Free gender-affirming community and support space for parents of gender queer kids to connect with other parents and feel less alone in the struggle to defend our children's rights and support their mental health.

Twice monthly, free, virtual, live, 1 hour gatherings

FAQ:

• We affirm our childrens' gender identities and expressions as they communicate them to us. If you're struggling to understand your child's gender and want support in coming to acceptance, you're welcome. If you want to convert/fix/force your child to conform to their gender assigned at birth, this is not the space for you.

• We use “gender queer” as an inclusive term for the many identities children may hold regarding gender. Parents of children who do not conform to their gender assigned at birth are welcome, whether the child identifies as trans, non-binary, non-conforming in their gender expression, etc.

• Your child does not need to be transitioning medically to join us. Any parent of a child with a non-cis gender identity is welcome.

• You don't have to have the spoons to support others right now- that's the point of community, among us all, there will be enough for everyone.

• You can have kids of any ages. We think building community before you actually have kids is important, and we think staying in community and sharing your wisdom when you're no longer day-to-day parenting is valuable too.

• This group is friendly to parents of any gender orientation, and also to intersectional identities of parents and/or children, including queer and neurodiverse identities.

• I have a background as a breastfeeding peer counselor and conscious parenting coach and believe that healthy relationships are foundational to building a better world. I believe that with good support people find their way to what is best for them and their families.

• This is not a therapy group, and is not a substitute for individual support for you and your child(ren)

Group Norms:

• Lead with Compassion, Curiosity, and Respect: We hold space for each other without judgement, offering unsolicited advice, interrupting, or trying to fix each other. At all times we respect and honor group members’ identities. If something someone shares touches something tender for you, please ask for additional support from a group leader.

• Boundaries and Consent: Boundaries and consent are foundational to this group as in all relationships. Do not DM anyone other than a group leader without public permission. Only an explicit ‘yes’ is a yes. You do not have to answer any question or share any information that you are uncomfortable with.

• Take care of yourself and your needs: Feel free to turn off video, move around, attend to children, etc to care for yourself. However, as much as you are able, being present and on video helps to foster the connection and community feeling of the group.

• Confidentiality: Anything shared in the group stays in the group. Ask permission before sharing anything shared with anyone else. If you see group members in public, please consider how you interact with them, as not all members may be “out” in all situations.

• Accountability: Know your intent, own your impact. We all make mistakes and blunders, however, it is expected that all members will repair any harm caused (even unintentionally) and use the opportunity of accountability to grow. Any intentional harm IE bullying, will not be tolerated. We reserve the right to remove anyone if necessary.

• Purpose of the Group: This is a space for community building for parents. It is not a space to promote yourself.

• Conscious Parenting: We believe that consent is foundational to parent-child relationships just as it is in adult relationships. As such, responses to parenting questions should include sovereignty and respect for the child. We do not condone coercive, manipulative, or violent parenting techniques.

Hi, I’m Jen.

I support parents of gender queer kids because I have a gender non-conforming child of my own, and I kept having a conversation over and over with friends- in which they shared the struggles and hard work they were putting in to protect and advocate for their children- and these conversations always ended with “I just feel like I’m all alone doing this in isolation and nobody really gets it.”

We don’t have to fight in isolation. Community is resistance.

We deserve to live lives deeply rooted in community and connection, in which we feel seen, understood, and unconditionally supported. We deserve space and care as parents to sustain us as we work to support our children.

We deserve parenting support that sees our children as whole and valuable for exactly who they are. We deserve trauma informed relationship support that holds compassion for every person and supports unique solutions for our unique needs.

We deserve to be seen, not only as parents of gender queer kids, but with all of the other marginalized identities that we and our children often hold, including neurotype, sexual orientation, race, etc. Your identities will never be pathologized here.