Comprehensive Guide Includes Support and Education for Creating an Inclusive Community with Insight from Born This Way Foundation
/PRNewswire/ — Meredith Corporation‘s (NYSE: MDP) PARENTS released “The Parents Guide to Supporting LGBTQ+ Kids,” an online hub of educational resources and tips for parents and caregivers to support and nurture the mental health of LGBTQ+ kids and teens and build an inclusive community and support network. The guide includes information from Queer voices and fierce parent advocates on how parents and guardians can shape their conversations around gender, sexuality, and gender expression that burst the heteronormative mold. “The Parents Guide to Supporting LGBTQ+ Kids” is available on Parents.com/pride.
“As June marks the beginning of PRIDE month, we’re delighted to announce this permanent slate of important content,” said Julia Dennison, PARENTS Digital Content Director. “It is our job as parents and allies to be more mindful of creating safe spaces for all children and advocating for your child’s mental health and well-being no matter how they identify.”
“The Parents Guide to Supporting LGBTQ+ Kids” includes insight and guidance from Born This Way Foundation, a nonprofit dedicated to supporting the mental health of young people and working with them to create a kinder and braver world. For its reporting, the PARENTS team also interviewed several experts including Myeshia Price, Ph.D., Senior Research Scientist at The Trevor Project and Jennifer Grosshandler, Co-Founder of GenderCool Project. Additionally, transgender youth advocate Rebekah Bruesehoff and her mother, Jamie shared their experiences between the church and their identities in a personal essay.
Amber Leventry, Guest Editor of “The Parents Guide to Supporting LGBTQ+ Kids,” said in the guide’s introduction, “The LGBTQ+ community is like a prism: when given the proper light, it shines in infinite beautiful colors into a variety of angles. We’re trying to help all parents and guardians raise kids who feel proud to identify as LGBTQ+ or who would be proud to call themselves an ally.”
“Young people understand mental health is fluid, requiring a concerted effort to help them navigate the challenges they face. I’m so proud of Parents.com for recognizing this important work and furthering education and awareness at home amongst parents and caregivers,” said Maya Enista Smith, Executive Director of Born This Way Foundation. “Our research demonstrates the incredible effects of kindness on youth mental health and has taught us that the kindness parents provide and exhibit at home has a profound influence on their children. I hold this finding close; as a parent and as Executive Director. By modeling kind behavior with others and themselves, we can be better allies to our loved ones and build towards creating a kinder and braver world.”
“The Parents Guide to Supporting LGBTQ+ Kids” comprises over 25 articles across several categories, such as coming out, support, and education. Topics include rethinking gender across generations; how religious parents can support their children coming out; gender inclusive books; tips for visibility in classrooms, sex education, and pediatric health care; respecting pronouns; support for foster parents and grandparents; and much more.
PARENTS’ full digital resource hub, “The Parents Guide to Supporting LGBTQ+ Kids,” is available at Parents.com/pride.
About PARENTS
PARENTS, the leading source for busy, millennial moms, reaches 8.3 million readers monthly through an award-winning magazine and over 19 million readers on its digital and social platforms. With an understanding that raising good people is the most important job, PARENTS serves up trusted advice that empowers moms and dads to care for their kids with confidence and find ways to enjoy the ride. PARENTS is produced by Meredith Corporation (NYSE: MDP).
About Born This Way Foundation
Born This Way Foundation, co-founded and led by Lady Gaga and her mother, Cynthia Germanotta, supports the mental health of young people and works with them to build a kinder and braver world. Through high-impact programming, youth-led conversations, and strategic, cross-sectoral partnerships, the Foundation aims to make kindness cool, validate the emotions of young people, and eliminate the stigma surrounding mental health. Learn how the Foundation encourages people to practice kindness towards themselves and their communities at bornthisway.foundation and its storytelling platform Channel Kindness at channelkindness.org.
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