An interesting report on Rhode Island was just published. It's an enlightening read, especially to an expat like me... certainly dovetails with my growing up experience there.
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Karen Lee Ziner, Staff Writer, Providence Journal-Bulletin, 29 January 2004
www.projo.com/news/conten....345cfd.html
Report portrays diversity of RI gay community:
The Rhode Island Foundation's project offers the first informed look at the communities of lesbians, gays, bisexuals & transgender residents in the state
PROVIDENCE - Gays, lesbians and people with different gender identities form a significant demographic within Rhode Island's magnificent mix. They live in nearly every city and town, are generally well-educated, hard-working, and charitable with their time and money, a new report states.
They appreciate Rhode Island's progressive politics, the capital city's openly gay mayor, its large gay community, its beaches and culture. They are ethnically, racially and religiously diverse. They are parents, partners and soldiers.
And yet, the report states, they endure frequent harassment and discrimination -- at work, at school, on the street, in doctors' offices, in public places and in their places of worship. Some have experienced physical violence, or fear it, because of their sexual orientation.
The "Meet the Neighbors" report draws what is considered "a full-length portrait of Rhode Island's lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, transsexual, two-spirited (a Native American reference), queer and questioning individuals."
This marks the first major project by Equity Action, a permanent financing initiative established two years ago by the Rhode Island Foundation to support equal rights and treatment for lesbian, gay, bixsexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) residents in the state.
And, it apparently makes Rhode Island the first state to offer an informed look at those communities.
The Equity Action report will be released at noon today at the Rhode Island Foundation. Invited guests include Governor Carcieri, Providence Mayor David N. Cicilline, heads of state departments, legislators, gay and lesbian community leaders, heads of nonprofit organizations that serve gays and lesbians, and business leaders.
Equity Action's mission thrusts the Rhode Island Foundation -- as its umbrella agency -- into advocating civil rights for a constituency that the foundation's president and CEO says has often been marginalized.
"It seems way past due for the Foundation to stand up" for those rights, says president Ronald V. Gallo. "We like to consider ourselves the center of philanthropy in this region, so we want to be there," for these groups.
Despite a number of recent events, including the election of Cicilline -- Providence's first openly gay mayor; the appointment of a gay bishop to the Episcopal Church; and the decision in Canada to allow gay marriages, says Gallo, "we still have a climate of misconceptions and prejudice rather than understanding and compassion."
"This is all about quality of life for a set of constituencies," says Peter G. Hocking, Equity Action co-chairman and director of the Howard R. Swearer Center for Public Service at Brown University. "Clearly, issues of discrimination and human rights are at the core of this."
Hocking says Equity Action will challenge policymakers and government leaders to join in proposing "the best solutions and blueprints" to address the issues raised in "Meet the Neighbors," and to help bring equal protections for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer communities.
It will invite underfinanced nonprofit agencies that serve these communities to seek grants. And, Hocking adds, "we're looking for contributors. This is a permanent endowment," and a permanent commitment.
THE RHODE ISLAND Foundation created Equity Action in 2002, after the National Lesbian and Gay Community Funding Partnership challenged the Foundation to build a permanent endowment for the state's lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer communities.
The national partnership said that if the Foundation and Equity Action raised $200,000, it would contribute an additional $100,000.
So far, Equity Action and the Foundation have $85,000 in hand, and at least $25,000 more in pledges. Equity Action will begin accepting smaller grant proposals in March; the deadline for major grants is April 15.
Before launching Equity Action, the Rhode Island Foundation hired John Snow Inc., of Boston, to conduct "The Rhode Island LGBTQ Community Scan."
The survey drew responses from 371 people, and included interviews with 4 focus groups, 16 separate organizations, and 18 community leaders.
Individuals were not always easily reached.
"We knew there are a lot of invisible and hidden communities who wanted to get their voices heard," says Kris Hermanns, Rhode Island Foundation program director and Equity Action staff member.
"People held house parties where they could have a safe place" for confidential discussion, says Hermanns. Nearly half the respondents submitted answers electronically, and confidentially.
Survey takers reached out to people in rural areas and other isolated situations. They placed advertisements in the gay and mainstream press, on the Internet, and through mailings. They handed out fliers at the annual Gay Pride Parade, and posted them in libraries, grocery stores and gay-owned businesses.
The study "found an LGBTQ community that is largely Rhode Island-born, but more educated and fully employed than the 'average' Rhode Islander."
It found that these communities "look much like the rest of the state," diverse in age, gender, ethnic and racial background.
It found individuals who have created "lasting relationships and families," and who yearn for the same privileges and benefits -- such as domestic partnership and marriage -- as heterosexuals.
Why Rhode Island? the survey asked.
"The LGBTQ community here is accessible." "Gay-friendly." "I have found no overt prejudices to any sexual orientation." "Natural beauty of the shoreline." "It's such a friendly place." "Gay mayor."
Those people's priorities include ensuring safe schools for gay, lesbian and transgender youth, advocating for civil rights and protection, expanding access to health care, and recognizing the needs of elders in those communities.
Of the respondents:
One-third are Rhode Island born and bred; and more than half have lived in Rhode Island 15 years or more.
81.1 percent have obtained a bachelor's degree or higher, versus 25.6 percent of all Rhode Islanders. (The report notes that "as with similar studies, it is not known whether this is due to the limited population sampled, or if LGBTQ individuals are on the whole more likely to pursue higher education.")
11.4 percent were military veterans, versus 12.9 percent of Rhode Islanders and 12.7 percent nationwide.
77.2 percent work full- or part-time, versus 64.7 percent of all Rhode Islanders.
54 percent had volunteered in the past 12 months, versus 44 percent of all Rhode Islanders; 52 percent made charitable gifts to one or more organizations, versus the 33 percent of Rhode Islanders who claimed charitable deductions on their income-tax returns.
But despite those positives, lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer residents "are also regularly harassed or discriminated against," according to the report.
"This study contains numerous dismaying stories about the great fear of and irrational hatred toward LGBTQ individuals. An elderly lesbian recounts being told by the staff of her nursing home to hide her sexual orientation. A teenager reports being kicked out of her home and into the street when her family learned she was gay. Youths report they are afraid to go to school because of the level of harassment and threats of violence they face in Rhode Island's public education system," the report states.
That is why, according to Hocking, Equity Action will be knocking on legislators' doors, to gather people in power to its side in the fight for equal rights.
The survey will be used as a blueprint for action, and to develop the grant-giving program, says Hocking. "What we want to do is inspire the community. This ultimately is an empowerment strategy . . . the nonprofit sector no longer has to bury the dream. We're saying: 'Dream.' "
Copies of "Meet the Neighbors" can be obtained free of charge from The Rhode Island Foundation at www.rifoundation.org/equity-action, or by calling Kris Hermanns at (401) 274-4564.
A note on terminology:
- Queer: Originally used as a perjorative, used by gay and lesbian activists since the 1980s as a term of defiant pride.
- Transgender: Appearing as, wishing to be considered as, or having undergone surgery to become a member of the opposite sex.
- Two-spirited: A Native American term for transgender behaviors.
Source: American Heritage dictionary; Copyright, Belo Interactive, Inc.
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aNNa
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Karen Lee Ziner, Staff Writer, Providence Journal-Bulletin, 29 January 2004
www.projo.com/news/conten....345cfd.html
Report portrays diversity of RI gay community:
The Rhode Island Foundation's project offers the first informed look at the communities of lesbians, gays, bisexuals & transgender residents in the state
PROVIDENCE - Gays, lesbians and people with different gender identities form a significant demographic within Rhode Island's magnificent mix. They live in nearly every city and town, are generally well-educated, hard-working, and charitable with their time and money, a new report states.
They appreciate Rhode Island's progressive politics, the capital city's openly gay mayor, its large gay community, its beaches and culture. They are ethnically, racially and religiously diverse. They are parents, partners and soldiers.
And yet, the report states, they endure frequent harassment and discrimination -- at work, at school, on the street, in doctors' offices, in public places and in their places of worship. Some have experienced physical violence, or fear it, because of their sexual orientation.
The "Meet the Neighbors" report draws what is considered "a full-length portrait of Rhode Island's lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, transsexual, two-spirited (a Native American reference), queer and questioning individuals."
This marks the first major project by Equity Action, a permanent financing initiative established two years ago by the Rhode Island Foundation to support equal rights and treatment for lesbian, gay, bixsexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) residents in the state.
And, it apparently makes Rhode Island the first state to offer an informed look at those communities.
The Equity Action report will be released at noon today at the Rhode Island Foundation. Invited guests include Governor Carcieri, Providence Mayor David N. Cicilline, heads of state departments, legislators, gay and lesbian community leaders, heads of nonprofit organizations that serve gays and lesbians, and business leaders.
Equity Action's mission thrusts the Rhode Island Foundation -- as its umbrella agency -- into advocating civil rights for a constituency that the foundation's president and CEO says has often been marginalized.
"It seems way past due for the Foundation to stand up" for those rights, says president Ronald V. Gallo. "We like to consider ourselves the center of philanthropy in this region, so we want to be there," for these groups.
Despite a number of recent events, including the election of Cicilline -- Providence's first openly gay mayor; the appointment of a gay bishop to the Episcopal Church; and the decision in Canada to allow gay marriages, says Gallo, "we still have a climate of misconceptions and prejudice rather than understanding and compassion."
"This is all about quality of life for a set of constituencies," says Peter G. Hocking, Equity Action co-chairman and director of the Howard R. Swearer Center for Public Service at Brown University. "Clearly, issues of discrimination and human rights are at the core of this."
Hocking says Equity Action will challenge policymakers and government leaders to join in proposing "the best solutions and blueprints" to address the issues raised in "Meet the Neighbors," and to help bring equal protections for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer communities.
It will invite underfinanced nonprofit agencies that serve these communities to seek grants. And, Hocking adds, "we're looking for contributors. This is a permanent endowment," and a permanent commitment.
THE RHODE ISLAND Foundation created Equity Action in 2002, after the National Lesbian and Gay Community Funding Partnership challenged the Foundation to build a permanent endowment for the state's lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer communities.
The national partnership said that if the Foundation and Equity Action raised $200,000, it would contribute an additional $100,000.
So far, Equity Action and the Foundation have $85,000 in hand, and at least $25,000 more in pledges. Equity Action will begin accepting smaller grant proposals in March; the deadline for major grants is April 15.
Before launching Equity Action, the Rhode Island Foundation hired John Snow Inc., of Boston, to conduct "The Rhode Island LGBTQ Community Scan."
The survey drew responses from 371 people, and included interviews with 4 focus groups, 16 separate organizations, and 18 community leaders.
Individuals were not always easily reached.
"We knew there are a lot of invisible and hidden communities who wanted to get their voices heard," says Kris Hermanns, Rhode Island Foundation program director and Equity Action staff member.
"People held house parties where they could have a safe place" for confidential discussion, says Hermanns. Nearly half the respondents submitted answers electronically, and confidentially.
Survey takers reached out to people in rural areas and other isolated situations. They placed advertisements in the gay and mainstream press, on the Internet, and through mailings. They handed out fliers at the annual Gay Pride Parade, and posted them in libraries, grocery stores and gay-owned businesses.
The study "found an LGBTQ community that is largely Rhode Island-born, but more educated and fully employed than the 'average' Rhode Islander."
It found that these communities "look much like the rest of the state," diverse in age, gender, ethnic and racial background.
It found individuals who have created "lasting relationships and families," and who yearn for the same privileges and benefits -- such as domestic partnership and marriage -- as heterosexuals.
Why Rhode Island? the survey asked.
"The LGBTQ community here is accessible." "Gay-friendly." "I have found no overt prejudices to any sexual orientation." "Natural beauty of the shoreline." "It's such a friendly place." "Gay mayor."
Those people's priorities include ensuring safe schools for gay, lesbian and transgender youth, advocating for civil rights and protection, expanding access to health care, and recognizing the needs of elders in those communities.
Of the respondents:
One-third are Rhode Island born and bred; and more than half have lived in Rhode Island 15 years or more.
81.1 percent have obtained a bachelor's degree or higher, versus 25.6 percent of all Rhode Islanders. (The report notes that "as with similar studies, it is not known whether this is due to the limited population sampled, or if LGBTQ individuals are on the whole more likely to pursue higher education.")
11.4 percent were military veterans, versus 12.9 percent of Rhode Islanders and 12.7 percent nationwide.
77.2 percent work full- or part-time, versus 64.7 percent of all Rhode Islanders.
54 percent had volunteered in the past 12 months, versus 44 percent of all Rhode Islanders; 52 percent made charitable gifts to one or more organizations, versus the 33 percent of Rhode Islanders who claimed charitable deductions on their income-tax returns.
But despite those positives, lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer residents "are also regularly harassed or discriminated against," according to the report.
"This study contains numerous dismaying stories about the great fear of and irrational hatred toward LGBTQ individuals. An elderly lesbian recounts being told by the staff of her nursing home to hide her sexual orientation. A teenager reports being kicked out of her home and into the street when her family learned she was gay. Youths report they are afraid to go to school because of the level of harassment and threats of violence they face in Rhode Island's public education system," the report states.
That is why, according to Hocking, Equity Action will be knocking on legislators' doors, to gather people in power to its side in the fight for equal rights.
The survey will be used as a blueprint for action, and to develop the grant-giving program, says Hocking. "What we want to do is inspire the community. This ultimately is an empowerment strategy . . . the nonprofit sector no longer has to bury the dream. We're saying: 'Dream.' "
Copies of "Meet the Neighbors" can be obtained free of charge from The Rhode Island Foundation at www.rifoundation.org/equity-action, or by calling Kris Hermanns at (401) 274-4564.
A note on terminology:
- Queer: Originally used as a perjorative, used by gay and lesbian activists since the 1980s as a term of defiant pride.
- Transgender: Appearing as, wishing to be considered as, or having undergone surgery to become a member of the opposite sex.
- Two-spirited: A Native American term for transgender behaviors.
Source: American Heritage dictionary; Copyright, Belo Interactive, Inc.
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Boston
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RI demographics report...
Sat, January 31, 2004 - 8:50 PMStudy: Gays face daily discrimination
Jim Baron, Journal Register News Service: WoosocketCall.com, 01/29/2004
www.zwire.com/site/news.cfm
PROVIDENCE -- Despite being better educated, with better jobs, and more generous with their money and time to charitable and volunteer organizations, gays, lesbians and others with "different gender identities" are discriminated against regularly, in some cases daily, in schools, workplaces and places of public accommodation.
Those are some of the results of a six-month study called "Meet the Neighbors," conducted by the group Equity Action, established by the Rhode Island Foundation to support the equitable treatment of "lesbians, gays, bisexuals, transgender and queer individuals" -- LGBTQ, for short. The study was done by John Snow Inc., a Boston firm.
"Despite many positive events of the last few years -- including the election of a gay mayor in Providence, the appointment of a gay bishop to the Episcopal Church, and the decision in Canada to allow gay marriages --- we still have a climate of misconceptions and prejudice rather than understanding and compassion," said Ronald V. Gallo, president and CEO of the Rhode Island Foundation.
What is most insidious, says Rick Schwartz, the foundation's vice president for communications, is that even when there is good news for the LGBTQ community -- for instance, the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court's ruling in favor of gay marriage -- "instead of being happy they were scared. They can't really enjoy anything."
Scared, Schwartz explained, because whenever the news features events or issues favorable to the gay community "it unleashes the hounds -- very conservative organizations bring all their resources to bear" as a backlash to the good news.
"Anything you do that makes you stand out is going to get you hit down," Schwartz said.
Among other things, the online survey of 371 LGBTQ individuals, supplemented by discussions with community groups and non-profit organizations, will be used to determine the needs and priorities for funding for non-profit groups and agencies that serve LGBTQ clients.
Alex Gorriaran, co-chair of R.I. Pride who worked to assemble the survey, described it as "a snapshot of the GLB (gay, lesbian, bisexual) community. It will assist the general community in a general awareness of GLB concerns -- the demographics, the services that are needed and the discrimination that still exists. It is a valuable resource for state leaders, individuals and organizations on what the focus should be and what the needs are."
Schwartz said the Rhode Island Foundation has already collected about $85,000 toward a goal of $200,000 needed to get a $100,000 matching grant from the National Lesbian and Gay Community Funding Partnership (NLGCFP), a national organization offering the challenge to community foundations across the country. If the Rhode Island Foundation reaches $100,000, Schwartz said, NLGCFP will release the first $50,000 of the matching grant.
"The study was a necessary first step for Equity Action," said co-chair Nancy Hetherington, a former state representative. "Both the statistics and the anecdotal information in 'Meet the Neighbors' will instruct us how to make grants, where to prioritize our activities, and what the different LGBTQ communities identify as needs."
Most of the money will go directly into grantmaking, said Peter Hocking, Equity Action's other co-chair; the rest will establish a permanent endowment at the foundation to address LGBTQ issues in perpetuity.
Among the statistical findings in the "Meet the Neighbors" are:
• One third of those who responded to the questionnaire are Rhode Island born and bred; more than half (54 percent) have lived here 15 years or more;
• 85 percent are white/Caucasian, 5.4 percent black, and 4.3 percent Latino (versus 85 percent, 4.5 percent, and 8.7 percent, respectively, nationwide);
• 81.1 percent of the LGBTQ respondents have obtained a bachelor's degree or higher, versus 25.6 percent of all Rhode Islanders;
• 11.4 percent were military veterans, vs. 12.9 percent of Rhode Islanders and 12.7 percent nationwide;
• 77.2 percent work full or part-time versus 64.7 percent of all Rhode Islanders
• 65.8 percent had household incomes from $25,000 to $100,000, compared to less than the 70.9 percent nationwide rate, but 21.4 percent had incomes more than $100,000, versus 11.4 percent nationwide; and
• 54 percent had volunteered in the past 12 months, versus 44 percent of all Rhode Islanders; slightly more than half (52 percent) reported making charitable gifts to one or more organizations, versus the 33 percent of Rhode Islanders who claimed charitable deductions on their income tax returns.
Despite that, Hetherington said the survey reported that:
• One in 10 respondents said they experienced or witnessed homophobia or discrimination in the workplace at least monthly;
• One in three suffers discrimination on the street and/or at a public establishment; and
• 10 percent experience some form of discrimination by professionals.
"Virtually every respondent could point to act of bias, not once or twice in their lives, but in each and every year of their lives," said Hetherington.
"That translates to an oppressive daily living experience," added Hocking. "Another set of statistics from 'Meet the Neighbors' shows that LGBTQ individuals are afraid to reveal their sexual orientations or gender identities even to family members and non-LGBTQ friends."
Among the priorities listed by the survey respondents and the groups and agencies interviewed were ensuring safe schools and youth services, advocating for civil rights and protection, expanding access to welcoming health care, recognizing the needs of LGBTQ senior citizens, supporting families, creating a community/resource center and sustaining HIV services.
But, "Meet the Neighbors" reveals, of seven LGBT specific groups surveyed, five had no paid staff, two had no operating funds while three had assets less than $50,000.
"The front line will be the organizations working directly on these issues," said Hetherington. "Whether it's YouthPride dealing with the fragile period of adolescence, Gay and Lesbian Advocates and Defenders (GLAD) pressing on the political concerns, Senior Action in a Gay Environment (SAGE) ensuring the dignity of our seniors, or AIDS Project Rhode Island protecting the health of all people against the crisis of AIDS, the battle for equity is fought by the organizations who address these issues every day."
©The Call 2004
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