A Place of Respect A Guide for Group Care Facilities Serving Transgender + Gender Non-Conforming Youth
Transgender and gender non-conforming youth often face serious physical, emotional, and sexual abuse in group homes, detention centers, and correctional institutions. Because staff members are often unsure of how to provide respectful and supportive services to these youth, they may unwittingly subject them to situations that are discriminatory and harmful. This guide offers group care facilities information and tools to provide transgender and gender non-conforming young people with appropriate and informed care. It also describes laws requiring facilities to protect these youth from harassment and abuse, to provide them with appropriate medical care, and to treat them fairly. This publication helps staff understand the experiences and concerns of transgender and gender non-conforming youth, and explains how staff members can respond to these youths’ safety, programmatic, and health care needs in an informed and effective manner that meets facilities’ legal obligations. Finally, it provides administrators with a model policy and comprehensive practice guidelines to help keep transgender and gender non-conforming youth safe, prevent programmatic disruptions, and promote respectful and supportive environments for all youth.
