21 Ways to be an Ally to Your Trans Youth Clients
This is a handy one page tip sheet with gems such as: “Take youth and their gender identity and expression seriously. You may be the first – or only – person in their life to do so.”
I find this helpful as a 101 resource, to reassure people who have less experience working with transgender and gender diverse people that there are some simple tips to follow. It’s not complex and sometimes can be clunky, but it’s simple and easily digested for the nervous person wanting to be a better ally.
A common question I get from people is about people changing names, and one of the handy tips is “Don’t ask us what our former names were.” I also appreciate the reminder that some people want to “pass” and others are not interested in passing so don’t assume we’re succeeding if we do and failing if we don’t.
You can find 21 Ways and more resources at the NZ Human Rights Commission under “More Info” or using the search tool on: www.hrc.co.nz.
