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Building Allyship for Safer Campuses and Communities

August 31st, 2013     by Julia Horel     Comments

The STARS Project is a program for LGBTQ* youth and allies ages 13-21 at Delisle Youth Services. It is our goal to engage college and university aged youth to build allyship on their campuses and in their communities by supporting the STARS project.

STARS youth participants have launched a viral video project to start the conversation. Watch the videos and learn what STARS youth have to say about allyship, and then create your… own videos about what allyship means to you in your community.

*also check out Shameless illustrator Heidi Cho and Shameless Circulation Manager Kate Miller in the umbrella video!

Our You Tube Channel: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fN8IK-CVFFw

We will be on college and university campuses across the GTA throughout the month of September. We will be talking about allyship, screening the videos, filming and uploading new videos by students on site. We are also asking students and campus communities to support LGBTQ* youth programs by texting “ALLY” to 41010 to donate to STARS LGBTQ* youth programs at DYS.

If you want the STARS Ally Campaign to come to your campus or community, contact us at STARSAllyCampaign@delisleyouth.org.

What is an ally? “Being an ally is not an identity. It is a process.” -@FeministGriote “Allyship […] involves a number of different actions: some are necessary and relatively easy, while some require more commitment and activism” -TransWhat “Allyship is a process where an individual begins to acknowledge their own privileges, and actively makes an effort to recognize and support voices that are commonly suppressed within society.” -Kamika Peters, STARS participant and university student

What steps can I take toward allyship? - Listen to LGBTQ* people in your communities - Don’t make assumptions about anyone - Know when to step up and when to step back - Understand intersectionality - Educate yourself. Here are some great places to start: Berkeley and TransWhat

How can I support the STARS Ally Campaign? - Watch the videos on our YouTube channel - Make a video and email it to STARSAllyCampaign@delisleyouth.org - Text ALLY to 41010 to donate $10 in support of The STARS Project for LGBTQ* youth and allies at Delisle Youth Services - Tell your friends!

Campus Visits Seneca College - September 3-6

Click here to learn more about The STARS Project.

Tags: queeriosities

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