Community Acceptance: Resources for Communities Working with Transgender & Gender Diverse Children

Who are transgender youth, and what challenges do they face?

• “Get the Facts About Transgender Youth” MAP infographic
• Gender Spectrum’s “Understanding Gender”
• Gender Spectrum and HRC’s report “Supporting and Caring For Our Gender-Expansive Youth”
• TransYouth Family Allies’ (TYFA) “Learning the Lingo
• TransYouth Family Allies’ (TYFA) “Learning the Lingo in Spanish
• Dr. Diane Ehrensaft’s The Gender Creative Child (2016)
• Lisa Kenney & Stephanie Brill’s The Transgender Teen (2016)
• MAP and GLSEN’s “Separation and Stigma: Transgender Youth and School Facilities“
• The Trevor Project’s Resource Center

Why is family acceptance so important?

Your child’s well-being depends on it. Extensive research shows that transgender youth with supportive parents “report higher life satisfaction, higher self-esteem, [and] better mental health including less depression and fewer suicide attempts” than those without strong parental support:

• Research from Georgetown University
• Research from Trans Pulse.
• Research from American Academy of Pediatrics
• For more research, visit the Family Acceptance Project at San Francisco State University
• Read their guide, “Supportive Families, Healthy Children: Helping Families with Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual or Transgender Children”
• Read the guide in Spanish
• Read the guide in Chinese

What are practical ways for families to support transgender youth?

• Use your child’s chosen name and pronouns.
• Require other family members to respect your child and their gender identity. See Transforming Families’ “How to talk to family & friends about your child’s gender identity,” which includes sample letters.
• Connect your child to transgender resources, events, and spaces or organizations.
• Read more in this open letter in the Denton Record-Chronicle: “Amber and Adam Briggle: An open letter to trans and non-binary youth.”.
• Connect with other parents and family members of transgender and non-binary youth to find support and community, as well as potential opportunities for advocacy.
• Look for local PFLAG chapters that offer specific support for transgender and gender diverse children and youth.
• Look for local LGBTQ centers that offer specific support for transgender and gender diverse children and youth.
• Educate yourself and other family members on the best ways to affirm and support your transgender or gender diverse child and put these behaviors into practice.
• Read Gender Spectrum’s “Affirming v. Non-Affirming Parenting Behaviors” guide.
• Explore Gender Spectrum’s extensive resources on families, education, faith, mental health, and more.
• Fenway Health’s “Tips for Parents & Guardians of Transgender Youth” in English
• Fenway Health’s “Tips for Parents & Guardians of Transgender Youth” in Spanish
• Read PFLAG’s “Our Trans Loved Ones: Questions and Answers for Parents, Families, and Friends of People Who Are Transgender and Gender-Expansive.”
• Visit TransYouth Family Allies‘ website, which includes a resource bank of practical materials for parents of transgender youth.
• Attend conferences, like Gender Spectrum’s Family Conference, that celebrate gender inclusiveness for trans and gender children, their families and supporters, and professionals working to support trans youth.
• Advocate for your child at their school. See Gender Spectrum’s tools for supporting transgender and gender expansive students.
• Need help? The Trevor Project can provide answers to frequently asked questions, and explore resources for transgender and gender diverse youth through the Trevor Support Center.

Resources for specific audiences:

• Asian and Pacific Islander families:
• National Queer Asian Pacific Islander Alliance’s (NQAPIA) “Family is Still Family, Love is Still Love” campaign, including:
• Videos in 8 languages
• Fact sheets in 10 languages
• Visit the (NQAPIA) website.
• Family Acceptance Project’s “Supportive Families, Healthy Children: Helping Families with Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual or Transgender Children”.
• Also available in Chinese.
• Black and African-American families:
• HRC’s “Black and African American LGBTQ Youth Report”.
• Many Voices: A Black Church Movement for Gay & Transgender Justice .
• National Black Justice Coalition and its Black Transgender Advisory Council.
• Visit the National Black Justice Coalition website.
• “Mom, I’m Not a Girl: Raising a Transgender Child,” short documentary featuring a Black family with a transgender child.
• Latinx families:
• Family Acceptance Project’s “Supportive Families, Healthy Children: Helping Families with Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual or Transgender Children”
• Also available in Spanish.
• “Always My Son,” a short documentary about a Mexican-American family with a gender diverse child.
• Human Rights Campaign’s “A La Familia: A Conversation About Our Families, the Bible, Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity”
• Families of faith:
• Gender Spectrum’s extensive Faith resources, including for Jewish, Christian, Muslim, Buddhist, Unitarian, and Native or Indigenous traditions.
• Many Voices: A Black Church Movement for Gay & Transgender Justice.
• Family Acceptance Project’s “Supportive Families, Healthy Children: Helping Latter-Day Saint Families with Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual or Transgender Children”.
• “Families Are Forever” documentary about a Mormon family with a gay child.