Safe Space ToolKit
Be an Ally
Updated: Feb. 2024. Spanish page here.
What is a Safe Space?
|
Only 55% of LGBTQ youth in Napa County report feeling safe in school. From 2019-2021, Live Healthy Napa County partners conducted ethnographic interviews, learning conversations, and focus groups to gain insight into Napa County community members’ sense of Respect and Social Inclusion (RSI). LGBTQ residents said they want a more open-minded, accepting, safe, and positive community that celebrates all, where there is no judgment. Many reported feeling “accepted but not included” in Napa. Live Healthy Napa County partners identified LGBTQ inclusion as a priority and created the Safe Space Kit project as a way to foster and support welcoming spaces for LGBTQ-identifying community members.
|
Safe Space Kits protypes distributed across the Napa County community.
|
While we can never ensure that any space is going to be “safe” and affirming one hundred percent of the time, a safe space is a place, group, or community that is intentionally working to affirm LGBTQ people.
- GLSEN, Safe Space Kit
Allyship
|
Anyone, regardless on their own gender identity and sexual orientation, can be an ally to the LGBTQ (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Queer/Questioning). An ally is a person who supports and advocates for LGBTQ people and educates themselves on issues that impact the LGBTQ community.
|
|
Roadmap to Inclusion
|
The Roadmap to Inclusion was developed in partnership with First 5 Napa County and LGBTQ Connection as a framework to creating inclusive spaces for LGTBQ community members. This document is based on local ethnographic interviews and serves as a prototype document that outlines best practices for creating inclusive spaces.
|
|
Napa Strong Enough
|
We are partnering with First 5 Napa County and LGBTQ Connection to develop trainings, resources, and visible forms of allyship for organizations in our county’s education, healthcare, businesses, restaurants, and winery sectors to support our community in becoming #NapaStrongEnough!
Learn more about the Napa Strong Enough Campaign. You can request a yard sign for your home, business, or space here or you can print out the sign here. By displaying this sign, we ask you to commit to standing up against racism, homophobia, sexism, xenophobia, ableism, transphobia, ageism and other hate. |
|
Best Practices to be an ally
The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) has bilingual resources that raises awareness about the challenges faced by LGBTQ+ youth. The best practices outline provide practical ways in which allies can help create welcoming environments that allow LGBTQ+ people to be their authentic selves. While these documents aim to encourage readers to create a more inclusive spaces for children, the best practices outlined apply to allyship everywhere.
Kit ResouRces
Are you looking for ways to start creating a space that is welcoming and accepting for everyone? Check out some tools that have been used in previous Safe Space kits iterations and similar alternatives; all resources are either free or low-cost.