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October 2007
YouthResource and GLBTQ Initiative e-News Update
Feature: Using Plastic...and I Don't Mean Credit Cards
Many women in relationships with women neglect the fact that they, too, can and should make their sex safer. Not only do women in relationships with women need to worry about passing STIs such as HPV and HIV during intercourse, they also need to think about passing bacteria that can cause yeast infections, urinary tract infections and other forms of bacterial vaginosis.
One key component of practicing safer sex is knowing your body inside and out. You need to be able to recognize the difference between your healthy body and something else. You know to protect your breast health by doing self-exams. Did you know you can also examine your vulva and vagina? You can give yourself a self-gynecological exam in your own home. It's easier than you think!
Read more at http://www.youthresource.com/health/women.htm.
THIS MONTH
October 11th was National Coming Out Day!
Facilitated by the Human Rights Campaign, National Coming Out Day, Oct. 11, 2007, is an international event which gives gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, and queer people the opportunity to "come out" to others about their sexuality. It also provides a means of increasing the visibility of gay people.
This year's National Coming Out Day fell on the 20th anniversary of the 1987 Gay and Lesbian March on Washington, and the unfurling of the AIDS Quilt on the National Mall. National Coming Out Day was first celebrated a year to the day later as a way of continuing the spirit of openness, honesty and visibility that the march and the AIDS Quilt presentation inspired.
October 15 was National Latino HIV/AIDS Awareness Day!
October 15, 2007 was National Latino AIDS Awareness Day (NLAAD). This day marks an opportunity to increase awareness of the devastating and disproportionate effects of AIDS in the Latino community. NLAAD is also a day to encourage HIV testing and to push for support from public officials and religious leaders.
Read more about NLAAD at http://www.hhs.gov/aidsawarenessdays/days/latino/index.html
October is Let's Talk Month!
Let's Talk Month is a national public education campaign celebrated in October and coordinated by Advocates for Youth. Let's Talk Month is an opportunity for community agencies, religious institutions, businesses, schools, media, parent groups and health providers to plan programs and activities which encourage parent/child communication about sexuality.
Please visit http://www.advocatesforyouth.org/news/events/letstalk.htm for more information on Let's Talk Month.
Announcements
Scenarios USA is looking for writers!
Scenarios USA is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization that that uses writing and filmmaking to foster youth leadership, advocacy and self-expression in underserved youth.
What story do you have to tell? Scenarios USA wants to hear your story about what it means to be masculine. The 2007 topic: "What's the REAL DEAL about Masculinity?"
Please consider applying if you are between the ages of 12-22 and live in:
- New York City, NY;
- Greater Cleveland, OH or;
- The Rio Grande Valley, TX.
Write alone or in a group, a story, play or script of 10 pages or less. and send in your entry by November 28, 2007.
Visit Scenarios USA at at http://www.scenariosusa.org or call toll free 1-866-414-1044.
Creating Change is 20
That's right, it's that time again! The National Gay and Lesbian Task Force's Creating Change Conference is the nation's preeminent political, leadership and skills-building conference for the LGBT movement. During the past two decades, Creating Change has been the place where thousands of committed people have developed and honed their skills, celebrated victories, built community, and been inspired by visionaries of our and other movements for justice and equality.
Join the Task Force in celebrating 20 remarkable years of training activist leaders and nurturing community. The deadline for submission of workshop proposals September 30, 2007. The conference registration deadline is January 15, 2008.
Click here to learn more about Creating Change or register: http://www.thetaskforce.org/events/creating_change
Got questions about sexual orientation, gender identity, or sexual health?
Ask one of your peers!
Our online peer education program, YouthResource, offers peer-to-peer support. Through brief bios from peer educators of diverse backgrounds, Web site visitors can select an online peer educator that they would feel comfortable communicating with. Online peer educators answer questions posed by visitors and point them to appropriate resources but online peer educators do not provide medical advice.
Visit http://www.youthresource.com/peer_education/index.htm.
You can help Advocates for Youth with a contribution today. To donate, visit http://www.advocatesforyouth.org/about/donatetoday.htm
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