QTAY Peer Leader Training Manual

QTAY

1........Land Acknowledgement (Inspired by “Living Hyphen”) Section 1: Welcome to QTAY 3........Who We Are 4........What We Do 5........A Message from Your Youth Coordinator (Gabriel Bacani) Section 2: Preface 6........The Purpose of Training 7........The Manual 7........Room to Grow: Our Language and Limitations Section 3: Peer-Leadership Skills 8........Introduction MODULE 1: Boundaries and Consent 10........Objective 10........Physical, Mental and Emotional Boundaries 11........Defining Roles/ Boundaries 12........Clarifying and Conveying Your Capacities 12........Self-Disclosure 13................Reflection Questions 13................Activity MODULE 2: Anti-Oppression 14........Objective 14........Anti-Oppression in the Workplace 18........Unconditional High Regard 19................Reflection Questions 19................Activity

MODULE 3: Navigating Emotional Triggers in the Workplace 20........Objective 21........Holistic Check in 22........Bracketing 23........Debriefing 24................Reflection Questions 24................Activity MODULE 4: Peer Support & Active Listening 25........Objective 26........Open Ended Questions, Affirm, Reflect, Summary (OARS) 27........Potential Communication Blocks 29........Common Worries 30................Reflection Questions 30................Activity MODULE 5: Group Facilitation 31........Objective 31................STEP 1: Pre-Mortem 32................STEP 2: Pre-Planning/ Before the Workshop 33................STEP 3: During the Workshop 34................STEP 4: After the Workshop 34........................Reflection Questions 34........................Activity MODULE 6 : HIV/AIDS Awareness and Harm Reduction 35........Objective 35........What is HIV/AIDS? 36........How can HIV/AIDS be Transmitted and Prevented?

37........Addressing Stigma in our Language 39................Reflection Questions 39................Activity

Section 4: Virtual Community Building 40........Virtual Community Building Strategies 40................STRATEGY 1: Finding the Right Online Platform 41................STRATEGY 2: Confidentiality and Safety 42................STRATEGY 3: Digital Platform Accessibility 43................STRATEGY 4: Facilitating Online Discussions Section 5: Peer Leader Testimonials 44........Introduction 45........Purpose and Objective 45................Joy Wong 46................Zack Amirat 47................Imogen Tam 48................Tim Salinas Section 6: Final Thoughts 49........Conclusion 49........Donation Page 50........Thank You/ Acknowledgements Section 7: Resources 51........Youth Resources 51........Youth and Counselling 51........Crisis Intervention 52........Tkaronto/Toronto LGBTQ+ Asian Community Spaces and Organizations 53........Sexual Assault 54........Sexual Health

The land we gather on is the subject of the One Dish, One Spoon Wampum Belt Covenant, an agreement between the Iroquois Confederacy and Confederacy of the Ojibwe and allied nations to peaceably share and care for the resources around the Great Lakes. Many know this land under its colonial name of Toronto, Ontario, Canada.

QTAY is a collective made up of LGBTQ+ East and Southeast Asian youth, a community made up largely of diasporas from different parts of Asia. Colonization is an ongoing process that continues to inflict violence on Indigenous lands, cultures, and bodies, and as our program continues to grow, we hope to remain vigilant in reminding ourselves of colonization's prevalence and persistence in our communities.

We also want to acknowledge that in addition to being an organization and community on stolen land, what is now known as Canada and the US was built by Black people who were stolen from their own homelands and who continue to be disproportionately targeted, incarcerated, and brutalized under our white supremacist institutions.

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We commit to continuously (un)learning our role and responsibility in the genocide, displacement, and theft of land from the Indigenous peoples across the land known as Canada. We commit to the uncomfortable and necessary work of addressing the Asian community’s role in perpetuating standards of white supremacy that result in systemic violence against Black and brown bodies.

In the words of the Anti-Oppression Network, being an ally is “not an identity—it is a lifelong process of building relationships based on trust, consistency, and accountability with marginalized individuals and/or groups of people. Allyship is not self-defined—our work and our efforts must be recognized by the people we seek to ally ourselves with.”

We hope that you, and all those who consider themselves members of our community, continue journeying with us and holding us accountable to the truths of allyship and solidarity outlined in this manual.

This Land Acknowledgement was heavily influenced and inspired by the “Living Hyphen’s” solidarity statement (https://livinghyphen.ca/solidarity), with guidance from Dené Sinclair (Ojibwe-Anishinaabe) and the Indigenous Tourism Association of Canada.

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On World AIDS Day, December 1, 1994, three groups serving the Southeast Asian community members affected by AIDS formed Asian Community AIDS Services (ACAS), a new coalition agency in Toronto. A new agency to meet the needs and be the voice of the East and Southeast Asian community. Queer and Trans Asian Youth (QTAY), formerly known as Queer Asian Youth (QAY), is an extension of ACAS. We are a charitable, non-profit organization made by and for queer and trans Asian youth in Toronto, Canada.

QTAY provides social support and programming that facilitates resiliency for LGBTQ+ East and Southeast Asian youth in Toronto who face various social/health challenges and questions that relate to their cultural, sexual and gender identity. Here at QTAY we define resilience as a way to develop and nurture skills, behaviours and a sense of belonging to help empower youth to address the stressors (i.e. anti-Asian racism and homophobia) that come along with their LGBTQ+ East and Southeast Asian identity.

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QTAY plans, organizes and facilitates skill building workshops, discussions, drop-ins and talks that address important topics that intersect with the LGBTQ+ East and Southeast Asian youth Identity. Some topics we cover are: mental health, peer support, active listening, chosen family, anti-blackness within the Asian community, sexual health, harm reduction and much more, all from an anti-oppressive framework.

This manual speaks specifically to a four-year-long community project we call the “When You’re Ready (WYR)” Program. Run by a group of peer leaders, this program consists of 8-sessions that run 3 times a year. The objective of the WYR program is to empower youth by increasing their peer-support networks, problem-solving skills, and stress-coping skills by addressing the social and mental health challenges unique to their LGBTQ+ Asian youth identity.

QTAY is an important ethnocultural space because it is the only organization, in all of Ontario, that focuses its programming on the LGBTQ+ East and Southeast Asian youth identity. Aside from experiencing anti-Asian racism within and outside of the LGBTQ+ community, queer and trans Asian youth are negatively impacted by the “model minority myth.” The model minority myth is the stereotype that Asians are subservient, docile and smart (mostly, in the field of sciences), and therefore, Asians are a minority that other minorities should follow suit. In addition to the harm it has caused Asian communities, this narrative perpetuates division between Asians and other cultural minority groups*, especially the Black community. At QTAY we address and discuss these kinds of challenges by creating safer spaces where LGBTQ+ Asian youth can connect with each other and celebrate the many intersections of their identity. *https://time.com/5859206/anti-asian-racism-america/

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My name is Gabriel Marie Borromeo Bacani, a queer second generation Pinoy. My parents immigrated from the Philippines to Tkaronto, where I was born and am now a settler on the traditional territory of the Mississaugas of the New Credit people and the Anishinaabe nation.

I want to first thank our elders and legacies who have fought for and founded ACAS and the people who continue to nurture it. I also want to express gratitude to Joy Wong for beautifully designing this manual and making it look and feel like “home,” and Psalm Tesalona for editing the content to make everything flow seamlessly.

Being queer and Asian has definitely shaped how I navigate and interact with others within the LGBTQ+ and Asian communities. I found that some spaces were either “too white” or not queer enough. Coming into QTAY, I was able to meet others who understood the subtle nuances of my queer Asian intersectional identity. As I immersed myself in the QTAY community, I learned so much about myself and the importance of having a space where the LGBTQ+ Asian youth identity is celebrated.

I am hoping this guide will provide future and current QTAY Peer Leaders some comfort through affirmations, valuable insights and techniques that have been utilized in the past 4 years at QTAY. I hope this guide book encourages youth to challenge themselves, create safer spaces, grow and mobilize.

This guide book is something I wish I had while navigating community work, and now, I am hoping you, as the reader, can take whatever “gems” you find in this booklet.

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We must all try to do our best to be better, do better, and know better as we navigate the complex systems that surround us…

QTAY recruits and trains Peer Educators to assist with developing, organizing and facilitating skill and community-building workshops and drop-ins for other LGBTQ+ Asian youth. Needing to create a safer space by making it as accessible as possible, facilitating discussions so no one feels triggered into panic and managing the emotions in the space, can take a lot of mental, physical and emotional labour from the Peer Educators. While acknowledging the challenges that might arise for someone a part of the LGBTQ+ community, it is important to remember the unique social, mental and emotional challenges that might affect racialized people (Black, Indigenous, people of colour (BIPOC)). For example, a white gay cis man can experience homophobia, while an Asian gay cis man can experience racism and homophobia. This manual will approach these different training modules to address the intersectional identity of queer and trans Asian youth, and how they can create safer community spaces for other QTAY.

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This manual consists of 3 main parts: (1) basic skills for being a QTAY Peer Educator, (2) insights from past Peer Educators and (3) mental and social community resources for youth. We encourage you to interact with this manual by responding to the self-reflection questions and activities included in each training module in the “Peer Leadership Skills” portion of the manual in Section 3. This manual is to be used as an accompaniment to the QTAY Peer Leader training sessions. These modules are starting points for all who feel called to community organizing, and are meant to be paired with your own research on what compassionate and critical leadership looks like to you. One way you can explore how compassion and critical leadership look to you is by reaching out to community workers, leaders and elders as you continue to grow in your understanding of community work and mobilization.

This manual has been informed by 4 years worth of evaluations and feedback from peer educators, partnering organizations and community members from the QTAY community. We are aware of the fact that we are a diverse community with varying viewpoints and experiences, so if this manual does not speak to you or your personal practices and beliefs, that is okay.

If you feel compelled to provide us with feedback, personal insights, experiences and strategies, please be in conversation with us at youth@acas.org.

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So, what does it take to be a ‘Peer Leader’?

In this section, we will be talking about skill-sets, behaviours and practices that might help someone serve their communities with greater confidence. These are skills former QTAY Peer Leaders have developed that we have compiled for your reading. We hope their insight helps you feel better prepared as you navigate your role as a community worker for other queer and trans East and Southeast Asian youth. This section provides snippets into 5/10 training workshops peer leaders must undergo before assuming their roles. This section is a skill-sharing of practical techniques, strategies and insights from former QTAY Peer Leaders.

Being a QTAY Peer Leader can be both very fulfilling and challenging. Navigating community work can sometimes feel uncomfortable; your existing thoughts on certain social issues can be challenged and creating a space where folks can feel safe to express themselves can be emotionally, mentally and physically laborious. At QTAY, we encourage youth to lean into this discomfort, while being aware of their own mental, emotional and physical limits and capacities.

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1. Why is serving the LGBTQ+ Asian youth community important to you?

2. What does being a QTAY Peer Leader mean to you? What does it look like to you?

Reach out to community leaders, workers and/or elders and have a conversation with them on (1) how and why they got into community work, (2) challenges and successes they’ve experienced and (3) words of advice for someone going into community work.

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This module covers strategies and techniques to help assert and maintain your boundaries to effectively navigate the LGBTQ+ Asian community as a QTAY Peer Leader.

As a QTAY Peer Leader, serving a community you identify with can make it hard for others and yourself to distinguish between your role as a community service provider (Peer Leader) and being a community member. When assuming the Peer Leader role, people can approach you, outside of your workplace, and place unrealistic expectations on you. This blurring of the boundary between your professional and personal identity can stem from several different factors. Some common factors to be aware of while interacting with youth participants are: Power Dynamics: Even outside of your role as a Peer Leader, youth service users can confuse your professional identity with your personal identity, sometimes unknowingly.

So, the “power” and authority you carry in the professional space can sometimes permeate into more casual spaces and environments.

Favouritism: Connecting with a youth participant, outside of the professional space, in a friendly way and bringing that relationship dynamic into workshops or sessions, can impact how you interact with them as a Peer Leader. Sometimes, we can be unaware of how our own biases can inform how we interact with others, and how it can be consciously observed by others.

While interacting with youth participants as a Peer Leader, you want to be aware of the responsibilities your role entails both inside and outside of our professional space. You can get this clarity and awareness of your role by having a conversation with your supervisor, which will be an activity at the end of this module!

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Another important aspect of boundary-setting is “consent.”

Consent in boundary-setting can look like asking someone’s permission to ask and/or do something that may impact them.

Consent is an ongoing process, something that can change and be revised over-time. Practicing the habit of asking people for their consent and regularly checking in on their boundaries, can help facilitate an environment of trust.

Below are some examples of how you can assert your boundaries, and things to keep in mind while asserting them: Physical, Mental and Emotional Boundaries Consent and boundaries are just as important in our emotional behaviours and mental interactions (i.e. asking for consent before unloading an intense experience on someone, whether they be your co-workers, peers or service users), as they are in our physical interactions (i.e. asking for consent before hugging someone).

Defining Roles/ Boundaries Identify your responsibilities, capacities and limitations, so you can clearly convey your role as a Peer Leader to others! Some ways you can achieve this are: Asking your supervisor for clear and explicit deliverables, responsibilities and expectations of your role. This will make it easier for you to operate within your boundaries and to convey them to others!

I.e. “Hi everyone, my role as a QTAY Peer Leader is to facilitate and mediate discussions in today’s session. If you have any questions related to today’s session, please feel free to ask or email me!”

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Clarifying and Conveying Your Capacities If there is any confusion about whether someone is approaching you as a Peer Leader or community member, you can openly and explicitly ask for that clarification. This clarity is important to get because it will inform and set the parameters in which you can interact with them.

Approaching someone as a Peer Leader means that you must follow QTAY protocol (i.e. messaging your supervisor to give them a heads up about the interaction and making sure you document the interaction). You can also convey whether or not you’re in the mental and/or emotional space to engage with them at this level.

I.e. “Hey, are you approaching me as a Peer Leader or community member?”

(If a service-user is approaching you as a Peer Leader outside of your workspace) “Hey, thank you for sharing that with me, I will get back to you the next time I’m in the office!”

Self-Disclosure When interacting with others who are accessing your services, think about what you are choosing to disclose about yourself.

Ask the primary question: “Does this self-disclosure serve this service user’s best interest?”

I.e. If a youth service user is disclosing personal challenges with accessing mental health services during a one-on-one meeting with you, and inquires about your experience, you can choose to disclose your own journey with navigating mental health institutions, if you are in a mental and emotional space to do so. Afterwards, if the youth service user is open to it, you can share some mental health resources with them.

Sometimes, exchanging experiences and “stories” with one another can create a sense of connection, community and belonging.

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1. What are some of your own physical, mental and emotional boundaries as a Peer Leader?

2. What are ways you can convey your physical, mental and emotional boundaries to (a) youth participants, (b) the other Peer Leaders in your team and (b) to your supervisor?

3. What are ways you can reduce power dynamics and avoid favoritism while interacting with (a) youth participants and (b) co-workers.

Make a list of all your duties, responsibilities and expectations as a QTAY Peer Leader with your supervisor. Review and familiarize yourself with your list and reflect on how these duties, responsibilities and expectations look and feel like to you as a Peer Leader. Also, ask your supervisor about how these responsibilities and expectations as a community leader might impact you outside of the professional space!

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This module provides strategies and techniques to help facilitate a safer and more inclusive space for LGBTQ+ Asian youth to comfortably engage with others and the workshop objective.

We approach the anti-oppressive practice from how we have utilized it within our program (QTAY) and organization (ACAS).

Extending a genuine effort to understand and operate from an anti-oppressive framework is essential to making services more inclusive, accessible and safe. Making a space safer and more accessible, requires ongoing reflection on structures of oppression like gender-norms (being limited to what society deems as acceptable “male” or “female” behaviour and expression) and ableism (prioritizing the needs of folks who are able bodied and neurotypical over folks who are disabled or neurodiverse). When you are making spaces gender neutral and accessible, you are already tackling certain forms of oppression. Incorporating these practices in a community space might look like and involve: Name Tags and Pronouns Asking for people’s pronouns can help prevent people assuming people’s genders based on how they physically present themselves. This can also create awareness of the different gender identities, outside of the binary. It is also good to give folks the option to “pass” on disclosing their pronouns, as it can be an uncomfortable thing to share in a group setting. If a youth participant passes on disclosing their pronouns on their name tag, the best thing to do is to refer to them by their name!

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A Collaborative set of Group Norms Creating group norms or ground rules collectively can help facilitate accountability to the space and each other. Creating group norms can help everyone feel safer and more comfortable to engage with the content material. An example on how “Ground Rules” can look written out is: Respect: Respecting people’s pronouns, emotional and physical boundaries and people’s opinions (understanding that there are multiple truths).

Self-Care: Making sure to attend to any physical needs (eating, drinking water, going to the washroom) and/or emotional needs (stepping out or reaching out to QTAY staff if you’re feeling overwhelmed).

Confidentiality: Everything that is shared in this space must stay in this space.

If you want to share anyone’s experiences, ask that person for consent.

Share-the-air: In discussions, be aware of the “space” you take up.

If you are someone who talks a lot, you can use your extraversion and passion to encourage others to contribute to the discussion If you are someone who is more reserved, try challenging and pushing yourself to contribute to the discussion, within your capacity.

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Addressing Oppressive Sentiment Addressing oppressive sentiment right away can show the group that there is zero tolerance for problematic behavior, and can turn these incidents into “teachable moments.”

Teachable moments, at QTAY, look like engaging someone for problematic or harmful behaviour, with “unconditional high-regard,” something that we will be exploring more in the section below.

When engaging with someone under the premise of unconditional high-regard, we can collaboratively focus on dismantling the problematic and harmful behaviour, in a way that allows everyone in the space to learn from it.

Gender-neutral Signage In some spaces, there are washrooms that are only designated for “males” or “females.” This can make folks who don’t identify with the binary feel excluded and invalidated. One thing you can do, is to create makeshift signage to cover the male and female signs.

You can write on your gender-neutral signage “washroom with stalls and urinals” and “washroom with stalls and no urinals.” This is something you may want to check-in and/or advocate for with your building management, if the washrooms are being used by folks outside of your organization.

Access Needs Before or at the beginning of your workshop or session, you want to provide folks with the opportunity to share any accessibility needs that they may have (more information on this in Module 5: Group Facilitation).

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Some of the ways you can ask for participant’s access needs are: Giving them the option to message you in advance with any access needs (mental/emotional/physical needs) and dietary restrictions to share with the larger group.

Creating an anonymous “access needs” box, situating it in an inconspicuous part of the room and leaving papers and pens for participants to write down and place their access needs in the box.

Giving folks the opportunity to verbally share their access needs with the group before you begin your event.

Asking for someone’s accessibility needs or what they might need to feel more comfortable in the space will hopefully create the best learning environment possible as we practice valuing our participants' needs, comfort and safety.

We also want to keep in mind that disclosing one’s access needs can be a vulnerable thing to do and/or a new concept for some. As a Peer Leader, it is helpful to anticipate that some folks may not disclose their access needs right away and it is up to you, your supervisor and the Peer Leader team to continue to have ongoing dialogues with the participants as to what they may need to feel safer and more engaged. Some ways to help youth participants feel more comfortable in sharing any access needs is by clarifying the purpose of access needs, and having you and your team share your own access needs first.

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It is also helpful to mention the difference between a “safe space” and a “safer space.” At QTAY we use “safer space” because we acknowledge that no space will be 100% safe; some folks may be triggered and feel discomfort with what’s being shared in the space.

However, we want to make a space “safer” by trying to work collaboratively with youth to help everyone feel as safe as possible. This also encourages collective accountability amongst everyone, a resolve to be intentional with what we share in the space, open-mindedness to the diverse life experiences of others and an attitude of not seeing discomfort as “bad,” but an opportunity to grow from and lean into.

When you and the group are aware of everyone’s accessibility needs, everyone can collaboratively work together to create a more inclusive, safer and engaging environment.

Wheelchair Accessible Letting folks know in advance if your venue or space is wheelchair accessible, can notify folks with mobility devices if this is an event they can access. This can also challenge you, as a community organizer, to create spaces that don’t only cater to those who are able-bodied.

At QTAY we try to also operate from a place of “unconditional high-regard.” Unconditional high regard, at QTAY, is the belief and trust that everyone, including yourself, is trying their best, and operating from a place of compassion and empathy. Under the premise of unconditional high-regard, participants who express oppressive opinions or engage in oppressive actions, we try to diffuse those situations while maintaining their significance as “teachable moments” to the best of our capacity. Ways that we can better address oppressive opinions and behaviours is by making sure that we are in the right emotional and mental space, and taking care of our own needs. Some ways that you can do this is by referring to the strategies in Module 3: Navigating Emotional Triggers in the Workplace.

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Operating from a place of unconditional high regard can also prevent lateral violence from occurring within the spaces we facilitate. Lateral violence is when conflict occurs between members of their respective marginalized communities when people carry out harmful behaviours. When this happens, we can lose sight of the larger systems of oppression that externally bear down on our communities. By being able to openly and honestly communicate with one another from a place of compassion, we hope to help reduce lateral violence to instead create moments of learning and growth.

1. How do you personally relate to each of the ground rules, listed under the “A Collaborative set of Group Norms” sub-section?

2. What are some possible problematic and/or harmful behaviours that can be expressed in a workshop space for LGBTQ+ Asian youth? How would you approach and address these problematic and/or harmful behaviours from the lens of unconditional high-regard?

Create a list of how your current physical workspace may not be accessible to folks with physical and/or mental health challenges, and brainstorm ways you can make the space more accommodating for these folks.

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This module covers strategies and techniques to effectively prepare QTAY Peer Educators to navigate topics, spaces and discussions that may elicit high emotional responses from them and/or the youth participants.

Peer Educators may share similar lived experiences and identities to the demographics they serve. Peer Educators may find the trauma, pain and challenges folks carry into the shared space all-too-familiar. The emotional aspect of our work increases the likelihood of confronting content that may bring up distressing, complicated, or unpleasant feelings stemming from past harmful encounters. So, how can Peer Leaders who may be carrying their own set challenges, serve those in the midst of navigating their own traumas and hardships?

While therapy and counselling (if you have access to them) are vital tools to preserve our wellness, there are a few techniques that the QTAY Peer Educators can utilize while working at ACAS. Here are the techniques we utilize to encourage self-awareness, vulnerability and transparency as community workers who also carry past traumas.

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Holistic Check-in 1. Do a holistic check-in with yourself and/or your team.

Do a holistic check-in with yourself and/or your team. See how you’re feeling in your four major quadrants; where you’re currently at in your physical, mental, emotional and spiritual quadrants! Keep in mind that these four quadrants look different for everyone.

Identifying how you’re feeling about various aspects of your life can help you discern your capacities and the kind of support you need at any given moment. Here are a few guided prompts that you can ask yourself while doing a holistic check-in: i. Physically How is my body feeling? Where am I at with my physical body at this moment? ii. Mentally What are some thoughts that I’m having? Where am I at with my mental health at this moment? iii. Emotionally What mood am I in? Where am I at with my emotional health at this moment? iv. Spiritually What is my gut/intuition telling me, right now? How does my “spirit” or “energy” feel right now?

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Bracketing is a useful tool when leading workshops or discussions that have the potential to trigger and elicit high emotions from you.

When you are confronted by these emotions and/or personal beliefs, you are TEMPORARILY putting them aside, so that you can focus on the present situation. Here are some steps that prompt an internal dialogue to facilitate bracketing: a. Acknowledge that there is an issue that needs bracketing...

Example: “I am feeling sad/angry, etc… at what I’m hearing” b. Identify what part of you is being negatively stimulated and why.

Example: “This is reminding me of...” c. Make a contract with yourself to later remove the brackets either through formal (i.e. seeing a therapist, speaking to your supervisor) or informal (i.e. friends, family) methods. i. Make sure that you are scheduling a time and date to address the things you’ve bracketed and following through with it. ii. Another way to make sure that you are setting time for yourself to unbracket, is by contacting someone beforehand, and asking them to check in on you after a potentially emotionally draining event.

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d. Take three deep breaths. Centre yourself back to an awareness of your body, and focus on the present situation. Try listing three things you can see, hear, and feel in front of you e. If you’re not in a mental space to bracket, that is okay! Bracketing takes a lot of mental and emotional labour, and sometimes we don’t have the capacity or energy to bracket. You can set your boundary by excusing yourself from the conversation, rescheduling a time to continue the conversation and/or directing them to some resources that may help them.

Debriefing with your team after an event can help with “unbracketing” and addressing feelings and thoughts in a safer and non-judgemental space. This can also help to alleviate some of the “heaviness” that we can sometimes take home after an emotionally tiring day of work. Debriefing can also provide a space for an exchange of feedback and suggestions that others have used in a similar situation. i. Think of debriefing as a safe container where you can experience your own feelings and reactions with others to make sense of the current challenge.

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1. How do you personally relate to the 4 quadrants from the holistic check-in?

2.Have you found yourself utilizing the bracketing technique in other spaces? In what way?

3.What are some support systems and people in your life that you feel comfortable unbracketing with?

Connect with your team, family and/or friends and do a holistic check-in with them. Take note of how they relate to the 4 quadrants, and how it feels like to know where everyone is on an emotional, physical, mental and spiritual level.

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This module covers techniques to effectively provide emotional and mental support to youth participants, as well as increasing awareness of common roadblocks to communication and support.

At QTAY, we provide mental and emotional support to our youth service-users, by utilizing peer support and active listening techniques. Peer support and active listening techniques are tools that our Peer Leaders are trained in to validate, affirm, reflect, and with consent, provide insight, resources, referrals and clarity on challenges that youth service-users may be experiencing.

Peer Educators don’t need formal certification in counselling, social work or other forms of mental health therapy, to provide someone with peer support and active listening. Although the more formal methods of mental and emotional health support are important, we believe that peer-based models of support and active listening techniques are also necessary ways of providing support to others. We have found that youth service-users receiving support from folks who have similar life experiences than them can better facilitate an environment of comfort, openness and vulnerability.

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QTAY Peer Leaders provide peer-support andand active-listening QTAY Peer Leaders provide peer-support active-listening to to their their community communitymembers members utilizing a communication by by utilizing a communication technique technique called (Open OARS (Open Question, called OARS Ended Ended Question, Affirm, Affirm, Reflection, Reflection, Summary). thecommunication OARS communication Summary).

You can You use can the use OARS technique to technique to help guide and inform way you support help guide and inform the way youthe support others.

Hereothers. are 4 steps Here 4 steps help you affirm someone are and thatarecan helpthat youcanaffirm someone that theythat arethey heard heard and supported: supported: Open-Ended orStatements: Statements: Open-Ended Questions Questions or Steering conversations withwith questions that that elicit elicit extensive Steering conversations questions extensive responses as opposed to closed “yes”/”no” questions.

Asking responses as opposed to closed “yes”/”no” questions. Asking closed questions conversation,while whileasking closed questionscan canabruptly abruptly end aa conversation, asking open-ended questions gives a person opportunityto dig open-ended questions gives a person thetheopportunity to dig deeper thoughts. deeper intointo theirtheir thoughts.

Examples: Examples: “Tell meme more about _____?”

“Tell more about _____?”

“How does this make you feel?”

“How does this make you feel?”

“Can youyou explain thatthat to me, further?”

“Can explain to me, further?”

Affirmation: Affirmation: A A statement conveys and andaffirms affirms either a person’s statementthat that conveys either a person’s feelings or feelings or acknowledges their strengths and efforts.

This also can help acknowledges their strengths and efforts.

This can also helptheir boost their self-esteem their and boost self-esteem and validateandtheirvalidate vulnerability vulnerability openness.and openness.

Examples: Examples: “You have been working really hard, that’s amazing!”

“You have been working really hard, that’s amazing!”

“That does sound tiring.

What are some things “That does sound tiring. What are some things that that you’ve been been doing to practice self-care?” doing to practice self-care?”

Reflection: Reflection: A statement ororparaphrase A statement paraphrasethat thatinvolves involveslistening listening carefully, carefully, then then makinga areasonable reasonable guess guess about what person making whatthe theother other person is is saying (mirrors the explicit explicit or or implicit implicit meaning). meaning). This This can canmake make the person feel like they are being heard and the person feel like they are being heard and understood. It can understood.

It can you to better understand also help you to also betterhelp understand the situation, and the help the situation, helptheir the speaker clarify their own thoughts. speakerand clarify own thoughts.

Examples: Examples: “It sounds likelike ____ is this right?”

“It sounds ____ is this right?”

“I get thethe sense thatthat ____ is this accurate?”

“I get sense ____ is this accurate?”

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Summary: A reflection that uses words they have articulated themselves that might draw together two or more of their prior statements.

Summarizing can also be used to clarify what the person is saying, so that you may end or take the conversation in a different direction.

Examples: “It looks like you’ve come up with some ways to address ____ and you seem to be very passionate about this! Can I suggest a resource that may be useful for you?”

“It seems like you’ve been experiencing more anxiety over the past couple of weeks, which is making you feel “stuck,” does this sound right?”

As a QTAY Peer Educator, there is no obligation to end a peer support or active listening session with a solution for the youth service-user. The expectation of a Peer Educator is to facilitate a space where the youth service-user feels validated, affirmed and not judged. Anything beyond providing that kind of support is something you can pass onto your supervisor and/or redirect the youth to some low-threshold and accessible mental health resources and services.

An important thing that Peer Educators should avoid doing is advice-giving. Giving advice to someone can take away their sense of agency and displace accountability for their actions onto you.

When supporting someone, remind yourself that it is not your responsibility to resolve their issues, nor are you equipped to do so.

It is also helpful to ask the youth service-user if they would like support from you, and to clarify what kind of support they may need at the moment. Here are some other things that may come up while providing someone with support, that can be harmful to the person you want to support:

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Focusing and providing “logical” solutions Sometimes, people in crisis need emotional support rather than “logical” or more “rational” solutions. People who are experiencing high emotions, may need you to address and walk through the emotions they’re experiencing (i.e. “It sounds like this situation is causing you a lot of stress…), rather than providing them with solutions right away (i.e. “If you work is stressing you out, then you should look for another job”).

Judging and Criticizing.

When someone is coming to you for support, the last thing they need is to feel judged and criticized. Instead of letting your personal biases get in the way of providing support (i.e. “Why would you do that? I would never do something like that”) you can listen without inserting personal judgements or criticisms, and affirm them (i.e. “Thank you for sharing and trusting me with your experience, it sounds like you’ve been through a lot”).

Diagnosing We can sometimes feel like we know what someone may be going through, and project some of our own feelings and experiences onto them (i.e. “You’re feeling this way because you’re too focused on what others think of you”). We can never fully understand what someone is going through, and so “diagnosing” someone’s personal challenges can feel invalidating, judgemental and inaccurate.

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Making mistakes and not saying the right things.

It’s OK to make mistakes! Prefacing and verbalizing your capacities and limits in providing support (i.e. not being a trained mental health professional) can help facilitate trust and comfort.

If you are unsure about how you can support someone, ask them!

Sometimes people just need someone to listen and validate their thoughts (I.e. “how would you like me to support you right now?”).

Experiencing awkward silences.

Silences can simply be signs of mental processing. You don’t have to fill in the gaps all the time. Unless the youth service-user is directly asking you a question, welcome the space silence allows for processing and comprehending for the both of you.

Simply not being in the right mindset to provide support.

It is OK to not have the capacity to provide someone with support, and it is OK to verbalize and share that with them (i.e. “It sounds like you have a lot on your plate, and I want to effectively support you, but I don’t have the capacity to, at the moment. I can share some resources with you or refer you to some great services if you’d like, and then maybe we can catch up sometime next week).

Reminder: Operating from a place of anxiety, exhaustion, etc. can cause more harm than support. Know what you need and you’ll know what you’re able to give.

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1. Why do you think it is important to create a non-judgemental space for youth seeking support?

What are ways that you can facilitate a non-judgemental space?

2. Where do you think the urge for someone to provide a solution or advice to someone seeking support, could be coming from?

Practice the OARS technique with your fellow peers and/or co-workers, by having them share a small challenge they feel comfortable disclosing!

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This module covers 4 important steps to help effectively plan, organize, and facilitate a workshop, by focusing on what to consider before, during and after a workshop.

A large part of your role as a QTAY Peer Leader will involve co-facilitating workshops, sessions and drop-ins that will promote resilience amongst other LGBTQ+ Asian youth. While trying to promote resilience in these workshops, you want to ensure that they are engaging, educational and accessible! QTAY’s work is fundamentally about creating safer, inclusive and non-judgemental spaces where folks can gather and connect with one another.

Remember that as you do this work, you are accountable to the people attending your event or workshop.

These group facilitation strategies can also be applied to “Virtual Community Building” in Section 4 of this manual.

Below are some techniques and strategies QTAY Peer Leaders have utilized while developing, organizing and executing workshops!

a. When developing a pre-mortem, create a collective list by having everyone answer, “What could possibly go wrong in this workshop/event?” b. After the list has been created, collectively choose 3-5 challenges to collectively address and problem solve. This can help with alleviating anxiety and increase confidence in addressing challenging situations.

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c. When developing pre-mortems, avoid viewing them as “self-fulfilling prophecies.” They are not meant to add stress but to decrease stress through preparation. Be open to exploring a variety of ways for confronting challenging situations. Through teamwork and preparedness, your workshop or event can and will unfold smoothly!

a. Identify the demographic of people attending so that you and your team can make any final amendments to better tailor the event or workshop to the participants. QTAY events are usually promoted on a digital social space, with the option to RSVP which helps us identify the people who are attending. b. Create an evaluation method for your workshop/event, to give attendees/participants an opportunity to share feedback. This will also be used as a way to inform the overall project and improve future programming. c. Create promotional material for your workshop to spread all over different social media sites (i.e. facebook, instagram, twitter, etc…) and through networking and community events, at least two weeks before your event, to start recruiting youth participants. d. On the day of the workshop, Peer Educators and the Coordinator should check-in with each other to identify everyone’s present capacities and the ways in which you can all support each other as co-facilitators. e. Coming into a social space can be very nerve-wracking for folks, so designating people on your team to engage attendees in the beginning and throughout the workshop can help ease their anxieties and encourage engagement later on in the workshop.

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a. Create a collaborative set of “group norms” or “ground rules” to help create a safer and engaging space. b. These ground rules also help with maintaining safety, trust and accountability amongst everyone. c. Acknowledge the stolen land that you are on. i. Educating ourselves and others about the stolen land that we currently occupy reminds us of the injustices that the Indigenous Peoples have and are still experiencing throughout history and presently. It is a call to hold ourselves accountable to how we, as non-indigenous Canadians, are benefitting from colonial practices and legacies, and pushes us to advocate for Indigenous Peoples. d. Begin your event / workshop the Group Check-in! i. Give attendees the opportunity to share their names, pronouns and any accessibility needs, while also giving them the opportunity to pass and just observe/process. This helps folks respect each other’s pronouns and to accommodate any accessibility needs to facilitate an environment conducive to processing information more effectively! ii. You also want to give the attendees the opportunity to share their access needs prior to the event as mentioned in Module 5: Anti-Oppression, under subsection “Access Needs,” and have them shared with the group. e. Share the Workshop Agenda with the group. i. Having an agenda for participants to easily refer to, throughout the workshop, is helpful in keeping everyone on track and focused on the topics and activities to be covered. The agenda also provides an outline and flow of the workshop that can help participants prepare and process activities and information more effectively. f. Check-in with your team members. i. During the breaks in your workshop, you want to briefly check in with your team to discern how everyone is feeling and whether anyone needs support. This is a great way to encourage continuous group support and synergy.

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a. You can officially end the workshop by calling everyone together to do a “check out,” where folks can share their name and pronoun, again, as well as what they’re taking away from the event. b. Distribute your evaluation form, for more in-depth anonymous feedback from participants to see how you can grow your event! c. Hold a “debrief” meeting with your team, as mentioned in Module 3: Navigating Emotional Triggers in the Workplace, under subsection “Debriefing.” This is a time to unload any emotions, thoughts, and feelings you had about the event. Reflecting and sharing our perceived successes and challenges allow us to cultivate an environment where mistakes are welcomed as seeds for growth!

Identify some of your “gifts,” talents and/or personal characteristics that you can utilize within your team, to enhance the planning, facilitating, evaluating and/or debriefing processes of a

Imagine you are facilitating a discussion on “Navigating Relationships as an LGBTQ+ Asian Youth,” with 20 confimed youth participants. Develop a pre-mortem for this discussion and share your list with the rest of the Peer Educator team and Youth Coordinator.

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This module covers basic HIV/AIDS information and de-stigmatized harm reductive terminology to increase awareness and demystify stigmas, stereotypes and common misconceptions surrounding HIV/AIDS and Substance Use. QTAY Peer Educators increase awareness and address stigmas related to HIV/AIDS and substance use through our programs. Over the years, we have found that a large population of queer Asian youth were either unaware or simply misinformed on topics related to sexual health, substance use, and harm-reduction. The stigma that surrounds these topics have led to the cultivation of harmful perceptions that can be addressed through an increase in both education and greater access to harm-reduction resources. To begin, let’s learn a little more about what HIV/AIDS is.

In this section of the module, we will provide you with a very brief overview of what HIV/AIDS is! We encourage you to continue expanding your knowledge of HIV/AIDS to better address some of the misconceptions and stigma related to persons living with HIV/AIDS (PHA).

First, let’s break down what HIV and AIDS mean!

H - Human (cannot get from animals) I - Immunodeficiency (weakens your immune system) V - Virus A - Acquired I - Immuno D - Deficiency S - Syndrome

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HIV is a virus that attacks healthy white blood cells (also known as T-Cells or CD4 cells), which can compromise someone’s immune system and, if left untreated, can escalate to AIDS. AIDS is a diagnosis when the immune system becomes vulnerable to opportunistic infections (i.e. pneumonia, tuberculosis and shingles) that your body can normally fight.

However, there is advanced treatment to lower someone’s HIV viral load, the amount of the HIV virus in someone’s blood stream, so that they can continue to lead healthy lives! Current HIV treatment is so advanced that it can suppress someone’s viral load to a point where their HIV becomes undetectable and untransmittable! Current research shows that a person who is HIV-positive with an undetectable viral load, cannot pass HIV to their sexual partner.

There are 5 main fluids that can transmit HIV: blood, semen, front hole/vaginal fluids, back hole/ anal fluids and chest/breast milk.

These fluids can be transmitted through certain activities such as oral sex, penetrative sex (front and back), sharing needs and parent to child (i.e. pregnancy and breast/ chest feeding), and vary in levels of risk of transmitting HIV/AIDS depending on certain factors. These factors are influenced by 3 conditions: (1) Viral Load - There needs to be a high enough viral load to transmit HIV/AIDS. (2) Bodily Fluid - HIV can be transmitted through any bodily fluids, like blood, semen, back/front hole fluids and chest milk (3) Entry Point - HIV can only enter through the bloodstream, cuts/sores and the mucous membrane Even with these 3 conditions being fulfilled, there is still not a 100% transmission rate of HIV. To reduce the risk of transmitting of HIV/AIDS you can practice safer-sex techniques such as: wearing condoms, using dental dams, getting tested for HIV regularly, using new and unused needles and not sharing needles!

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At QTAY we seek to reframe the way we discuss sexual health to prioritize terminology that is inclusive, non-gendered, and free of judgement. QTAY encourages all Peer Leaders and community care-workers to stay as updated and informed as possible to the changes our communities make to further expand the language we use.

When talking about body parts and sexual health, utilizing non-gendered language can indicate a sensitivity, inclusion, and mindfulness to the diversity of gender and sexual orientations.

Here are some examples of inclusive terminology that might replace some of the more gendered and stigmatized terms society is used to: Instead Instead of using... of using...

You You might might use... use...

Breast Breast

Chest Chest

Vagina Vagina

Front Front HoleHole

AnusAnus

BackBack HoleHole

Penis Penis

Phallus Phallus

Condom Condom

External External Condom Condom

Women’s Women’s Condom Condom

Internal Internal Condom Condom

Disease Disease

Infection Infection

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Discussions surrounding substance use anduse harmand reduction Discussions surrounding substance harm often reduction lackoften neutrality and provoke judgements and and stereotypes*. lack neutrality and provoke judgements stereotypes*.

Negative perceptions and and over-simplified judgements against Negative perceptions over-simplified judgements against substances and and substance use use can can be harmfully perpetuated by by substances substance be harmfully perpetuated the the words.

Speaking fromfrom a standpoint of reducing-harm as as words.

Speaking a standpoint of reducing-harm opposed to assuming harm is already present is crucial to ensuring opposed to assuming harm is already present is crucial to ensuring thatthat ourourcommunities opentoto receiving the resources communities stay stay open receiving the resources available available to that themwill that will them keep safe themand safeinformed. and informed. to them keep BelowBelow are some termsterms you can for less stigmatized are some you substitute can substitute for less stigmatized ones: ones: Instead of using...

Instead of using...

You You might use... might use...

Addict/Junkie/Alcoholic/ Addict/Junkie/Alcoholic/ Druggies/Crackhead Druggies/Crackhead

Person whowho usesuses drugs (Not(Not Person drugs everyone everyonewhowhousesusesis is addicted.

These terms can can be be addicted.

These terms stigmatizing/ dehumanizing stigmatizing/ dehumanizing to those whowho are struggling). to those are struggling).

Addiction Addiction

Relapse Relapse Clean Clean (drug use use equipment) (drug equipment) “I don’t use use drugs.”

“I don’t drugs.”

Problematic or or Unwanted Problematic Unwanted Use Use (The(The individual defines individual defines when theirtheir use use is problematic when is problematic for them.

Not Not everyone whowho for them. everyone has has substance use use problems substance problems Used, Used, slip, slip, learning learning (Deemphasizes penalty) (Deemphasizes penalty) New, New,unused unused Do not or imply.

FindFind Do disclose not disclose or imply. a way to be Avoid a way to an be ally. an ally.

Avoid antagonistic binary of those antagonistic binary of those whowho use use and and those whowho those don’t.

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By being more intentional with the words we use while discussing HIV/AIDS, sexual health, and substance use we can begin to transform the narrative surrounding these topics. Harm reduction addressed judgement and stigmatization by replacing them with people-centred and agency empowering approaches to care. Try doing some research about each inclusive and non-inclusive term related to HIV/AIDS, substances, or any of the other topics in this chapter to further unpack some of the harmful biases that we may be unknowingly carrying.

1. What are some stigmas and stereotypes that you have heard or internalized about folks living with HIV/AIDS? What are ways that you can address these misconceptions?

2. What are some stigmas and stereotypes that you have heard or internalized about folks who use substances? What are ways that you can address these misconceptions? ** If you are HIV positive or use substances, you do not need to disclose and you can always approach this question in the third person!

Learn about the sexual health clinics in your area, and call one of them to inquire how the process of getting an HIV test looks like.

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By working to make all our programs digitally accessible, we have learned the important lessons of adaptability and transparency in the development of community programs. The safety of our participants is of primary importance to us, so please keep in mind that most of our digital sessions will be “closed events” that require registration, and that we will be continuously working to protect the identities and contributions of all participants.

Similar to our in-person events, our digital and online spaces require at least 3 leaders to engage and ensure the safety of our participants. In this section, we will share with you some of the strategies we’ve developed over our first few months of digital programming. However, keep in mind that ways to engage with folks in online spaces is evolving rapidly. So, we encourage you to continue to do personal research on other platforms and strategies that you believe might cultivate safer and more fulfilling online environments.

STRATEGY 1: Online Platforms When QTAY was choosing an online platform to carry out our sessions, we found that platforms that accommodate text, video and audio chat were the most effective. We also want to acknowledge that our online sessions require the participant to have access to an internet connection -- something not everyone has access too. Some youth may need to utilize public spaces like the library or a space that offers free WiFi, which can make it challenging for them to participate. By checking in with participants to see what methods of communication works best for them (text, audio and/or video chat), you can tailor your workshop to accommodate those modes of communication.

Some online platforms that support text, audio and video methods of communication are: Zoom (www.zoom.us) WebEx (www.webex.com) Skype (www.skype.com) Please keep in mind that these websites have additional features that can be purchased. However, the basic and free features are 40 still conducive to online gatherings!

STRATEGY 2: Confidentiality and Safety STRATEGY 2: Confidentiality and Safety Most our sessions, workshops and drop-ins topics Most of ourofsessions, workshops and drop-ins covercover topics that that prompt participants to disclose confidential or vulnerable maymay prompt participants to disclose confidential or vulnerable information.

So, making participants a digital information.

So, making suresure that that participants feel feel safersafer in a in digital space is something we try to bear the responsibility of facilitating. space is something we try to bear the responsibility of facilitating.

Here are tips some how to online digitalsafer spaces Here are some on tips how on to make themake onlinethe digital spaces safer for participants in our closed sessions: for participants in our closed sessions: - Do not post the digital session link on the event page and/or a - Do digital not post the digital session link on the event page and/or a public space. public digital - If possible, makespace. the digital session password accessible, and - If possible, maketo the digital session password accessible, and send the password each individual participant. theno password each individual participant.

Ifsend there’s option totoinclude a password, you can send the - If there’s nolink option to include a password, digital session to each individual participant.you can send the digital to each individual Make suresession you let link participants know not participant. to share the link with Makeelse. sure you let participants know not to share the link with anyone else.

- Notifyanyone the participants, beforehand, to situate themselves in a - Notify participants, themselves quiet andthe safe space. If beforehand, they are intoa situate communal space, in a quiet and space. Ifonly theythrough are inaudio a communal encourage themsafe to participate or text chat.space, encourage them to participate only or text Being in a communal space while onthrough a videoaudio call can run chat. the - Being in a communal space while on aexposed. video call can run the risk of having other participant’s identities risk of having otherthe participant’s identities exposed.

- Have participants make commitment to not share or expose - Have participants makefrom the commitment to not share or expose any images, video or audio the session without the consent any images, video or audio from the session without the consent of the group or individual. of the group or individual.

- Check in with each participant, and ask what method/s of - Check in with eachaudio participant, and chart) ask what method/s communication (video, and/or text do they feel of communication safest engaging with.(video, audio and/or text chart) do they feel safest engaging with.

- Create a list of people who you’ve sent the link to. If you see - Createentering a list of the people sentappear the link If you someone chat who who you’ve does not onto. your list, see someone entering the chat who does not appear on your make sure to confirm their identity and ask what name they list, makewith. sureIf there to confirm their identity andname ask what name they RSVP’d is no response, or the they provide with. match If thereany is no thethe name provide you RSVP’d with doesn’t of response, the namesoron list, they remove with match space. any of the names on the list, remove themyou from thedoesn’t closed digital them from the closed digital space.

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STRATEGY 3: Digital Platform Accessibility As we’ve earlier stated, digital social platforms can be intimidating and can be inaccessible for folks who don’t have simultaneous access to video, audio and text chat. Here are some tips to make your digital event even more accessible: - Towards the beginning of the digital session, provide all participants with a short tutorial on how to navigate the online platform for this particular session.

I.e. How to mute/unmute mic, screen share, utilize the online features that will be used in the session, etc…

- Try your best to tailor your session to be accessible through all online and digital communication methods (i.e. video, audio, text chat). Ask yourself if your session can be understood, experienced and engaged with through each individual mode of communication. If you find that your session requires a certain mode of communication, make sure to explicitly mention that to the participants and on your event page. Some examples to accommodate all digital and online communication methods are: When showing images or diagrams to the group, describe them slowly and thoroughly for folks who can only access the audio.

Have someone type up questions, or important points being verbally made in the group chat for those who can only access the chat/text option.

Have someone read out questions, insights and contributions from the chat, for those who don’t have access to the text chat.

STRATEGY 4: Facilitating Discussions As the number of participants may increase or fluctuate in digital spaces, making it more challenging to facilitate discussions fully prepared to handle any and every potential interruption you may have. These challenges can also include experiencing several awkward silences to being overwhelmed with a barrage of voices and texts. At QTAY, we found that presenting the group with a structure on how to engage in a discussion was helpful.

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Here are some online discussion tips we came up with: - Encourage participants to engage with both the audio/video and text chat, if possible.

We found that when someone was speaking, people would comment or react to what the person was saying through the text chat.

- Have someone designated to engage with folks in the text chat, and read out important texts to the group.

- Have someone observe the video chat, and call on folks who look like they may want to share something. Somethings that you may want to notice are: - If someone unmutes their mic You can say, “hey, I noticed you unmute your mic, did you want to share something?”

- Check the facial expressions of folks in the video chat. If you see someone looking confused or like they want to say something, you can name that!

You can say, “I noticed some folks in the video chat, nodding their head, did anyone want to comment on what was just said?”

- You can develop a protocol for folks to use when they want to verbally share something. Here are some examples of protocols that you can have participants utilize in the digital space : - If folks are using video chat, have them physically raise their hand.

- You can have folks notify everyone through the text chat, if they want to verbally share something.

- You can have folks use an agreed upon “emoji” or symbol to signify interest in verbally addressing what’s being shared in the digital space.

- If there are very few folks in the digital space, you can remind them to unmute their mics and to speak whenever they feel compelled to.

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In this section, we asked past QTAY Peer Educators from over the years, to share some of their experiences navigating community work and building as LGBTQ+ Asian youth. As mentioned earlier, connecting with other community workers and leaders is a necessary part of honing your skills, receiving more clarity and insight on how to navigate community work.

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Pronouns: she/they/x也 Pronouns: she/they/x也 Zodiac: Taurus/ Zodiac: Taurus/ RamRam

Some people come into community work with confidence and zeal, with a determination that's been formed since their youth, and some people kind of fumble towards it. I think I'm the latter kind of person. While I did not have a 10 year career plan when I was in high school, what I did have were lots of mental health issues that were compounded by coming into my queerness. So when I accepted the role of a QTAY Peer Leader, what I thought first was "I want to be the kind of person that I needed when I was in high school." I tried to create a space for queer and trans Asian youth to not just be accepted but affirmed, because that is what I really wanted when I was younger. I didn't know how to reckon with my queerness and being Asian - there weren't any spaces where both experiences were equally important. QTAY filled that void for me, and the chances are that it's going to fill the void for a lot of youth.

Being a QTAY Peer Leader meant that I could learn new skills that helped with interacting with a group of diverse youth - a lot of the skills which are in this manual! It prepared me for the work I continue to do, trying to be as active as I can in various community groups that serve both the Asian and queer communities. It also gave me confidence to speak a little louder, take up a little more room in white colonized* spaces, and have humility. Assuming a leadership role doesn't necessarily mean you have to be at the frontlines organizing every day, but it does mean you have to make space in any way you can. What are skills that you can contribute?

How can you collaborate? Are you listening to the needs of your community?

Sometimes you won't have answers, and that's ok too. Don't let imperfection stop your progress. And if you're unsure, if you've also fumbled into this place, don't worry. You're right where you're supposed to be.

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Pronouns: Pronouns: Any!Any! Zodiac: Sagittarius/Metal Horse Zodiac: Sagittarius/Metal Horse

My LGBTQ+ Asian identity was really valuable in helping me connect on a deeper level with everyone I got to meet and work with in my time as a QTAY Peer Leader. Being Asian and LGBTQ+ comes with a lot of layers that can make it tough to fully relate with others out in the world, so it can be a real relief to have several of those layers seen and understood in this space. Some, myself included, only really experience it for the first time at QTAY, and it can be a wonderful and healing experience.

Being a Peer Leader allows you to learn and grow so much. As My share LGBTQ+ identity valuable in you'll helping me you the Asian knowledge youwas havereally with your peers, instantly connect on a deeper level with everyone I got to meet and work get the benefit of having that knowledge reflected and expanded with in my time asIt areally QTAY Peer Leader.that Being Asian and LGBTQ+ upon by them. gives a sense you're all nourishing each comes lot of layers that as cana make it toughBeing to fully relateLeader with other with and agrowing stronger community. a Peer others out inpush the world, canofbedifferent a real relief to have of in can also you insoait lot areas.

You'llseveral be put those layers seen and understood in this space.

Some, myself relatively unpredictable situations that will sharpen your social, included, onlyand really experienceskills, it for and the first time QTAY, and it emotional, educational you'll beatamazed at how can be a wonderful and healing experience. quickly you can grow and improve this way.

Being a Peer allows youalways to learn and grow so by much.

As It's also a lotLeader of fun and you'll feel supported everyone you share the knowledge you have with your peers, you'll instantly in the group. It's so rewarding seeing your teammates and peers get the benefit of having reflected and expanded growing right along with that you knowledge on this journey, and being able to use upon them.gaining It reallytogives a sense you're allOne nourishing whatbyyou're support theirthat processes. piece ofeach advice other and to growing stronger as aAsian community.

Being a PeerisLeader I'd give aspiring LGTBQ+ community leaders don't be can push you in a up! lot QTAY of different You'll be in tooalso afraid of messing is an areas. environment thatput fosters relatively unpredictable situations that willwith sharpen social,for non-judgemental, supportive learning, plentyyour of room emotional, and educational skills, and you'll be amazed at individuality and experimentation. Do your best and have fun!how quickly you can grow and improve this way.

It's also a lot of fun and you'll always feel supported by everyone in the group. It's so rewarding seeing your teammates and peers growing right along with you on this journey, and being able to use what you're gaining to support their processes. One piece of advice 46 I'd give to aspiring LGTBQ+ Asian community leaders is don't be too afraid of messing up! QTAY is an environment that fosters

Pronouns: She/Her Pronouns: She/Her Zodiac: Pisces/ Rooster Zodiac: Pisces/ Rooster

I was incredibly nervous when I first started at QAY, I’m biracial and queer but worried that I wasn’t going to be “Asian enough” or “gay enough” to be a good peer leader. I was grateful to find that concern was unfounded, my peers were incredibly supportive and accepting. Working as a peer leader helped me further connect to and embrace my queer Asian identity which I realized is a part of me that does not often get to take up space. It’s through spaces like QTAY and connecting with people who shared my feelings and experiences led me to find comfort and acceptance in the fullness of my identity. The advice I would give to aspiring peer leaders is this: it’s absolutely okay not to have everything figured out at the start, we are all in a constant process of un/learning. A great place to start is to make a commitment to do your best, while honouring your individual capacity.

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Pronouns: he/him Pronouns: he/him Zodiac: Capricorn/Dog Zodiac: Capricorn/Dog

involved the LGBTQ+ community I wasI was nevernever reallyreally involved in thein LGBTQ+ AsianAsian community before ACAS because it was a priority for Ime. I started before ACAS because it was nevernever a priority for me. started volunteering a friend it would be a great way to meet volunteering after after a friend said itsaid would be a great way to meet new new people, but school gotbusy, so busy, I could was design posters for people, but school got so all Iall could do do was design posters different events. events. After II graduated, approached about being a for different graduated,I was I was approached about Leader—to facilitate the workshops I helped I advertise. beingPeer a Peer Leader—to facilitate the workshops helped By then, IBy had gotten sogotten used to remotely,remotely, that I was hesitant advertise. then, I had so working used to working that I consider the role. the role. was to hesitant to consider Looking at being a Peer Leader, I’m genuinely grateful Looking backback at being a Peer Leader, I’m genuinely grateful to to a platform to help and trans Asians navigate havehave had ahad platform to help otherother queerqueer and trans Asians navigate intersectional identities. the same I’m embarrassed their their intersectional identities.

At theAtsame time,time, I’m embarrassed to to admit that I had to learn to appreciate spaces like QTAY. Before admit that I had to learn to appreciate spaces like QTAY. Before working at ACAS, I never reflected on how gay and working at ACAS, I never reflected on how beingbeing both both gay and myself wasisolating—having so isolating—having homophobia AsianAsian myself was so facedfaced such such homophobia in in the Asian community and racism in queer spaces, I ended the Asian community and racism in queer spaces, I ended up up staying But being at ACAS, and engaging staying awayaway from from both.both.

But being at ACAS, and engaging with with others share in that narrative, I discovered a profound sense of others who who share in that narrative, I discovered a profound sense validation. of validation.

I spent a year the Peer Leader role, helping run several events I spent a year in theinPeer Leader role, helping run several events educating on anti-oppression and celebrating Asian heritage. educating on anti-oppression and celebrating Asian heritage.

During that time, I grew be comfortable with public speaking During that time, I grew to beto comfortable with public speaking and and starting up conversations. learned where my privilege own privilege starting up conversations.

I alsoI also learned where my own liesanasacademic an academic cis-gay and Ihow can be a better lies as cis-gay male,male, and how canIbe a better ally toally to trans folks, queer women, and the ace community.

Though I trans folks, queer women, and the ace community. Though what what I is finding a community can belong take take mostmost is finding a community I canI belong to—ato—a spacespace that I,that I, Leaders, poured our hearts alongalong with with manymany otherother PeerPeer Leaders, havehave poured our hearts into into fostering for youth like us.

For anyone who’s considering a fostering for youth like us. For anyone who’s considering beingbeing a Leader, that’s perhaps best advice I cangive: give:to to open your PeerPeer Leader, that’s perhaps thethe best advice I can your mind mind and and your your heart heart to to it. it.

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We hope that our information on Peer Leader skills, Virtual Community Building as well the wisdom from our Peer Leader testimonials encourages you to pursue growth in your roles.

Challenge yourself as aspiring community workers, moving with the confidence that you are already leaders and changemakers in your communities. We hope that this guide conveys the continuous evolution of our knowledge on creating safer spaces, and our desire to continue strengthening our communities, and centering anti-oppressive values.

This role encourages you to step into your most creative, intuitive, and reflective self. We hope that after all this, you feel both healthily challenged but assured in our prioritization of supporting you and working beside you are you develop sustainable ways of caring for your community and caring for yourself.

If you would to support ACAS QTAY, If you would likelike to support ACAS andand QTAY, so so thatthat we we cancan continue creating safer spaces LGBTQ+ Asian folks, continue creating safer spaces for for LGBTQ+ Asian folks, youyou cancan donate visiting website, www.acas.org selecting donate by by visiting ourour website, www.acas.org andand selecting thethe “donate” option on the hand corner of our “donate” option on the top top rightright hand corner of our site.site.

If would you would to donate other organizations that fight If you like tolike donate to other to organizations that fight against against white-supremacy and anti-Blackness, you white-supremacy and anti-Blackness, you can check outcan ourcheck onlineout our online resource list at: https://bit.ly/3i1k5D9 resource list at: https://bit.ly/3i1k5D9 access following instagram YouYou cancan alsoalso access thisthis linklink by by following us us on on ourour instagram page @queerasianyouth, selecting in our page @queerasianyouth, andand selecting the the link link in our bio!bio! contains several resources have been compiled ThisThis list list contains several resources thatthat have been compiled by by QTAY Peer Leader Dany known MXKO our our QTAY Peer Leader Dany Ko Ko alsoalso known as asMXKO (mxkocreates@gmail.com) QTAY community. (mxkocreates@gmail.com) andand the QTAY community.

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I would to thank all the QTAY Peer Leaders, Youth I would likelike to thank all the pastpast QTAY Peer Leaders, Youth Coordinators ACAS helping inform booklet.

Coordinators andand ACAS staffstaff for for helping inform this this booklet.

Particularly: Particularly: Psalm Tesalona editing co-writing Guide Booklet.

Psalm Tesalona - for- for editing andand co-writing thisthis Guide Booklet.

Wong designing formatting Guide Booklet.

JoyJoy Wong - for- for designing andand formatting thisthis Guide Booklet.

Salinas, Imogen Tam Zack Amirat sharing TimTim Salinas, Imogen Tam andand Zack Amirat for for sharing theirtheir insight experience as QTAY Peer Leaders! insight andand experience as QTAY Peer Leaders!

Additionally, I would to thank several organizations Additionally, I would likelike to thank several organizations thatthat informed inspired contents of this booklet: informed andand inspired thethe contents of this booklet: Living Hyphen (www.livinghyphen.ca) Dené Sinclair Living Hyphen (www.livinghyphen.ca) andand Dené Sinclair (Ojibwe-Anishinaabe) Indigenous Tourism Association (Ojibwe-Anishinaabe) andand the the Indigenous Tourism Association of of Canada( https://indigenoustourism.ca/corporate/) for informing Canada( https://indigenoustourism.ca/corporate/) for informing this this booklet’s Land Acknowledgement. booklet’s Land Acknowledgement.

AIDS Bereavement Resiliency Program Ontario AIDS Bereavement andand Resiliency Program of of Ontario (ABRPO) for their knowledge on “Navigating Emotional Triggers (ABRPO) for their knowledge on “Navigating Emotional Triggers in in Workplace.” thethe Workplace.”

Toronto Urban Health Fund (TUHF) funding TheThe Toronto Urban Health Fund (TUHF) for for funding andand supporting “When You’re Ready” program. supporting ourour “When You’re Ready” program.

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Hong Fook Mental Health Association Offers free walk-in (at their Markham location) and virtual counselling services (60 minute single sessions or 4-6 sessions) for youth 12-25 and their families.

They offer counselling services in English, Cantonese and Mandarin Telephone: 647-619-9030 https://hongfook.ca/association/our-services/youth-and-family-pro gram/ Central Toronto Youth Services Offers community counselling programs for youth ages 12-18, as well as unique programs for LGBTQ2+ youth ages 13-24 (e.g. individual counselling, family counselling and parent support/education, group programs, etc.) http://www.ctys.org/category/programs/#community-counselling Telephone: 416-924-2100 Lesbian, Gay, Bi, and Trans Youthline (*) Offers free, confidential, and non-judgmental peer support for youth aged 26 and under Telephone: 1-800-268-9688 Text: 647-694-4275 Live Chat: www.youthline.ca

Toronto Distress Centre Offers emotional support, crisis intervention, suicide prevention, and linkage to emergency help when necessary Telephone: 416-408-HELP (4357) Trans Lifeline Provides a free crisis hotline for transgender and gender non-conforming people staffed by transgender people Toll free: 1-877-330-6366 51

Tea Base Asian Queer Alliance (AQUA) About: Tea About: Base is a curious community arts space tucked away in AQUA is a collective of queer Asians to create social, Tkaronto/Toronto’s Chinatown Centre Mallthat runseeks by mostly queer learning, and networking opportunities in the community.

AQUA and non-binary "Asians". We aim to make accessible space for is open to all genders allartists folks identifying as South, intergenerational activistsand and who support social Southeast, justice East, West, Mixed Asian. AQUA has isbeen serving movements in andand around Chinatown.

Tea Base a space that the community since 2017. develops solidarity across marginalized groups through relationships, joy, and collaboration Contact Info: Email: asianqueeralliance@gmail.com Contact Info: Stay Connected: Email: info@myteabase.com Instagram and Facebook: @asianqueeralliance Location: 222 Spadina Ave Stay Connected: Makulay atbp Instagram: @tea.base About: Website: Myteabase.com Makulay atbp. is a collective by and for LGBTQ+ Filipinx/a/o folks.

The name Makulay atbp translates to “colourful and many more” in Tagalog. We aren’t defined by one identity as we are multifaceted beings who About: are shaped and continue to shape our own selves through Makulay atbp. isby, a collective by and for LGBTQ+ Filipinx/a/o folks. our intersecting multiple experiences.

We aim to build community, The name translates to “colourful and many more” in Tagalog. We honour andbyre/connect ouras roots, andmultifaceted become a space that fosters aren’t defined one identity we are beings who meaningful connections. are shaped by, and continue to shape our own selves through our intersecting multiple experiences. We aim to build community, Contact Info: honour and re/connect our roots, and become a space that fosters Email: makulay.atbp@gmail.com meaningful connections.

Stay Connected: Instagram: Contact Info: @makulay.atbp Facebook: makulay.atbpTO Email: makulay.atbp@gmail.com Stay Connected: Instagram: @makulay.atbp Facebook: makulay.atbpTO

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Queerean Voices About: Queerean Voices is a grassroots community group, founded in May 2018, that is dedicated to advancing the health and well-being of LGBTQ+ identifying Koreans. Our membership includes LGBTQ+ Koreans and allies.

We envision a Korean-Canadian identity that welcomes, celebrates and advocates for LGBTQ+ diversity and seeks to foster health and well-being within our intergenerational and diverse community in Canada.

Our mission is to create opportunities for community-building and leadership to support Korean LGBTQ+, their families and their allies in Canada.

Contact info: Email: queerean.voices@gmail.com Stay Connected: Website: www.queereanvoices.com Tea Base About: Tea Base is a curious community arts space tucked away in Tkaronto/Toronto’s Chinatown Centre Mall run by mostly queer and non-binary "Asians". We aim to make accessible space for intergenerational activists and artists who support social justice movements in and around Chinatown. Tea Base is a space that develops solidarity across marginalized groups through relationships, joy, and collaboration Contact Info: Email: info@myteabase.com Location: 222 Spadina Ave Stay Connected: Instagram: @tea.base Website: Myteabase.com

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Assaulted Women’s Helpline Assaulted Women’s Helpline Offers free, anonymous, andand confidential 24-hour telephone andand Offers free, anonymous, confidential 24-hour telephone TTY crisis telephone lineline to all in the province of Ontario TTY crisis telephone to women all women in the province of Ontario whowho have experienced anyany form of abuse have experienced form of abuse Telephone: 416-863-0511 Telephone: 416-863-0511 TollToll Free: 1-866-863-0511 Free: 1-866-863-0511 Male Survivors of Sexual Abuse Support Line Male Survivors of Sexual Abuse Support Line Provides a 24-hour, multilingual phone lineline for for immediate crisis Provides a 24-hour, multilingual phone immediate crisis andand referral services for for male survivors of sexual abuse, bothboth referral services male survivors of sexual abuse, recent andand historical recent historical TollToll free: 1-866-887-0015 free: 1-866-887-0015 Toronto Rape Crisis Centre Toronto Rape Crisis Centre Provides anti-oppressive, feminist peer support to survivors of of Provides anti-oppressive, feminist peer support to survivors sexual violence through support, education, andand activism sexual violence through support, education, activism Telephone: 416-597-8808 Telephone: 416-597-8808

AIDS AIDS && Sexual Sexual Health Health Infoline Infoline Offers Offers anonymous anonymous counselling counselling and and information information onon HIV/AIDS, HIV/AIDS, STIs, STIs, and and harm harm reduction reduction in in drug drug use use in various in various languages languages (e.g. (e.g.

English, English, Cantonese, Cantonese, Mandarin, Mandarin, Filipino, Filipino, and and etc.) etc.)

Telephone: Telephone: 416-392-2437 416-392-2437 Toll Toll Free: Free: 1-800-668-2437 1-800-668-2437 Hassle Hassle Free Free Clinic Clinic Provides Provides free free medical medical and and counselling counselling services services in in many many areas areas of of sexual sexual health health (e.g. (e.g.

STI STI testing, testing, HIV HIV testing, testing, sexual sexual assault assault crisis crisis support, support, etc.) etc.)

Telephone: Telephone: 416-922-0566 416-922-0566 Sherbourne Sherbourne Health Health Centre Centre Offers Offers a wide a wide range range of of free, free, dignified dignified and and non-judgmental non-judgmental primary primary healthcare healthcare programs programs and and services services to to LGBTQ2+ LGBTQ2+ individuals individuals (e.g. (e.g.

Trans TransHealth HealthCare, Care,counselling, counselling,LGBTQ LGBTQyouth youthhealth healthandand mentoring mentoring (SOY), (SOY), etc.) etc.)

LGBTQ LGBTQ Family Family Health Health Team Team Clinic: Clinic: 416-324-4103 416-324-4103 54 Supporting Supporting Our Our Youth Youth (SOY): (SOY): 416-324-5077 416-324-5077

Asian Community AIDS Services www.acas.org @acastoronto on Instagram and Twitter Queer and Trans Asian Youth Program @queerasianyouth on Instagram 2021

Joy Wong buomhof.com

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