In 2024, 574 new anti-LGBTQ+ bills were proposed in various states, the highest number of bills proposed in the past four years. Since 2020 the number of these anti-LGBTQ+ bills has been steadily rising, many of them being centered around queer youth within schools.
The increasing amount of anti-LGBTQ+ bills has had a significant impact on queer teens. According to a 2023 study by The Trevor Project, 53% of LGBTQ+ youth reported being verbally harassed because of their identities or perceived identities, with another 24% reporting being physically harmed or threatened that very year. Considering this, programs for LGBTQ+ youth at schools have become even more prominent and necessary.
Fort Hamilton’s own LGBTQ Club, Act Out, held a Q&A with PFLAG (Parents, Families, and Friends of Lesbians and Gays), an LGBTQ+ advocacy organization founded in 1973 and the nation’s largest organization dedicated to and focused on queer advocacy. According to the PFLAG speakers invited, Kayla and Shelby Hall Denney, coordinators of PFLAG’s Safe Schools Program, PFLAG has been booked for classes 2-3 years in a row.
The Safe Schools Program itself is centered on addressing LGBTQ+ issues in schools and helping LGBTQ+ students find support. According to Mx. Crimmins, one of Fort’s social workers and the advisor for Act Out, PFLAG closely partners with New York City Public Schools.
“I am in close contact with Shelby Hall Denney, an educator at PFLAG who said that Fort Hamilton is one of their favorite schools to visit!,” Mx. Crimmins said.
This partnership ties into Act Out’s broader mission. According to one senior member of Act Out who chose to remain anonymous, the club has been very important for queer youth at Fort Hamilton.
“When I was a freshman going to this club, I felt very safe and happy that a club like this existed and that I could meet other people like me,” they said. “Being able to be in this environment is very engaging and I really hope that this club can further continue after I graduate.”
With regards to this meeting in particular, Mx. Crimmins concurred, noting that many students appeared to greatly enjoy getting to meet the speakers.
“Their backstories were interesting and moving,” Mx. Crimmins said. “They are both from pockets of the south/midwest where communities and schools are not as supportive.”
At the meeting itself, Hall Denney began by introducing herself as well as PFLAG, delving into its history as an organization and the work that it has done and continues to do. She and Kayla discussed their personal experiences while growing up as LGBTQ+ youth and their experiences working in the teaching field while being queer. They also promoted the Safe Schools volunteer program to students. The second half of the event consisted of a Q&A for students to ask any questions that they had to the speakers.
Act Out holds similar events and meetings weekly, on Wednesdays, 10th period, and are currently working on a photography program with the Alice Austen House Museum on Staten Island.
