Knowledge Base

November is Runaway and Homeless Youth Awareness Month. In honor of this month, Esperanza United (formerly Casa de Esperanza) is collaborating with the NW Network of Bisexual, Trans, Lesbian, and Gay Survivors of Abuse to present a webinar on Latin@ and LGBTQ youth realities and the intersections of violence, homelessness and unstable housing.

The NW Network of Bisexual, Trans, Lesbian, and Gay Survivors of Abuse is home to Project EQTY (Elevating Queer and Trans Youth), which is a 3 year project that is working to build the capacity of King County homeless youth service providers to better serve LGBTQ homeless and unstably housed youth. The barriers LGBTQ young people face when trying to access support services including housing, job training and other homeless related supports are vast. When homeless LGBTQ young people do not find competent services they are less likely to reach out and access supports essential to meeting their basic needs. Only through a combination of community support, culturally specific service providers and culturally competent mainstream services will all the needs of LGBTQ homeless youth be met. The NW Network will be sharing about their work to fill these gaps and prepare their regional partners to better serve LGBTQ youth in their community.