Beyond Priscilla by Daniel Witthaus

Author:Daniel Witthaus [Witthaus, Daniel]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Social Issues
ISBN: 9781742983912
Publisher: Clouds of Magellan
Published: 2014-01-08T00:00:00+00:00

Day 135

Tuesday, 6th July – Brisbane QLD

‘This year we’ve had young people coming out at 13, 14 and 15.’

It took me about 25 minutes to ride my bike from Denis’ in Lutwyche down to Fortitude Valley, or ‘The Valley’ as locals call it. I brought my 1970s Toyosha (Toyota Auto Company) racer along in the hope of riding as much as I could around the various locales I visit. Brisbane is perfect for this with a range of bike paths to and from the city.

I’m now having a cuppa with Steph, who runs Open Doors Youth Services, a Brisbane-based service providing support for LGBT young people.

Open Doors did just that recently, Steph explains, with 45 young people coming along, 17 of them for the very first time. Steph, other workers and Open Doors regulars were on hand to make everyone feel as welcome as possible. To the surprise of some, there were parents in attendance.

‘Recently a dad turned up to the Open Day with his 15-year-old son … He didn’t come out to them, tthey actually found out he was gay, because there was porn on the computer at home … They said to him, We don’t mind if you’re gay, it’s really OK, but please don’t look at porn on the computer because it means there will be [computer] viruses. But you need to meet some other young people and get some information. I was like, Oh my god, I love you guys. You are amazing. I told them that usually parents are the last people to know. They said, Yeah, we love our kid, but we see he’s struggling. ’

Yet for all the great work that they do, Open Doors struggles like so many LGBT organisations to maintain funding and services. Despite the fact that they are not funded to do so, Open Doors feels pressure as the peak LGBT Youth organisation for Queensland. Between direct support, advocacy, research, community development and requests for professional development there is a lot of need that cannot be met.

‘We’re not funded to do that, but … we struggle to get any funding. There is currently no LGBT service funded at a state level. There is a lack of recognition of LGBT young people’s needs, and that this should be recognised with significant funding. Sometimes mainstream organisations are more successful when they have their brand behind them, such as Relationships Australia and headspace. We are a gay organisation so we struggle for legitimacy a bit and are thought to have an agenda.’

Still, Steph pinches herself sometimes.

‘I love being out in every aspect of my life with young people because I couldn’t do that in other organisations in my other roles. I sort of fell into the work, but I love it. You start to see them becoming the adult they are going to be. I think a lot of adults forget how tough it can be to be a teenager. I love their energy and want to see them get through their ‘shit’ years.

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