Archive for the ‘LGBTQ Youth’ Category

Building Bridges (art of connecting pt. 1)

Posted: September 8, 2011 in Addiction, Adolescent Development, Depression, drug prevention, emerging adults, extended adolescence, LGBTQ Youth, Mental Illness, Parenting, Spirituality, Suicide, systemic abandonment, Teens, Youth Ministry, Youth With Disabilities
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One of the Apostle Paul’s most famous speeches took place at Mars Hill, the Areopagus, in Athens.  He noted that they appeared to be a very religious lot of people due to the sheer number of statues they had to their gods.  In a brilliant move he identified the one statue that was for the [...]

The Art of Connecting with Kids on the Fringe

Posted: September 7, 2011 in Adolescent Development, Anxiety, Bullying, Depression, Divorce, Drug Abuse, Eating Disorders, emerging adults, Family, Grief, LGBTQ Youth, Mental Illness, Self-Injury, Sexual Abuse, Substance Abuse, Suicide, Teen Dating Violence, Teens, Youth Ministry, Youth With Disabilities
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After a workshop I facilitated on working with kids who have been abused, an elderly woman approached me to ask me a question.  She shocked me with the simplicity and depth of the question.  Here’s what she said, “I love the kids in my community but I don’t know how to connect with the.  I [...]

A Prayer When I Feel Hated

Posted: December 1, 2010 in Bullying, Depression, LGBTQ Youth, Suicide, Teens
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Loving God, you made me who I am. I praise you and I love you, for I am wonderfully made, in your own image. But when people make fun of me, I feel hurt and embarrassed and even ashamed. So please God, help me remember my own goodness, which lies in you. Help me remember [...]

Would Jesus Sit In The Smoking Section With A Gay Huckleberry Finn?

Posted: November 23, 2010 in Drug Abuse, LGBTQ Youth, Self-Injury, Substance Abuse, Teens, Youth Ministry
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In Mark Twain’s novel The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Huck wrestles through a moral dilemma about demonstrating true friendship to a stigmatized person of his day – a man who bore a dual stigma of being black in a racist society and slavery in an exploitative one.  To help his friend Jim escape meant violating not only [...]

Mad As Hell

Posted: October 5, 2010 in Bullying, LGBTQ Youth, Suicide, Teens
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Conversations on the Fringe vehemently opposes bullying of any kind.  When what we say and do to another person causes so much pain and suffering that the only option they can come up with is to end their own life, that is a travesty!  We mourn the loss of Billy Lucas 15, Asher Brown 13, [...]

Stigma, Identity, and Risk in LGBT Youth

Posted: July 15, 2010 in Addiction, Adolescent Development, Bullying, Depression, Drug Abuse, LGBTQ Youth, Substance Abuse, Suicide, Teens, Youth Ministry
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LGBT youth have the same developmental tasks as their heterosexual peers, but they also face additional challenges in learning to manage a stigmatized identity.  This extra burden puts LGBT youth at increased risk for substance abuse and unsafe sexual behaviors and can intensify psychological distress and risk for suicide. Studies of more recent generations of lesbian and gay youth [...]

French Gay Friendly McDonald’s Commercial Causing Quite A Stir

Posted: June 3, 2010 in LGBTQ Youth, Misc., News, Teens, Uncategorized
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There’s a new viral ad for McDonald’s in France that’s causing quite a stir.  What are you’re thoughts on the video?  What do you like about the ad?  What do you dislike about the ad?  How can this stimulate healthy discussion about the issue of LGBTQ teens?

Bullying: Everyone Plays A Role

Posted: May 27, 2010 in Adolescent Development, Bullying, LGBTQ Youth, Parenting, Teen Dating Violence, Teens, Uncategorized, Youth Ministry, Youth With Disabilities
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Most of the time when we think of bullying we only see two parties as being involved; the bully and the bullied.  Olweus theory suggests that everyone plays a role in bullying.  If this is true then to combat bullying would require a collaborative effort by all parties.  Below is a diagram of the various parties [...]

Parents In Denial About Sexually Active Children

Posted: May 4, 2010 in Uncategorized, Pornography, Sexual Abuse, Teen Dating Violence, Parenting, Adolescent Development, LGBTQ Youth, Teens
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In an article from PsychCentral a new study from North Carolina State University shows that many parents think that their children aren’t interested in sex — but that everyone else’s kids are. The article suggests that many parents have certain beliefs about adolescent sexual behavior that may be, albeit unintentionally, reinforcing certain stereotypes that shape the sexual behavior of their [...]

National Day of Silence

Posted: April 1, 2010 in Bullying, LGBTQ Youth
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Regardless of one’s belief about sexuality we should all agree that bullying, for any reason, is never acceptable.  The National Day of Silence is an attempt to bring awareness and change to the bullying/violence directed at youth who are LGBTQ. Founded in 1996 at the University of Virginia, the “Day of Silence” is billed by organizers [...]