Transgender and Gender nonconforming youth in the California foster care system

1. Transgender and Gender nonconforming youth in the California foster care system Shannan Wilber Youth Policy Director

2. Agenda Concepts and terminology Research and data Professional standards CA Laws Recommended practice

3. Dimensions of Identity Source: Allegheny County Department of Human Services (2015)

4. A person’s romantic, physical and/or sexual attraction to other people that ranges from attraction to only men/boys or women/girls, to varying degrees of attraction to both, to attraction to neither. Sexual Orientation SOGIE A person’s core and hard-wired sense of their own identity as a man/boy, woman/girl, something in between, or something outside the gender binary. Gender Identity A person’s presentation or communication of their gender to others through hairstyles, clothing, physical mannerisms, alterations of their body, or name and pronoun. Gender Expression

5. Think beyond the binary! Gender Identity: Everybody Has One GENDER IS A SPECTRUM

6. Sex Assigned at Birth A designation usually made by a medical professional and generally based on appearance of external genitalia. Concepts and Terminology Cisgender Describes people whose gender identity is the same as their sex assigned at birth. An umbrella term that refers to people whose gender identity is different from their sex assigned at birth. Transgender Describes a person whose gender identity is neither exclusively male nor female. Nonbinary

7. Learning about terms youth use to identify themselves (and terms that are offensive to some) is helpful and important, but it can be hard to keep up. A few guidelines: language 1. Allow the young person to self-identify (when ready). 2. Mirror their language. 3. Ask questions in a respectful way that helps you understand what the terminology or language they use means to them. 4. Adjust your language if and when a youth’s identity or expression shifts. Language, identity, and expression are fluid, especially for adolescents.

8. A broad term referring to aspects of gender expression, identity, and interests that go beyond cultural binary prescriptions of behaviors and interests associated primarily with boys or girls. Gender-expansive includes young people who do not identify with the sex they were assigned at birth as well as those who do, but may nonetheless find themselves barraged with questions based on their dress, appearance, or interests, such as, “Are you a boy or a girl?” or “Why do you play with that? It’s a boy/girl toy!” Other words with similar meetings include gender diverse and gender creative. Gender Expansive Nat’l Ass’n of School Psychologists & Gender Spectrum, Gender Inclusive Schools: Overview, Gender Basics, and Terminology (2016), https://www.nasponline.org/resources-and-publications/resources/diversity/lgbtq-youth/gender-inclusive-schools-faqs/gender-inclusive-schools-overview-gender-basics-and-terminology.

9. Social Isolation Rejection and Neglect at Home Unsafe Schools Overrepresentation of LGBTQ Youth in Out-of-Home Care Homelessness Juvenile Justice System Child Welfare System

10. LGBTQ Youth in the Child Welfare System TRANSGENDER LGBTQ LGBQ The Williams Institute Sexual & Gender Minority Youth in Foster Care: Assessing Disproportionality and Disparities in Los Angeles (2014)

11. A clinical psychiatric diagnosis characterized by intense, continuous distress caused by the discrepancy between an individual’s gender identity and their assigned sex at birth. In previous versions of the DSM, gender dysphoria was known as gender identity disorder (GID). Medical and Behavioral Science Gender Dysphoria

12. GLMA: Health Professionals Advancing LGBT Equality Society for Adolescent Health and Medicine Society for Physician Assistants in Pediatrics American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry American Nurses Association American Public Health Association American Academy of Pediatrics American Medical Women’s Association Association of Medical School Pediatric Department Chairs American Psychoanalytic Association American Academy of Family Physicians American Psychiatric Association Endocrine Society American Academy of Physician Assistants American College of Physicians American Medical Student Association American Academy of Nursing Mental Health America Pediatric Endocrine Society National Association of Social Workers “Exclusionary policies perpetuate such stigma and discrimination, not only by forcing transgender individuals to disclose their status, but by marking transgender individuals as “others” who are unfit to use the restrooms used by everyone else. Indeed, the very existence of exclusionary policies targeting transgender individuals fosters stigma and discrimination.” “For over 30 years, the generally-accepted treatment protocols for gender dysphoria have been aimed at alleviating the distress associated with the incongruence between gender identity and birth-assigned sex, rather than attempting to force individuals to live in conformance with their natal sex.”

13. Dr. Johanna Olson https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fuZ7AlsTczI

14. The Importance of Pronouns http://individualandcouplestherapy.com

15. The Importance of Names A 2018 study studied the use of chosen names by transgender youth in four contexts (at home, at school, at work, and with friends). Researchers found youth who were able to use their chosen names in all four contexts had the lowest levels of depressive symptoms, suicidal ideation, and suicidal behavior. An increase by one context in which a preferred name could be used predicted a 29% decrease in suicidal ideation and a 56% decrease in suicidal behavior.

16. Foster Care Nondiscrimination Act California laws • Gives foster youth: • The right to fair and equal access to services, placement, care, treatment and benefits • The right NOT to be subjected to discrimination or harassment on the basis of actual or perceived SO/GI

17. California Student Safety & Violence Prevention Act California laws • Protects students in California public schools against discrimination or harassment based on • Sexual orientation • Gender identity • Gender nonconforming appearance or behavior

18. School Success and Opportunity Act California laws Requires public schools to permit students to participate in sex-segregated programs, activities and facilities consistent with their gender identity regardless of the gender listed in their school records

19. Conversion Therapy Ban California laws Prohibits licensed therapists from administering conversion therapy to any person under the age of 18

20. Placement According to Gender Identity California laws Children and nonminor dependents in out-of-home care shall be placed according to their gender identity, regardless of the gender or sex listed in their court or child welfare records.

21. Gender Affirming Health and Behavioral Health Care California laws The right of minors and nonminors in foster care to health care and mental health care includes covered gender affirming health care and gender affirming mental health care

22. HOW can YOU HELP tgnc YOUTH?

23. TALK TO YOUTH ABOUT SOGIE • Familiarize yourself with SOGIE terms and concepts • Appreciate and affirm youth when they disclose TGNC status • Use the language they use to describe their identities • Use the name and pronouns they currently use • Ask about any concerns or needs • Consult with youth about placement, roommates, privacy

24. Advocate for TGNC youth • Families • Social worker • Placement • Schools • Health care • Court

25. Thank you for your attention! Shannan Wilber Youth Policy Director National Center for Lesbian Rights swilber@nclrights.org 415.365.1331