Mississippi Safe Schools Coalition

(L-R) Izzy, Matthew, Anna at The National Gay & Lesbian Task Force's Creating Change 2012 - Baltimore, MD

written by Anna C. Davis (anna@mssafeschools.org)

This past week three members of MSSC’s Queer Youth Advisory Board (QYAB) attended the 24th Annual National Gay and Lesbian Task Force’s Creating Change Conference. To say the least, we had a blast!

What happens when you take 3,000+ queer and allies, throw them in a hotel in downtown Baltimore for a week of workshops, networking and conversation? You end up starting a wave of change. I can honestly say that my experiences at this conference were transformational. Creating Change can be a bit… overwhelming. The event kicked off with a day-long institute on Building an Anti-Racist Movement.

“The agenda provides participants opportunities to explore the intersections of race and sexualities, power and privilege and how to integrate racial justice tools into our everyday work. … storytelling, dynamic activities, conceptual frameworks and facilitated dialogue, we will create a learning environment where activists, community leaders, change agents, students and teachers from across our movement can do the self work needed in order to be effective instruments in creating change.”

During this day-long session, participants had the option to choose from a list of 9 workshops. The following days offered even more options for participants.

The Grid as it was lovingly called, helped direct participants to any number of tracks or workshops they may want to attend. Topics covered during the weekend included Aging, AIDS/HIV, Anti-violence/Bias Reduction, Art & Culture, Bisexual Community, Campus, Communications/Media & Messaging, Community Centers, Community Organizing, Disability, Economic Justice, Elections/Ballot Measures and Campaigns, Families, Fundraising, Gender Issues, Health, Immigration, International Issues, Labor, Legislative/Legal Reform and Public Policy, Marriage, Military/Veterans Issues, Movement Building, Organizational Development, Organizational Excellence and Capacity Building, People of Color, Practice Spirit/Do Justice, Racial Justice, Research and Policy, Rural, School Issues, Sexual Freedom, Transgender Community & Issues, Workplace, and Youth. The shear number of possible workshops to attend is enough to overwhelm even the most seasoned activist. For more information regarding the individual workshops or what each of those topics included check out the official Creating Change 2012 Program Book.

Speakers at the event included: Kate Clinton (Mistress of Ceremonies), Benjamin T. Jealous (President, CEO of the NAACP), Rea Carey (Executive Dir. National Gay and Lesbian Task Force), Wilson Cruz (actor – Noah’s Arc, My So-Called Life), Cary Alan Johnson (Ex. Dir. of International Gay & Lesbian Human Rights Commission), Nisha Ayub (Programme Manager of the Pink Triangle Foundation of Malaysia), Val Kalende (Freedom and Roam Uganda, Sexual Minorities Uganda), Joel Simpson (Founder – Society Against Sexual Orientation Discrimination in Guyana), Daniel B. Baer (Deputy Assistant Secretary, Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor, U.S. Department of State) and Martin O’Malley (Governor of Maryland).

QYAB hopes to bring our experience back to Mississippi to develop an even stronger organization for the Mississippi’s queer and ally youth. And for those of you who missed out this year, Creating Change 2013 will be hosted in Atlanta, GA. While the registration price tag is enough to give anyone second thoughts, scholarship opportunities are available through the Task Force. Stay tuned for more updates on conference opportunities.