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Housing discrimination against LGBT+ individuals is disproportionate. Therefore, it is essential that we raise transparency and research how and why LGBTQ+ people face housing discrimination. In the city of Boston, people only have six months to report discrimination. So a policy that increases the time people have to report housing discrimination is something I strongly support. By requiring shelters to provide confidentiality, removing all gender-based check-in procedures, and allowing people more room choice, we can make our shelters more welcoming for members of the LGBTQ+ community. In addition to low-threshold housing options, I will advocate for more LGBTQI+ specific permanent and affordable housing provision, building on existing successes. All LGBTQ+ issues are intersectional, and this issue is directly tied to our current policy platform. Learn more about my plan to support healthy and affordable housing.
Our schools must teach inclusion and acceptance of LGBTQ+ people in Boston Public Schools, but the district can do more. Through their curriculum, schools can educate and build solidarity between students by teaching about LGBTQ+ history. We have the opportunity to create inclusive spaces for learning in BPS, and we can do this by:
advocating for all-gender bathrooms that are easily accessible to all students
making it easier for students to change their name and gender marker on official and unofficial documents.
Supporting LGBTQ+ inclusive Sex Education.
I will call for student input and review all BPS curriculum to facilitate LGBTQ+ friendly courses and environments.
One recent BPS graduate reported that the lack of an LGBTQ+ curriculum in his classes negatively hurt his mental health, and I will fight to ensure that LGBTQ+ students’ feel represented at school.
LGBTQ+ people face significantly higher mental health issues, including depression, PTSD, suicide, and addiction. We must dramatically increase mental health support for the LGBTQ+ community. We can do this by ensuring mental health professionals, not police, respond to mental health emergencies and making LGBTQ+ mental health services accessible throughout the city, including in the shelters and other community-based locations. I support expanding access to free HIV/STI testing and essential medications such as PrEP and will call for funding to be set aside for these resources.
Our LGBTQ+ community in Boston is strong and we can do more to support deeper community and culture building. By committing to support community centers, such as the GLASS Center and Boston Alliance of Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, & Transgender Youth (BAGLY) we can provide opportunity for LGBTQ+ people to build community and connect. Beyond these centers, we need to ensure local venues and institutions vital to the LGBTQI+ community are not lost. For instance, institutions like Bella Luna, a D6 restaurant that held many LGBTQ+ centered events, which permanently closed last year is a great loss to the arts and culture scene in our neighborhoods. I hope to work with the BPDA, MOAC, and Department of Neighborhood Development to ensure that LGBTQ+ institutions are protected and expanded.
Despite Boston’s reputation as a progressive city, LGBTQ+ people still face discrimination and violence daily. To counter this, I propose two campaigns: one to prevent discrimination and hate crimes and another to help LGBTQ+ people in the wake of discrimination. To prevent bias, we must teach acceptance of LGBTQ+ people in our schools and communities and build up our bystander intervention capacities so that allies can intervene if they see violence occurring. We can strengthen our follow-up LGBTQ+ people after discrimination has occurred, making it easier for people to report discrimination or a hate crime and provide mental and physical support to the victims. I will call for community input to make sure the resources match the need to report discrimination easily and non-traumatic way.
If we genuinely want to protect our LGBTQ+ neighbors, we must commit to investing in community safety. LGBTQ+ people are three times more likely to be incarcerated than the general population, and 40% of LGBTQ+ people report harassment by police officers. In collaboration with organizations already serving queer and trans incarcerated people, I will advocate for a commission to study the health and safety of incarcerated members of the LGBTQ+ community. It is also essential to decriminalize and destigmatize sex work, as many sex workers are LGBTQ+, often trans, and often low-income people of color. Despite the disproportionate effects of criminalizing sex work on LGBTQ+ people, our city has never directly reckoned with its role in perpetuating anti-LGBTQ+ sentiments and policies. I will also work with LGBTQ+ organizations and events to provide resources for the development of alternative safety practices. You can learn more about my community safety plan here.
Paid for by The Committee to Elect Kendra Hicks. All Rights Reserved © 2020.