujo, the cast and crew put on a fabulous production. It was a production that touched the hearts of many in our community. At our party we'll celebrate their achievement, and give them and their parents and teachers a heartfelt thanks!
We'll have holiday music, and live entertainment will be provided by the local band "The Essex."
The party will be held at the Holy Redeemer Lutheran Church, at 35660 Cedar Blvd. between Thornton Ave. and Newark Blvd., in Newark. For directions or carpool info contact PFLAG Fremont/East Bay Helpline at 510-226-6816, or pflagnewark@yahoo.com
And don't forget to bring your best baked holiday cookies for our cookie contest; we'll all be the judges!
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7. LGBT Latino/a Institute (SF)
One day Institute for LGBT LATINO/A.
We plan to talk about Homophobia, immigration, HIV/stds, self esteem and coming out in the latino community.
BREAKFAST AND LUNCH WILL BE PROVIDED
EVERYTHING IS FREE
There is also a dance afterward at Projecto Contra Sida Por Vida.
When: DEC.14, 2002 FROM 9:00 AM TO 4:00 PM.
Where: the SF LGBT Center - 1800 Market Street, Rainbow Room.
The event is sponsored by the LGBT Community Center, SF Public Library, Queer Youth Training Collaborative (LYRIC), Projecto Contra Sida Por Vida, and Marin Aids Project.
For more info, contact:
Juan Carlos Gil, QYTC Program Assistant, (415) 865-5612
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8. Fundraiser - Jeff Griffith Youth Center (LA)
"A Special Tradition Continues" - Charles H. Whitebread and the Board of Directors at the L.A. Gay & Lesbian Center Cordially Invite You to a Holiday Reception at the Jeff Griffith Youth Center
WHEN: Sunday, Dec. 8, 2002, 1:00 to 3:00 pm
WHERE: 7051 Santa Monica Boulevard, Los Angeles, 90038
Cocktails and hors d'oeuvre
RSVP 323-993-7681
Help the homeless street youth of Hollywood. $100 contribution per person suggested. Please make checks payable to "Friends of the Center."
Located in the heart of the population most in need of its services, the Jeff Griffith Youth Center is a thriving drop-in center, where thousands of young people seek refuge from a tough life on the streets. The Youth Center provides three hot meals a day, support groups, clothing, counseling, HIV-prevention, computer lab, lockers, showers, and arts programming.
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9. SCHOLARSHIP: eQuality Scholarship Collaborative (Northern and Central CA)
The eQuality Scholarship Collaborative awards scholarships to graduating high-school seniors in northern and central California who have promoted understanding of and equality for the lesbian/gay/bisexual/transgender community. In 2002, the Collaborative awarded $18,000 to 12 courageous youths.
The Collaborative is the joint effort of a group of organizations based in the San Francisco Bay Area (see list at left). It began in 1989 as a scholarship program by PG&E's lesbian and gay employee association, now PG&E PrideNetwork. The following year, the Bay Area Network of Gay and Lesbian (BANGLE) - now the Gay, Lesbian, and Straight Education Network, San Francisco-East Bay - joined the effort. Additional sponsors have joined the Collaborative in recent years, and more are always welcome. The Collaborative is an all-volunteer effort with representatives from each of the sponsoring organizations.
Eligibility
Applicants must:
The criteria by which recipients will be selected include:
Completed applications, including transcripts and letter of recommendation, must be postmarked no later than March 10, 2003. Applicants will be notified of their application status by April 25.
For more information or to apply, visit http://www.glsen-sfeb.org/eindex.htm or e-mail eQualityScholarship@planetoutcast.net.
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empowering youth activists to fight homophobia in schools
Carolyn Laub
Executive Director
Gay-Straight Alliance Network
160 14th Street
San Francisco, CA 94103
ph: 415.552.4229
fax: 415.552.4729
carolyn@gsanetwork.org
http://www.gsanetwork.org/
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Last updated 12/4/2002 by Jean Richter, richter@eecs.Berkeley.EDU