Pittsburgh's QUILTBAG Community 5 year Plan Meeting PART I

QUILTBAG: queer/questioning, unsure/undecided/unisex, intersex, lesbian, transgender/transsexual, bisexual, asexual/ally, gay/genderqueer

Event Background and Planning

So where did the idea to hold a 5-year-plan meeting come from anyway? The Initiative for Transgender Leadership was created to enable leadership and professional development for transgender youth in Pittsburgh.One of the goals of the fellowship is to create positive change in the community.

Furthermore, this October 13-15^th the Three Rivers Community Foundation will put on the first-ever Building Change: A Convergence on Social Justice conference [Registration is now open!], which will bring together community members to begin building a regional, cross-issue movement. One of the goals of the conference is to generate a community-generated Action Plan to build social justice movements in the region.

Additionally, on June 22^nd, representatives from organizations that serve the QUILTBAG community were invited to attend a workshop on “Creating a Successful Internship Program” with the Regional Internship Center (a program of Coro Pittsburgh). I led a discussion following the workshop on community assets and challenges, and how to create a better community through the use of successful internship programs. This conversation sparked interest for more group discussion on community issues.

Why not get started on creating an action plan for the QUILTBAG community? That way, our community can have something more complete to bring to the table at the conference. Generating these discussions also has a positive impact within the community: building coalitions, bringing community members into the same space to share ideas, creating a more comprehensive image of the community, etc.

More than 130 people were invited to the meeting to begin creating a 5 year plan for the QUILTBAG community. Invitees were encouraged to fill out a registration form that would give them an opportunity to RSVP as well as contribute ideas, even if they could not attend. Responses to “Top 3 Community Challenges” were added to a list that was available for attendees to draw ideas from.

Fifty-seven people attended the meeting at United Cerebral Palsy. Originally the meeting was to be held at the GLCC, but because of difficulties with the handicapped accessibility, it was decided to change the location.

Structure of the Meeting

            There was time for a mixer between 6:30 and 7pm and attendees could talk, schmooze, peruse fliers and resources, sign in, and eat snacks. The meeting itself ran from 7-9pm. Eight tables were set up with eight chairs for each. Markers and note-taking paper were provided.

            Etta C., Lizzie A. and I co-facilitated. Jessica M. provided ASL interpretation. Anne L. provided vegan/gluten-free/soy-free desserts. The meeting begun with introductions, a quick background, and setting the meeting ground rules (for example: speak from your own experience, notice who is talking and who isn’t). Attendees were asked to introduce themselves to the rest of their own tables to cut down on go-around time. Two shorter brainstorming activities generated ideas about what the QUILTBAG community is to us and where would we like it to be in 5 years. Participants were encouraged to think big. The longer activity asked participants to walk around and write down ideas on large paper based on central themes (generated by the registration forms). This was called a “Gallery Crawl”. After each activity, participants reported back to the group. At the end, we evaluated the meeting.