So… Joy E. came up with a nifty idea. A project where LGBTQIA youth, straight allies, adults and others could share their stories to encourage and strengthen youth who may be getting bullied, harassed and otherwise mistreated for being who they are. This project will make sure that lgbtqia of color, bisexual and transgendered folks will not be left out of the work of telling their stories and having their voices heard.

Yes, I know some of you are thinking… but there’s already a similar project out there! Well, yes there is but whereisjoy and I wanted to be sure everyone’s voice is heard, that everyone is able to share their story in the hopes it would give strength to others who are dealing with coming out, being out and bullied as well just for being who they are.

This idea is just a wee idea, barely out of the box and we need your help to make sure it thrives. What we need help with is:

Contributors; anyone who falls within the LGTBTQI & A spectrum, allies, anyone who has been touched by the injustice of having their voices silenced or drowned out by the masses.

A couple people to be editors; to help with reviewing content, posting and maintaining the site (which is now a WordPress site). Please note that the site is pretty bare at the moment, and we are adding content, submission guidelines and such over the next couple of weeks.

As the project grows, we hope to have someone who is media savvy, who can talk to the local LGBTQIA media, and deal with the issues that will arise from creating a project similar to one that already exists. Please note that we are not doing this to be in direct competition with the It Gets Better Project, but rather to supplement and give everyone a voice who may not feel as if they will be heard otherwise.

For now, please spread the word about this project, what we hope to do and most importantly the soft launch date of mid-October 2010. In the interim, please leave questions here, if you want your question discussed off site want to have a longer chat, email us at: wegotyourbackproject@gmail.com

So there’s the great idea, let’s make sure it not only learns to crawl but learns to soar.

Published by cypheroftyr

Tanya DePass is the founder and Director of I Need Diverse Games, a non-profit organization based in Chicago, which is dedicated to better diversification of all aspects of gaming. I Need Diverse Games serves the community by supporting marginalized developers attend the Game Developer Conference by participating in the GDC Scholarship program, helps assist attendance at other industry events, and is seeking partnership with organizations and initiatives. Tanya is a lifelong Chicagoan who loves everything about gaming, #INeedDiverseGames spawn point, and wants to make it better and more inclusive for everyone. She founded and was the EIC of Fresh Out of Tokens podcast where games culture was discussed and viewed through a lense of feminism, intersectionality and diversity. Now she’s a co-host on Spawn on Me Podcast. Along with all of that, she’s the Programming Coordinator for OrcaCon, she often speaks on issues of diversity, feminism, race, intersectionality & other topics at multiple conventions throughout the year. Her writing about games and games critique appears in Uncanny Magazine, Polygon, Wiscon Chronicles, Vice Gaming, Paste Games, Mic, and other publications.

14 thoughts on “Introducing… The We Got Your Back Project”

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  2. I think this is a great idea!
    I like the “It Gets Better” project and have been touched by the videos I’ve watched.

    I’d rather write my story than post a video, however, so I’m all too happy to help. I can host a domain if need be that can have WordPress installed.

    I also think the more of these projects around, the better. We’re spreading more love.

    1. Thank you! Sorry for the delay in responding, but thank you. We hope to get contributions from you.

      Cheers,
      WGYBProject

  3. I would be willing to do some editing for this project; what do you need? I’m the mom of a lesbian girl in high school — we took her out of public school almost two years ago because the principal didn’t believe there was bullying in her school.

    1. Hi Teal,

      Sorry for the delay in getting back to you, RL delays :/

      We would love to have an editor, and even better we’d love to have your story! If you are comfortable doing so. Editing, tweeting and getting posts up is what we need. If you don’t mind shooting a note to wegotyourbackproject@gmail.com I’ll get you some info.

      Thank you!

      WGYBProject

      Thank you!

  4. Pingback: A few points need to be made -A Letter to the at-risk LGBTQ Teens out there, from Neo Prodigy | The We Got Your Back Project

  5. I’ve posted the link to your site on my LJ. I hope it brings some favorable traffic your way!

    1. THANK YOU!

      We’ve had some traffic, and it’s taking off.

      Cheers,
      WGYBProject

  6. Do you really hate Dan Savage that much? *shakes head* Divide and conquer, I swear.

    1. How does having two web projects that encourage queer youth that they can make it through difficult circumstances, instead of just one site of this nature, “divide and conquer”? What is the benefit of making sure that everyone with this type of message posts it to the same website?

      Additionally, you may have noticed that Dan Savage’s project is video-based, which the project mentioned here doesn’t seem to be. Some people may prefer to share their story in a text-based format rather than on video, meaning that this could increase the total number of people contributing (rather than decreasing the number of people posting videos to It Gets Better). And not everyone wants to or is able to watch the videos – for instance, rural areas of the US still often have extremely slow internet access. Similarly, not everyone is able to hear and/or understand spoken English, so having written text can increase accessibility in this way. Why do you assume that hatred for Dan Savage is the motivation for this proposal?

      1. L. :
        not everyone wants to or is able to watch the videos – for instance, rural areas of the US still often have extremely slow internet access.

        True. Most of my rural town is still on dial-up.

      2. I agree with this. The two can work VERY well together and show the youth in danger that there are that many more people out there for them to talk to and that it’s going to be okay. I see this as something that is in conjunction with It Gets Better, not something that’s competing with it. I have a webcam, but I’m not in a place right now that I can put up a video, nor am I a great public speaker. I am, however, one hell of a writer. I was just made aware of this about 30 minutes ago, and I’ll be taking the time to write something up. Thank you.

    3. This is not about hating Dan Savage and definitely not about dividing or conquering.

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