Being gay today isn't so difficult as it used to be. Today, there are many organizations and materials that can shed light to a person going through gender identity crisis. But despite having said that, many children still go through harrowing times in their lives as they discover their true selves. They also become victims of bullying. Some parents are also unsure what to do with their children who are showing signs of personality crisis.
Below is a list of organizations that focus on the LGBT community, including the normal issues that our youth faces. These organizations offer support for parents, children, and anyone who has questions about being gay. These organizations also provide services like counseling and support for mental and emotional health issues.
OutProud: OutProud is a great resource website for anyone looking for gay materials and community support. It is a website for the National Coalition for Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, & Transgender Youth. It provides advice how to meet gays, top movies to watch related to the LGBT community and culture, and dating affiliate sites for adults.
Gay Teen Forum: This is a forum site for teenage gays where a member can choose a thread based on his interest. Topics are created by its users and topics range to a wide variety of interests—from politics to movies to entertainment. It is great for individuals who want to interact with other gays around the world.
Gay Family Support: this is a great website for parents who have gay children. It provides an overview of what and how being gay is; it offers many articles to help parents understand what their gay children are going through. It also provides statistical facts and some links that will take you to other organizations that support the LGBT community.
The Trevor Project: this organization specializes in counseling for troubled individuals, specifically those in the LGBT community. It offers suicide prevention through different channels or those who are facing deep, personal crisis. Apart from counselling, the organization also offers others the opportunity to be a part of its mission by volunteering.
Being Gay Is Okay: This is a UK organization that is focused on providing practical advice to those who are suffering negativity by being gay. It helps members of the LGBT community feel better about themselves, especially those who became victims of bullying. It offers reading materials about relationship and sex, common problems that one is likely to face, and articles about mental health.
GLBT National Resource Database: This site is mainly a database of information that can show you LGBT organizations throughout the country. It offers information on social support, local gay support services, youth groups, and community centers near you. It is financially supported by the GLBT National Help Center, but it also accepts donations.
All Sorts Youth Project: This is a UK-based organization dedicated to individuals under 26 years of age. It provides support to lesbian, bisexual, gay, and those who are unsure. They also provide support for parents who need advice or parents who need to meet with other parents of gay children.
Teen Line: This is a webpage that provides call and text services for counselling. It was established in 1980 as a non-profit organization that aims to help troubled teenagers. The goal is to provide intervention and counseling even before the problem blows out into a deep personal crisis.
GLAD: The name stands for Gay and Lesbian Advocates and Defenders. This is an organization that not only provides news about the LGBT community but also aims to end discrimination against gays. Apart from that, the organization is active in educating and helping reduce HIV among the LGBT population.
Go Ask Alice: This organization offers a question and answer program. The operators welcome all kinds of questions ranging from eyelashes to illegal drugs. It is not concentrated on the gay community exclusively; it offers a wide variety of support about work, mental and emotional health, and sex.
Llegó: This is also known as The National Latino, Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual & Transgender Organization. It caters mostly to Hispanic members of the LGBT community and legally goes by the name Hispanic Access Foundation or HAF. It is a non-profit organization that aims to help improve the lives of the LGBT Hispanics around the world. It provides education, motivation, and support systems for the Latino community.
Advocates for Youth: The mission of this organization is to partner with youth leaders and adults to champion the advocacies of the young people. It aims to provide honest sexual health information sexual to anyone who needs it. It also provides confidential and affordable services related to sexual health. The organization has been around since 1980 and is one of the few pioneers in youth sexual health development. It created the Life Planning Education in 1983, a sex education program that puts sexuality into real life context.
Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network: Also known as GLSEN, the organization aims to create safe educational institutions for all people, regardless of their sexual orientation. It has many locations all across the US and it provides resources to educators through lesson plans. It also teaches people in the academe how to make their schools safer to the LGBT community.
Coalition for Positive Sexuality: The website is good for casual information about being gay. It provides advice, resources, and links to other websites related to the plight of the LGBT community around the world. In general, the site promotes positivity towards being gay, lesbian, or bisexual.
Youth Guardian Services: This is a non-profit group that provides services to the LGBT community. Its only source of funds are donations from its members. The organization is currently working on different projects, one of which is the Gay-Friendly Healthcare Directory. It is a directory that will offer a list of counselors, therapists, and other mental health professionals catering to the needs of LGBT.
AntiJen Pages: This is a website that advances the advocacies of transgender. It provides advice, short stories, and articles generally revolving about the problems that transgender individuals face.