Information on local GLBT Youth Services
Gay Lesbian Bisexual Transgender ( GLBT )
Useful Links for GLBT Youth
Twenty 10 is an organisation for young (under 26) gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, same-sex attracted and gender-questioning people who are having problems at home or have recently become homeless.
Reach Out is a web-based service that inspires young people to help themselves through tough times. The aim of the service is to improve young people's mental health and well being by providing support information and referrals in a format that appeals to young people.
Kids Help Line is a free, confidential and anonymous 24 hour telephone and on-line counselling service specifically for young people aged 5 to 18 years. Telephone 1800 55 1800
Why-B-Blue Ybblue's all about getting the message out there that it's okay to talk about depression, and to encourage young people and their family and friends to get help when it's needed.
Gender Centre is commited to developing and providing services and activities which enhance the ability of people with gender issues to make informed choices. The Gender Centre is also committed to educating the public and providers about the needs of people with gender issues. They offer a wide range of services to people with gender issues, their partners, families and friends in NSW.
ALL SORTS Wollongong Uni GLBTI social support group for Uni students - Wollongong Uni Queer Collective
Gay & Lesbian Counselling Service A volunteer based community service providing free, anonymous and confidential telephone counselling, information & referral services and support groups for gay men, lesbians, bisexual and transgender persons (GLBT) throughout New South Wales (NSW) on sexuality and life issues. Phone: 1800 18 4527
Y.E.A.H. - youth empowerment against HIV/AIDS Founded in March 2005, Y.E.A.H is empowering young Australians and their parents & teachers to know what HIV is, and believe they CAN do something about it!
SEXUALITY
COMING OUT
Please see the PFLAG Illawarra page on this website
for support and information for parents and friends of gays and lesbians
LOCAL GLBT YOUTH GROUPS
YOUNG AND PROUD - Wollongong
Social support group for Gay, Lesbian, Bi-sexual, Transgender or questioning sexuality or gender youth up to 18 years of age. Meets every two weeks on a Thursday at ACON (47 Kenny Street, Wollongong) from 5pm - 7pm.
For more information contact ACON on (02) 4226 1163
or
email: youngandproud@hotmail.com
NEXT MEETING DATES FOR 2009: 12th & 26th November
PLEASE ALSO CHECK THE SOCIAL GROUPS / EVENTS SECTION OF THIS WEBSITE FOR OTHER GROUPS FOR GLBT MEMBERS 18 YEARS AND OVER
LABEL FREE YOUTH - Nowra
Social support and sexual health education group for Gay, Lesbian, Bi-sexual, Transgender, Intersex, Queer or questioning sexuality or gender youth 14 to 24 years of age. Meets every two weeks on a Thursday at Nowra. Group is conducted by Nowra Youth Centre on a Thursday from 5pm - 7pm
NEXT MEETING DATES: 5th & 19th November
For more information contact Nowra Youth Centre on: (02) 4422 1988
or
email: shannon@nowrayouthservices.org.au
LFY has produced a NEWSLETTER - SHout - contact LFY for your own copy ... or ... click on the link below for a PDF copy!
LFY - SHout Newsletter Jan 08 PDF
SPECTRUM YOUTH ILLAWARRA
The Spectrum Youth Illawarra Working Team will act to promote harmony and understanding between different genders and sexualities. The focus will be to promote Wollongong as a shared space regardless of sexual orientation, gender or race.
The role of the Spectrum Youth Illawarra Working Team is to reduce the negative impacts of homophobia, discrimination and social isolation experienced by the GLBTIQ youth through:
- Increased visibility
- Advocacy
- Increased social inclusion in the Illawarra area through events and campaigns
- Promoting the safety of GLBTIQ members within the local community
- Increasing awareness of GLBTIQ issues within youth organisations
- Increasing awareness of relevant local services to GLBTIQ community members
- Addressing issues facing the local GLBTIQ community with a focus on those faced by youth
YOU CAN CONTACT SPECTRUM YOUTH BY EMAIL OR AT FACEBOOK
SpectrumYouthIllawarra@gmail.com
Spectrum Youth Illawarra Facebook
MEETINGS are every 2nd week, Wollongong Youth Centre, 4 - 5.30pm
next meeting dates - 4th & 18th November, 2nd & 16th December
If you are unsure of your sexuality or thinking of telling friends and family you think you are gay please check the SEXUALITY and COMING OUT menu options to the left of this page
OTHER NSW GLBT YOUTH GROUPS
GLYSSN
Social Group 2 Thursdays per month @ Hurstville
Coordinator: Danny Adams. Thurs-Fri: 9570 6743 Mob: 0410 452 323. Office 18 Treacy St, Hurstville 2220
link to the their site: GLYSSN
GALAH - Gay and Lesbians @ Hornsby
Gays and Lesbians at Hornsby - meets fortnightly just near Westfield . GALA(H) is run by Twenty10 GLBT Youth Support in partnership with Hornsby Shire Council. The group runs discussions and workshops, as well as regular outings to the movies, into the city, to cafes, and more.
For dates and times, call the Twenty10 Group Worker on 8594-9563 or e-mail mailto:groups@twenty10.org.au.
Venue: Hornsby Youth & Family Centre, 17 Muriel Street (cnr of Burdett St ), Hornsby. GALA(H) is funded by the Northern Sydney and Central Coast Area Health Service
GAYS AND LESBIANS @ MANLY
Twenty10 run a group in Manly called GL@M - Gays and Lesbians at Manly. It runs fortnightly. The group gets out and about as well as hanging out and chilling at RUSH. It's the place to be on the Northern Beaches!
For dates and times, call 8594-9563 or e-mail mailto:groups@twenty10.org.au.
Venue: RUSH Centre, 14 Pittwater Road (near Raglan St), Manly.
GL@M is funded by the Northern Sydney and Central Coast Area Health Service.
CAMP QUEER @ MACARTHUR
Same sex attracted youth group for under 25's
contact 4625 - 2525 for more information
QUEER ELEMENT
Meets every Thursday, 5-8pm, Twenty10 Building, 45 Bedford Street, Newtown. For more information contact evan@twenty10.org.au
If you know of any other GLBT youth services in NSW let us know by contacting us at:
mail@illawarraqinfo.com or use the Contact Form option in the menu options on the right of this page
LEGAL AGE OF CONSENT FOR SEX
NSW; ACT; VIC; NT AND WA: 16 years of age
South Australia & Tasmania; 17 years of age
Queensland: 16 years of age for vaginal sex & 18 years of age for anal sex
Please see the following link for further information:
AFAO - AGE OF CONSENT INFORMATION
YOU'RE NOT ALONE is a booklet written in Western Australia, so some of the contact information is only for WA, that explores the issues of being same sex attracted and growing up in a straight world. This booklet explores issues of coming out and accepting your own sexuality.
Click here for link to You're Not Alone
The POSH BOOKLET - OUT SMARTING homophobia: The message of this booklet is 'Homophobia - you don't have to wear it'. Over the last 10 years, 1000s of same sex attracted young people have written about damaging beliefs about homosexuality and how they have outsmarted those beliefs. The booklet looks at the beliefs, where they come from, ways to outsmart them and useful links.
The POSH Booklet pdf - click here to download
GQ: Gender Questioning is a resource produced by GLHV in conjunction with the Trans Melbourne Gender Project. It is designed to provide information and support to young people between 16 and 25 who are questioning their gender or supporting someone who is doing so.
Click this link for GQ - genderquestioning pdf
TRY THE SEX-FU CHALLENGE
see how much you really know about sexual health - how many points can you score
CLICK HERE TO TAKE THE SEX-FU-CHALLENGE
One young person's view of being gay in Wollongong
"We're here, we're queer, we're still in high school"
Daniel Swain
The F-bomb was dropped on me only once. I was at a bus shelter with my then boyfriend when we heard the "call of the wild": "Go back to Mardi Gras you f---ing faggots!". I responded as calmly as I could: "I may be a faggot, sir, but you are a fool. My people get parades, what do your people get?"
The gay teenager is a modern invention. No longer must we wait for the liberal oasis of university to express our sexuality identity. After several years enduring those polite euphemisms of "flamboyance" and "sensitivity" I tiptoed out of the closet. Fifteen, out and proud.
My story is not unique. For the more liberal members of our generation the closet has become an antique.
The internet has become an important resource for the fledgling homosexual. A boy a few years below me at school came out by editing his MySpace profile. The advent of cybersexuality has allowed gay teenagers to communicate, connect and flirt without fear of persecution. Feel lonely? Log in, chat. Where once a teenage lesbian would have felt confused or alienated, she can now google stories just like her own. The internet first introduced me to the history, the politics, the rituals of being gay. My sex education was exclusively heterosexual, and I didn't want to risk borrowing that book from the library.
Television has also made a difference. Programs such as Will and Grace have popularised the image of the fag hag and her effete companion. The result: I have been accessorised by teenage girls who want you to be "their" gay best friend. Having gay friends makes them feel like one of those metropolitan goddesses from Sex and the City. We'll merrily trot from one boutique to the next picking dresses or boyfriends. I try to explain that I know nothing about fashion or men but they simply won't listen. (I do try to be more like the well-trained, urbane, television homosexuals. I really do.)
Thankfully, my own high school is, largely, the tolerant, accepting society in microcosm. It is
But other students are not so lucky. According to a
This intolerance makes it obvious how the modern gay rights movement has failed gay kids. It is a political movement driven by the concerns of wealthy, white, middle-aged, metropolitan men. Marriage, apparently, is the gay equality issue of our time; the right to give your relationship governmental oversight. It is a noble project but when you compare it to real queer issues of our time it appears a waste of focus, time and resources.
HIV infection rates are on the rise in gay communities, as is the use of crystal meth. The afflictions that school students face remain unaddressed. Internationally our identity is criminalised: there are still nations around the world that enforce the death penalty for being gay. In
Growing up gay involves moving slowly forward in the traffic jam of progress. You savour each small advance but you can only see your destination in the distance. Sometimes bigotry, hatred and cruelty bring your journey to a standstill.
Daniel Swain is a year 11 student at Smith's
Source: SMH.com.au
Twenty10 report on GLBT youth homelessness service needs
It May Not Be Fancy 2007 Report
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YES I AM - Coming Out Stories by young people
Gay & Lesbian Liaison Officers - NSW Police
Gay and Lesbian Liaison Officers (GLLO officers) are police officers located throughout the state that are specially trained to address gay and lesbian issues. The GLLO Program is central to the NSW Police Force's response to anti-gay/lesbian violence. GLLOs assist gay men and lesbians in their local area with matters including anti-gay/lesbian violence, harassment and domestic violence. GLLOs consult with gay and lesbian community groups to foster confidence in the NSW Police Force and encourage reporting of homophobic violence and crimes. GLLOs also assist in developing and implementing local and corporate initiatives to reduce and prevent anti-gay/lesbian violence and are responsible for improving the understanding of fellow officers about gay and lesbian issues.
GLLO Officers can be found at the following Police Stations: Wollongong [phone: (02) 4295 2687 or (02) 4226 7899]; Warilla [phone: (02) 4295 2699]; Nowra [phone: (02) 4421 9699]