Pride & Joy at Old Home Day!
Londonderry C.A.R.E.S. hosted a tent space at Londonderry Old Home Day 2022 on the Common. With the theme “Celebrating Londonderry's Youth with Pride & Joy” our tent offered a creative, and celebratory space for the community to honor and support LGTBTQIA+ families here in town.
"Pride and Joy" offered guests an affirming space and an opportunity to connect with allies to proudly share stories of their family's LGBTQIA+ journey. Hundreds of visitors passed through the tent that day, but the most moving moments came from students expressing that for the first time, they felt seen and appreciated in the town of Londonderry.
Our space offered free mini rainbow totes and pins, flags, temporary tattoos, a photo booth, raffle, and a community art project which is now on display at Leach Library.
Through the exceptional generosity of this community, Londonderry C.A.R.E.S. has made a donation of $300 to the Londonderry High School chapter of the GSA. We look forward to raising continued awareness and support for our LGBTQIA+ youth and their families.
Why did C.A.R.E.S. choose to participate in OHD with this booth?
We felt this was a good opportunity to gain visibility within the community while contributing to the fun and family-friendly environment of the event. Our organization’s acronym stands for Community Advocating for Respectful & Equitable Schools, and we wanted to show support for students and educators about to begin the 2022-2023 school year. We recognize that recent anti-LGBTQIA+ legislation sweeping state houses across the country will negatively affect students and schools, so we want to ensure our local community feels seen and loved.
Why is it important to show support for LGBTQIA+ youth and families?
In the collective, affirming spaces make schools safer and more secure for EVERY learner. A positive school culture values all identities and provides an environment and climate inclusive and representative of the whole student body. These schools are able to demonstrate better outcomes in the areas of attendance, effort and participation, overall mental health, and academic performance. When all students feel accepted and discrimination is not tolerated, incidents of bullying are drastically reduced.
For the LGBTQIA+ student, affirming schools are life saving spaces. Students who are welcome to live authentically are able to invest their energies into the business of learning and personal growth rather than in desperate survival. Unencumbered by the mental health struggles surrounding bathroom assignments, misgendering, bullying, and micro-aggressions, these students can instead thrive alongside their peers.