If you answered yes to any of those questions, then you should register for Rise Up!: A National Conference For Queer and Trans Youth Organizers.
We’ll have workshops to build our skills and knowledge, chat spaces and affinity groups to connect with fellow organizers, and art and performance spaces to share our visions of a more just tomorrow. It’ll all happen virtually— mostly on discord and zoom. You can drop in for just a few programs, or come for the whole thing!
This conference is open to all queer and trans activists and allies ages 13-24, whether seasoned organizers or new to the game— we need all voices working towards justice!
The first 40 participants to register can receive a “conference kit” with swag for the event via mail.
What: A FREE, ONLINE conference
Who: Queer and trans/nb youth (and allies) between the ages of 13 and 24 years old
When: July 25 – July 29, 2022
Where: The conference is hosted on Zoom and Discord, and pre-registration is required for all Zoom-hosted workshops!
Accessibility: All Zoom sessions will have live captioning from Otter.ai
We are looking for 1-hour drop-in workshops (there is some flexibility to the hour limit). If you are unsure if your workshop can be adequately covered in a single session, we are happy to work with you to discuss building it into a multiple-session workshop.
Topics we are interested in:
We’re open to whatever you think would be exciting and relevant for youth organizers. Some options we have discussed are: mutual aid history and practice, queer history, queer sex-ed, mental health in movement work, global perspectives in queer activism, disability justice and accessibility, alternatives to policing and police abolition, anti-trans bills and activism, gender justice, racial justice, sustaining activism
Compensation: We are able to offer $150 for youth-led workshops. We ask adult presenters to donate their time and expertise in this way but can discuss alternatives if that would be prohibitive for you.
Alternate ways to support: If you don’t have the capacity for a workshop, but still want to support- help us spread the word, invite your community, and share our posts on Instagram!
Rise Up! is a free, online conference that explores what it means to be a young queer organizer today. The conference is open to any queer, trans/ nonbinary and ally youth ages 13-24 years old, with access to the internet.
Workshops will focus on everything from the intersection of race and queerness, to creating sustainable activism, to exploring how we can expand our scope to include transformative and healing justice in our organizing. Our conference prioritizes the voices, organizing, and safety of black and brown queer and trans youth of color. Some topics we’ll cover are listed below:
In 2022, Rise Up! is planned in partnership with SMYAL, Freedom Oklahoma, Identity Inc, and the Pittsburgh Equality Center.
Have questions? Send an email to Zahra Wardrick for more information.
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